Sunstone's Secret Read online

  This publication is a work of fiction. The names, characters and events in this publication are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons living or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Published by Emerald Light Press

  Copyright © 2018 by Kate Kennelly

  All rights reserved. Neither this publication, nor any parts within it, may be sold or reproduced in any form without permission of the author.

  Cover Art by Chrissy H. at damonza.com

  Substantive Editing by KM Editorial, LLC

  Copy Editing: Sandra Nguyen

  Map designed with Inkarnate

  ISBN (paperback): 9780999097731

  eISBN: 9780999097724

  Dedication

  To Ed. For everything.

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Obsidian’s Legacy

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

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  Chapter 1

  N

  atalie Desmond stared at the boat—now a small dot on the horizon—sailing on the glittering sea until her eyes watered. Traveling away from Obfuselt, northbound to save the man she loved, all her hopes and her heart traveled with the tiny speck that disappeared into the bright morning sunlight.

  “Will you leave me in peace now?”

  She glared at the dark eyes regarding her. “Onlo, you know bloody well I think they’ve left three days later than they should have.” Natalie whirled, wishing she still had her emerald green Healer’s cloak so she could be more dramatic, and strode along the Ebenos Point docks, almost stepping on her dog Jake as she brushed past her friend. She struck out for Ebenos Point Keep, fists clenched and chin high—and said a silent prayer she would find her way to the keep without Onlo’s help. I just want to be alone in my room; Five willing, I’ll get there before my temper explodes.

  “Natalie, it took the Special Operations Guild three days to—”

  “Oh yes, the Special Operations Guild. Please don’t start. People whispering behind closed doors who didn’t even want my knowledge of Aldworth or Ismereld, and didn’t even want me in the room when they were planning Jules’s rescue.”

  When they first landed in Ebenos Point, a small spark of optimism took root in Natalie’s heart. If there was ever an Isle equipped to find a missing person, it was this one. Obfuselt, like each of the Five Isles, had a megalith in the center, imbued with magic by one of the five mages who had founded the Isles two thousand years ago. Those people Attuned to Obfuselt’s obsidian megalith were skilled in building and crafting. Because this ability extended not only to structures and ships, but to weapons, many Obfuselt Attuned were also spies, hunters, and trackers; people perfect for mounting a rescue mission. It must’ve been fate, then, that her friends brought her to Ebenos Point Keep—the headquarters of the highest-trained spies and trackers who formed the Special Operations Guild.

  It was to their meeting chamber Natalie dragged herself, two days after arriving, disheveled and dehydrated, intent on bringing them her knowledge of Aldworth. He’d once been one of the best Healers, and her mentor for a year, and now, their ultimate enemy. Certainly, they must need her knowledge of Aldworth in order to find him, right? Did they know he’d kidnapped and killed people in pursuit of his goals? Did they know what she knew about his plans to build his own megalith and imbue the country invading them, Lorelan, with Healing magic?

  When mustering her courage to face the guild, she thought her only worry would be dropping to her knees in tears, begging them to leave right away to find Jules. Instead, the boom of the guild chamber door slamming a hairsbreadth from her nose, leaving her alone in the deserted hallway, was the final nail in the coffin of her ability to help the man she loved.

  Natalie shook her head. “I sure hope they know what they’re up against. Fools.”

  Natalie’s voice rose half out of anger and half out of necessity; she and Onlo now strode along a busy section of the dock markets. Well, she walked as furiously as the crowd would allow, and Onlo followed behind like a guard dog. An unneeded, unwanted guard dog. Leave. Me. Alone.

  Hawkers cried out from under colorful awnings covering displays of a myriad of wares. Scrumptious smells wafted this way and that, prompting Natalie’s stomach to remind her she hadn’t eaten much more than broth these past few days. People from all five Isles and the continent to the northeast shopped and wandered the streets. If she wasn’t so determined to stay ahead of Onlo, Natalie might have stopped to wander amongst the shops, running her fingers along the soft textiles, sampling the foods and admiring the way the trinkets sparkled in the sun. The markets in Saltwick were never this colorful or bustling with such a variety of people.

  “Natalie, that’s my guild you’re speaking of.”

  Biting the inside of her cheek, Natalie tried to recall if she’d ever heard Onlo use that tone of voice with anyone. She swallowed and stepped around someone going the other way, taking the opportunity to be sure she didn’t let her anger show on her face. “Yes, well, I don’t appreciate being told to stay in bed and mind my own business. Especially for something as important as this.”

  “When we arrived, you were so dehydrated—you were delirious.”

  Even the thought of the unrelenting sea sickness she’d suffered during the voyage from Ismereld to Obfuselt made Natalie’s stomach curdle.

  “Besides, the Guild has a right to keep its own counsel.”

  “I’ve had enough of councils, thanks.” Healer Aldworth, the last remaining member of the Council of Healers, had exiled her and kidnapped Jules. The Special Operations Guild shutting her out of the rescue mission had pushed her patience with governing bodies over the edge.

  Warm fingers seized her elbow and spun her around. Onlo’s deep brown eyes bored into hers. “What happened to you and Jules was a terrible thing, it’s true. All I am asking is for you to trust my Isle. Just as I would trust you if I—” Onlo’s eyes shifted over her shoulder. Panic unfurled in her stomach as a bright orange light flashed against the whites of his eyes.

  A deafening roar made Natalie turn in his arms. A wave of heat rolled over her body and she lifted her hand to protect her eyes. Flames engulfed one of the marketplace stalls; Jake spooked and ran th
e opposite way, disappearing behind a shop. Good boy, Jake, stay there until it’s safe to come out. Natalie shoved out of Onlo’s embrace and ran toward the people in front of the inferno, screaming as their clothes caught fire. Heart pounding in her throat, Natalie darted into a nearby weaver’s shop and grabbed several blankets. Ignoring the shopkeeper’s protests, she raced back outside. Dropping all the blankets but one, she used the thick blanket to tackle the person nearest her to the ground.

  “Roll,” she shouted giving the person a hearty shove. “Roll and put the flames out.”

  Grabbing the next blanket, she repeated the process with another person, and then another. She grabbed the last blanket and noted with relief that many people were following the example of the victims on the ground and rolling to smother the fire on their clothes.

  “We need to move these patients away from the fire to make room for the fire wagon.”

  Natalie raised her eyes from the person she was helping. Five people carrying leather cases, black cloaks billowing behind them, listened to orders from a tall, dark-skinned woman with long spiral hair secured at the nape of her neck with an intricate silver clip. They dispersed and carried people away from the conflagration, evaluating injuries as they went; Natalie couldn’t help but admire their efficiency. A painful thread of longing tore through her heart. I used to be part of a team like that. But I can still help these patients. Solenloe leaf works on burns even if you’re not on Ismereld to Activate it. And I can bandage with the best of them.

  Natalie stood, looped her arms under her patient’s shoulders and heaved. “I need help here,” she called to the nearest medic.

  “It’s all right miss, we’ll get him. Are you injured?”

  “No. I’m a Healer, I can help,” Natalie stated, but her words fell on deaf ears. “I can help,” she yelled at another medic, but they all proceeded about their business, treating patients.

  Rolling her eyes skyward, she dragged the patient inch by inch toward the triage area. “Hell … in … a … kettle …” I couldn’t have picked a petite woman, no, I picked a tall man with all the muscles on the planet.

  She’d nearly made it when the woman in charge of the medics grabbed the man’s ankles. “What are you doing? Leave this to my team.”

  Glaring across the man suspended between them, Natalie squatted and set him next to the neat row of patients. “I am a Healer,” she said through clenched teeth.

  “Why should I believe you?”

  Spotting an open leather case nearby, Natalie spied some mashed solenloe leaves in a labeled jar next to a row of carefully rolled bandages. Before the other woman could protest, Natalie snatched the glass jar and expertly applied the leaf poultice to the burns marring the skin of the man she’d carried, starting with the worst. This finished, she wrapped her work with the bandages, all the while conscious of the other woman’s scrutiny tingling over her skin like lightning during a storm. Humph. An eighteen-year-old Healer could Heal a burn victim in their sleep. Or am I nineteen now? The weather’s just turned wretchedly hot so I’m likely nineteen.

  She put her hands on the man and reached into the island with her mind and found nothing but silence. Ismereld was the only Isle on which she possessed the ability to access the magic buried deep in the island.

  Right. I’m not on Ismereld. I’m in Ebenos Point, Obfuselt, and his body and the leaves will have to do their best.

  “Who are you?” the head medic demanded.

  Natalie shook her hair out of her face. “My name is Natalie. Like I said, I’m a Healer. From Ismereld. I cannot Activate these poultices as I normally would. But if someone changes them every other day for two weeks, his burns should be fine by then.”

  The head medic considered her for a moment, and then her expression relaxed. “Take the woman with the red hair and the child in the dress. Help yourself to our supplies.” Turning on her heel, the woman directed her own medics while treating her fair share of the patients.

  Natalie grabbed as many items as she could carry from a nearby bag and knelt next to her assigned patients. Her hands danced over their skin and she hummed comforting words to them. The loss of Ismereld’s magic felt like a ragged hole torn in her chest, but she shoved her own aches aside. The wounded people on the ground needed her skills, and she had more to offer than the gifts her home Isle gave her.

  Her last bandage wrapped, Natalie sat on the ground and dragged her forearm across her forehead. Her shirt had soot all over it; no doubt her face did, now, too. She pressed a hand to her lower back and bent backward trying to ease the nasty ache lodged there. Thirst burned her mouth and throat. Not good. I just spent four days recovering from dehydration. She spotted canteens of water amongst the medic’s supplies and helped herself. The cool liquid soothed her parched throat as a pleasant coolness filled her stomach; shivering, she gulped so much she had to make herself stop.

  Drawing a soot-stained sleeve across her mouth, Natalie surveyed the burning building for the first time since she’d treated her first victim. A large wagon drawn by several horses had arrived, carrying six large vats. Onlo and several others operated a pump on top of the truck that fed water to a hose which several other people held to douse the flames. The fire was much lower than when Natalie literally tackled her first patient. Thankfully, it had only spread to the two shops on either side of the original building. Natalie breathed a sigh of relief, coughing as she did so. She and the medics hadn’t lost a patient, and the Ebenos Point market hadn’t burned to the ground.

  The head medic appeared next to her and squatted, taking a pull from her own canteen. Natalie stared at the fire as if it were the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen.

  “Thank you,” the medic said.

  Natalie blinked in surprise. “You’re welcome.”

  “Having competent help is always welcome around here. I didn’t recognize you as a Healer. Where’s your green cloak?”

  Natalie picked up a piece of wood on the market walkway and tore it to shreds. “It’s a long story.”

  “Must be. Well,” the other woman put her hands on her knees and levered herself to a standing position. “I’m Asha. If you’re staying here for a spell, we welcome your help anytime.”

  Natalie pressed her lips together in what she hoped was a smile. “Thanks.”

  Most patients walked home, under strict instructions to visit the medics to have their bandages changed. Only a few patients left the scene on stretchers, carried by Asha and her team.

  Natalie watched them leave. Coming from the other direction was Jake, trotting with his tail between his legs. Natalie held a hand out to him. “Hey, old buddy, the fire’s all gone. It’s okay,” She kissed his head and returned her gaze to the retreating medics. The patients who still needed medical attention nagged at her conscious, her soul aching to help them. And Asha said she’d be welcome. Why didn’t she follow them? She had nothing else to do until word came about Jules. She pushed to her feet, knees creaking after treating burns for so long.

  “Natalie, are you all right?”

  Turning, she found Onlo standing behind her, water dripping from the thick cords of his dark brown hair and soot covering him from head to toe. The flames extinguished, the horses now pulled the cart with vats of water down the street.

  “I’m fine. No burns. You?”

  “Why did you run toward the fire?”

  “People were on fire. I had to help them. What started it?”

  “Come, let’s walk back to the Keep.”

  With one last wistful glance at the retreating medics, Natalie crossed her arms and walked with Onlo up the hill to Ebenos Point Keep. Maybe she’d seek them out later.

  “It was a luthier’s shop that caught fire; his storage area in the back, to be more specific. Someone was careless with a candle, and with so much dry wood, the whole shop went up in seconds. It’s too bad, he’s a good luthier and often sells violins and guitars to the finest musicians on M
ethyseld. I hope he can recover his business soon.”

  “Mm.”

  “Still, next time, let the fire crew and the medics help. I promised Jules I would keep you safe. I can’t do that if you are running toward flaming buildings.”

  Natalie stopped and put her hands on her hips. “Excuse me? About a week ago, you told me I could be a Healer no matter where I was. That I shouldn’t let Aldworth’s sentence define me. Do you take it back?”

  Onlo shook his head. “Natalie, by all means, be a Healer wherever you’d like, just don’t run toward burning buildings.”

  “Healers do run towards burning buildings. And cart crashes, and rooms full of sick people. Healing in hazardous situations is part of the job.”

  Onlo pointed a finger at her. “Stay out of danger while you are under my protection.”

  “So I shouldn’t let Aldworth define me as a Healer, but I should let you? Hypocrite.”

  Natalie stalked ahead of Onlo to the Keep. If the world was so intent on telling her where and how she could Heal, what was the point of being a Healer at all?

  Chapter 2

  E

  benos Point Keep sat upon the rolling hills overlooking the docks. The fort on the inside was a true display of Obfuselt Isle’s architects, builders, and masons. Gray stone walls rose from the ground, walls sparkling with intricate glass windows and corners capped with turrets and battlements. A small town consisting of colorful houses surrounded the fort, and an imposing wall, made out of the same gray stone as the fort, kept all within safe.

  Natalie left Onlo at the gatehouse—the only way in or out of the Keep from the docks—and stormed into Ebenos Point Keep, determined to sit in her room and have a good sulk.

  “This year just keeps getting better and better,” she growled to no one in particular.