The Ice Diamond Cuff (Custodian Novel #4) (25 page)

"Got it," Faen said, emerging at the door
holding the pouch with the cypher wheel. He stepped out of the room
and quietly closed the door behind him, as if that very action
would show his humility for what had taken place in his loved one's
bedroom.

"Thank you," Faedra whispered.

Faen smiled. He took hold of Faedra's hand
and led her down the stairs. Once back in the dining room, he
handed Todmus the pouch.

The little man took it and extricated its
contents. His mutterings started over as he turned the discs this
way and that. After a few moments, he looked up at Faedra. "We will
have to test them out. Do you have a lake or some other body of
water nearby?"

Faedra considered Todmus's question.

"There's a duck pond at the manor house down
the road," Leo stated.

"Oh, yes, Uncle Leo. You're right," Faedra
agreed. "Todmus, will a duck pond work?"

"Will there be ducks on it?" Todmus
asked.

"At this time of year, I would hazard a guess
that there will be," Henry chimed in.

Todmus shrugged. "Well, they may be in for a
surprise then." He winked at Faedra before shooting her a cheeky
grin. "I promise they won't be harmed," he added, seeing a look of
concern creep across her features.

"How are you going to get the cypher wheel on
the duck pond?" Amy asked. "The manor house is gated and they have
a really high fence." She shot everyone a sheepish grin before
adding. "And really
big
dogs."

Faedra bit her lip to stop from smiling. She
knew she should not find it amusing that one of her best friends
got her excitement from snooping in places she had no business
being, but she couldn't help it. This time it may just help them
out.

Etyran held up the ruby staff and gave it a
wiggle, answering Amy's question. He gave the young human a playful
smirk. "Is there anything else that might be of interest to us in
addition to the really
big
dogs running loose?" he asked,
mimicking her previous statement.

Amy flushed and let her eyes drop to the
floor. "Well, I didn't really hang about long enough to find out,"
she said.

Faedra shook her head but allowed a hint of a
smile to blossom on her lips as she took one of the cypher wheels
from Todmus and thrust it into Etyran's chest. He grasped it with
his free hand.

"Oh, I see how this goes," he said with a
playful tone to his voice. "I get to play dog's dinner to some
mangy mutts."

"Oh, quit your bitching," Faedra joked. "They
won't even see you. Although, they may smell you." She wafted a
hand in front of her nose and threw him a cheeky grin.

"Hey, watch it, Queenie. I had a shower..."
His features crinkled as he tried to recall. "...before your
wedding."

Faedra realized by the wink he gave her, that
he knew she was only kidding. And, let's face it, they hardly had
time to worry about showers, for goodness sake. Even if they had
the time to take one, she doubted the two in the cottage would be
able to keep up with demand.

"Go," Faedra said. "And come back
safely."

"Yes, Ma'am. Good grief, you can be so
demanding." He leaned over and gave Jocelyn a quick peck on the
cheek before straightening to stand within the red lights that were
now encircling him. He shot Faedra another wink and held his free
hand to his head in a mock salute. "Be back in a few."

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

"We better do this outside," Todmus said,
shuffling towards the door clutching the other device between his
stout fingers.

Chairs scraped along the hardwood floor as
people pushed back from the table. The room's occupants filed
outside behind the little man. Once in the open, Todmus carried on
until he was in the middle of the lawn. He bent over and laid his
cypher wheel on the grass.

Derian, Jalia and Eadlin moved in and stood
around the cypher wheel. Then everyone waited. They didn't have to
wait very long. A few minutes later, Etyran materialized on the
driveway and joined the group standing around the cypher wheel.

"Why are you soaking wet?" Jocelyn asked as
Etyran's boots squelched their way across the grass.

He stopped in between Jocelyn and Faedra,
peeled off his boots and poured the water out of them. "I hate
dogs," he muttered, as he shook his head and sprayed the pair with
pond water.

Jocelyn and Faedra flinched to either side,
wiping droplets from their faces. They looked at each other and
forced back a wry smile.

In the next second, Todmus drew everyone's
attention. "Now that the other wheel is in place, I just need to
enter the code and...presto." He stood back from the cypher wheel
clapping his hands together and placing his fingertips to his lips,
a look of sheer delight shining in his eyes. He looked up at the
three Umorians. "The channel is open," he said. "It is in your
hands now."

Derian acknowledged his part in the
proceedings and joined hands with his wife and daughter to close
the circle around the newly opened portal.

The three royals stared down at what was
essentially a hole in the lawn. Faedra could hear the rush of water
a few seconds before it gushed from the ground like a geyser.

"No way!" Amy squealed.

"You have got to be kidding me," Zoe
agreed.

It only took a couple of seconds for Derian
and his family to control the water but in that couple of seconds,
the group was drenched.

"Ha! It worked!" Faedra cried, jumping for
joy before wrapping her soggy arms around her husband's neck and
planting a quick kiss to his lips. She let him go and ran over to
Todmus, her wet hair clinging to her face. "Todmus, you did it!"
She threw her arms around the little man and gave him a hug. His
cheeks flushed, and he cast a bashful grin to the ground.

"Now that has to be the coolest thing I have
ever seen," Leo spouted.

Faedra looked up and joined the rest of the
group that was watching in awe as Derian and Jalia
played
with the water. Eadlin's hands were still trained on the hole,
continuing to suck the water through.

The water was now spread the length of the
lawn in one big wall. It was like looking at a huge wave that was
about to crest and break, only it didn't. It was perpetually moving
in the same spot. Jalia trained her hands on the soggy group of
onlookers. Droplets of water started to be pulled out of everyone's
clothing to join the wave. When everyone was dry again, she
concentrated her hands on the puddle on the grass, pulling that to
join the wave, until every drop that had come through the portal
was making up the massive wall of water that now divided Faedra's
back yard in two.

"That's all of it," Eadlin said a moment
later.

Faedra hoped the owners of the duck pond
wouldn't notice it was completely drained before they had a chance
to put the water back.

"Your Highness," Derian addressed Faedra. "I
believe a wave such as this, but on a much larger scale, would be
the best way to administer the salt water over the Alsian
army."

Faedra stared in admiration at the wall of
water. "I think you may be right." She turned to Faen, Rowan and
the dragons. "What do you think?" she asked.

They, too, were staring at the wave roaring
just feet away from them. Everyone agreed in the affirmative.

"A wave it is then," Faedra said to Derian.
"Thank you very much for the demonstration, but I think we better
return it back to the ducks before the owners notice it's
missing."

Derian and his family turned and moved their
hands to guide the water through the hole in the lawn and back to
the duck pond a couple of miles away.

Faedra turned to Etyran, her expression
expectant. He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know. I have to go and
retrieve the cypher wheel."

Faedra smiled. "Thanks, Etyran."

Etyran grumbled something more under his
breath about dogs, before being engulfed in red laser lights and
disappearing from view.

The members of the group ambled back towards
the cottage when all the water had been sent back through the
portal. Todmus scooped up the cypher wheel and placed it back in
its pouch. By this time, it was nearly time for lunch. Janessa put
her team to work in the kitchen, while the others reconvened around
the dining table and finished devouring the remaining cookies on a
plate in the middle of the table.

"We still have one problem to overcome,"
Rowan stated after everyone was settled.

"And that would be?" Derian countered.

Rowan looked around the table, considering
everyone who was seated there. "The wave is a wonderful idea. I
think it will work to great effect. But, to draw the volume of salt
water we need through the small portal to create a big enough wave
to be effective, is going to take time. The most advantageous place
to hold this counter attack will be the valley, but there is
nowhere to hide what we are doing. The Alsians will surely defeat
us before we have a chance to make any difference.

Faedra twiddled with the amulet while she
soaked in everything her father-in-law was saying. He was right, of
course. For this to work they would have to draw out most of the
army from Azran City, but they could only risk doing that when
their plan was ready to be deployed. It was going to take quite a
long time to draw that much water through the portal and mold it
into a wave.

The metal of the amulet warmed as she rubbed
it between her fingers, something she did subconsciously when she
was deep in thought or anxious.

"Does anyone have any ideas?" Rowan asked the
table at large.

Faedra cast her eyes around at all the blank
faces. Some were chewing on their bottom lip, others were looking
down at the table cloth, as if something in the pattern would give
them inspiration. The room remained quiet, only the clanking of
pots and chinking of crockery from the kitchen broke the stony
silence.

Faedra continued to rub the amulet between
her fingers as she stared into space hoping for a jolt of
enlightenment. She stilled as the wisp of an idea filtered through
her psyche. Faen noticed.

"What is it, Faedra?" he asked.

The others around the table honed their
attention on her. She looked down at the amulet that she still held
between her thumb and forefinger. She brought her head up with a
start and shot a look of determination around the table. "I need
the book," she stated.

Several sets of eyebrows creased at her
declaration.

"I may not have my powers anymore, but I can
still control the weather."

"Go on," Rowan encouraged.

"If I can get my hands on the book, I can
create a fog bank," Faedra explained, her voice bubbling with
excitement. "It will mask everything we are doing. After a while,
the Alsians will probably come to investigate, which will lure them
out of the city. Then we can unleash the salt water over them
before they even have a chance to know what's hit them."

There was silence around the table as
everyone stared at the queen, their expressions unreadable.

Faedra looked around at the faces. Her
shoulders slumped. "You don't think it will work." she said, her
voice resigned.

In the next heartbeat, she noticed Rowan's
expression change. His usually stoic features softened. He looked
at her with the admiration of a proud parent. "Actually, Your
Highness. I think that is one ingenious idea." His lips curved to a
warm smile. "Well done, young lady."

Faedra felt her cheeks flush at his praise.
Henry and Amy entered the dining room carrying trays with dishes of
soup and plates of sandwiches. They placed them on the table.

"You have raised one very clever daughter,"
Rowan said to Henry.

Henry gave Faedra's shoulders a rub and shot
a smile at the other man. "Oh, I know," he said. The others filed
in from the kitchen with more trays and placed them on the table
before seating themselves on every available chair and tucking into
the refreshments.

***

"Absolutely not!" Faen bellowed as he thrust
his chair back from the table and stood up.

Faedra looked up at her husband, who was
visibly shaking, holding back his anger. "But, Faen. It's the only
way."

"I said, NO!" he slammed his fist on the
table, avoiding Faedra's concerned gaze as the now empty plates
around his hand bounced in protest.

"Son, be reasonable. You are a Guardian. You
know how this must work," Rowan said calmly from the end of the
table.

Faen cast his father a fleeting look before
returning his eyes to the table.

Faedra stood and coaxed her husband to look
at her with a hand on either side of his flushed face. "I am the
only one who can, now that the king is dead. We have no
choice."

"There is always a choice, Faedra," Faen said
sternly. His expression determined.

Faedra closed her eyes for a moment and let
out a long breath. When she opened them, she hoped her husband
would see reason when he looked in their depths. "Not this time,
there isn't," she said. "If this is the only way I can save my
people, then it's what I must do."

"There has to be another way," Faen
implored.

"There isn't," Faedra said softly, caressing
his cheek with her palm. She could see Faen's expression change to
one of resignation.

"We'll take the ruby staff and be in and out
within a couple of minutes," Faedra continued.

Faen drew in a heavy breath, gave his wife a
considering look before letting it out again.

"Very well. You win."

Faedra's shoulders relaxed. "Thank you."

The dining room door creaked open. Etyran
walked in dripping wet once more. There was a tear in his coat. "I
hate dogs," he mumbled again, handing the cypher wheel back to
Todmus.