Read The Ciphers of Muirwood for Free Online Page B

day?”
    It was a deliberate cruelty, Maia knew that at once, and Suzenne’s cheeks flushed with discomfort. These were her friends, and it was clear from Maeg’s tone and word choice that Maia had not been invited to join them.
    Suzenne looked flustered with indecision, and Maia could see that while her heart longed for one thing, her sense of duty and propriety urged her to do something else.
    Maia touched Suzenne’s arm. “Go with them,” she said softly. “I am tired and would rather walk the grounds by myself. Thank you for showing me where to go today.”
    Suzenne hesitated, and Maia could see the strain in her brow. She was doing battle with herself.
    “Will you be all right?” Suzenne asked in a concerned tone.
    “She can fend for herself well enough,” Maeg said spitefully. “Come, Suzenne! It will be dark soon. The days are so short now.”
    Maia smiled, patted Suzenne’s arm, and turned and walked away, her cheeks burning from the slight.
    “Is she really the king’s daughter?” one of the boys muttered.
    “Yes,” said Maeg wickedly. “I will tell you all about her. Come on, Suzenne!”
    “Poor lass, I pity her,” said another boy.
    Maia kept right on walking, anxious to be away from their gazes. There was a certain petulance to youth, she realized. She had been exposed to it before from her stepmother, Lady Deorwynn, and her stepsisters, but she had expected something different in an abbey. It baffled her that people who studied the Medium and knew how sensitive it was to thoughts and desires could be so callous in their treatment of one another.
    She sighed. She had borne the torment of Lady Deorwynn and her girls. Compared to that, what were Maeg’s saucy looks? She determined to bear it without becoming vengeful. She would try and earn Suzenne’s trust over time.
    The weight of the students’ behavior eased off her shoulders as she started to explore the grounds. Her eyes drank in the structure of the abbey beneath the sturdy scaffolding. She longed to strip away the wood and see the abbey as it was meant to be. A memory fluttered in her mind of climbing the scaffolding of a towering abbey in the city of Rostick in Hautland. As she walked in the soft grass, she remembered that city’s clean cobbled streets, so crammed and narrow, yet pristine. Before coming to the abbey, she had fled from one kingdom to another, crossing perilous mountains and facing storms, avalanches, and the sea.
    Maia walked into the Cider Orchard, where the leaves were turning yellow and falling off due to the cold. As she trod through the soggy remnants on the grass, she smiled to herself, feeling as if she walked amidst ghosts. She touched the gray branches, running her hands over the bark, and breathed in the musty smells of moldering leaves and early winter. In truth, she was not troubled by solitude. It was pleasant being by herself.
    After she emerged from the orchard, she veered away from the areas where the learners had gathered, and circled around to the laun dry. There were no lavenders there at this hour, since their work had been done earlier in the day. Beyond the roofed shelter, she saw a field of purple. Two workers were kneeling amidst the plants, using small knives to cut sprigs. She walked closer, wanting a better view, and was startled to realize that one of the laborers was her grandmother.
    Sabine and the girl, both wearing dirty aprons to cover their dresses, were conversing in low voices. As Maia approached, Sabine smiled warmly and quickly brushed the dirt off her hands and rose.
    “There you are,” she said, shaking loose dirt from her apron. “You are done with your studies?”
    “Yes,” Maia said, giving her grandmother a hug.
    “I wanted to show you something,” Sabine said. Then she turned to the girl kneeling beside her. “Thank you, Cybil. It was thoughtful of you to take the time to teach me your craft.”
    “My pleasure, my lady.”
    Sabine took Maia’s arm and steered her a