The Valley of Lies (Lightkeepers #1)

Chapter SEVEN: Dev

The ground was wet under Dev's boots, spraying his hands as he lunged forward in the grass during drills. He landed on his palms, surged back up to his feet, then repeated the process over again. Beside him, Pile cursed at the mud splattering their faces.

"Remind me again why we need to get up close and personal with the ground?" The red-haired elf panted, wiping his hands on his grays.

"You'll do whatever I tell you to do," their old friend Calan said in a tone that brooked no argument, his blue eyes flinty, "or else you won't become a Lightkeeper."

Dev raised his eyebrows meaningfully, urging Pile not to challenge a superior, even a pretentious blowhard like Calan. Pile, of course, ignored him.

"All I'm saying is use a little creativity. We could do sprints up the hill, climb a rock, I don't know? Literally anything else until the ground's dry."

"You want to climb wet rocks? Be my guest." Calan extended his gauntleted arm in a sweeping gesture toward the distant cliffside awash with early morning sunlight. "It would save me the hassle of having to keep track of your demerits."

"Come on, Cal. It's been, what, two years since you were in the Juniors Cottage goofing off with us? Are you really going to act like you'd welcome my untimely demise over a few asinine drills? What happened that's got you so murderous, mate? Did Rana shut you down last night?"

"It's not me you're disrespecting with your insolence, Pile. Keep it up and I'll have no choice but to report to Rondan." The captain of the Lightkeepers. "If you truly want to honor the clan, pull yourself together. Know your place."

Dev took a step closer to Pile, laying a hand on his friend's sweaty back. "He'll be fine," he said to Calan, ignoring Pile's tense deltoid. "Fiery redheads and all, you know? How about I take him to grab something to drink, give him a moment to cool off?"

Calan scrutinized them for a long moment, as if deciding whether Dev was lying. As if Dev would risk it.

"Fine. Meet me at the cliff face in ten minutes."

"You really want me dead, huh?" Pile grumbled.

Dev dragged his mouthy friend away from the looming confrontation by his elbow. They ended up in front of the Healers Cottage. Their boots, grays, and faces were caked in mud and sweat, but Dev had a plan. He ran a hand through his damp hair, pushing it out of his eyes, then opened the door and pulled Pile in after him.

"This seems a little premature, don't you think?"

"Shut up, Pile." Dev cocked his head toward the back of the cottage, where Healer Mell kept a cluttered office. Most of the doorways they passed in the narrow hallway were closed off, but a few were open, revealing patients inside small but comfortable exam rooms. Dev tugged on Pile's arm whenever he suspected the other's gaze had invaded someone's privacy.

Goddess, but this would take some effort, wouldn't it?

He hoped Mell could help his friend. She'd given Liss a calming potion yesterday. Maybe she had something that would keep Pile's mouth shut. Dev didn't want to be the only guy their age to become a Lightkeeper. Len had already been discharged for similar antics, and there were only three other trainees, all of them older and arrogant. Was it selfish to want a friend among his ranks? Whatever that said about him, so be it.

Dev froze in the open doorway to Mell's office. He hadn't expected Liss to be with the old Healer, but there she was, standing by the window, tiny hands planted on her hips. Her long hair streamed down her back, and shadows darkened her green eyes. She looked upset, and Dev knew why. He'd also thought it was odd that Mell told him about the announcement instead of Liss. It probably didn't help that he'd just shown up with Pile following him like a lost cub.

"Ah, Dev." A note of surprise brightened the Healer's aged, cracking voice. "You came just in the nick of time."

"No, he didn't." Liss' posture was rigid, her fingers like claws digging into her waist.

"Oh, calm down." Mell waved one bony hand at Liss while the other beckoned Dev and Pile forward. "I was just congratulating Liss on making good decisions, and here you are."

"Are you sure it's by coincidence?" Liss caught Dev's gaze, her glare softening. But not much. "Did my dear old great-grandmother have you summoned to argue her side of the story?"

Mell chuckled. "'Dear old great-grandmother,' I like that."

"I have no idea what's going on," Dev confessed, shaking his head. "I came to ask if we can get some of that calming stuff for Pile. He's about to get himself kicked out of the Lightkeepers before he's earned his spot."

Pile flushed crimson. "Guilty," he muttered, eyes cast down to the dusty floor.

"Nerves got you, son? I'm sure I can find something for that." Mell wiggled her eyebrows, already shuffling through her crates and drawers of storage.

Now that he knew Liss was related to the old Healer, Dev could see the resemblance. They were both tiny things with pale complexions and arresting gazes that could nail a man to the wall if he wasn't careful.

"Not nerves exactly," he explained, shaking off the unsettling feeling. "More like, Pile can't keep his mouth shut."

Mell hummed in thought, rising stiffly from a deep drawer with a phial in hand. "Here we go." She held out the offering to Pile. "Our clan has always had a healthy dose of smart mouths and dreamers. It might have something to do with what got us stuck out here in the first place."

"Out here?" Pile's thick eyebrows drew together, reminding Dev of a fox's bushy tail.

"Yes. Out here, as opposed to elsewhere." Mell winked, wiping her hands on the front of her greens. She'd said it like it was nothing, but Dev was pretty sure Pile had never thought about the possibility of elsewhere. He was nothing like Liss, with her convictions and her dreams about Before.

Mell pointed at the phial. "Might want to rinse that off before you open it. The glass is filmy."

"Uh, ok. Th-thanks, ma'am."

Dev could see the gears in Pile's mind still turning. His friend was probably thinking, What is this Elsewhere she speaks of?

He decided they should leave before Pile continued asking questions. They'd agreed to meet Calan at the cliff face in ten minutes, and he was pretty sure they were going to be late. Besides, he got the impression Liss wanted to continue her conversation with her great-grandmother, alone.

"We'll get out of your hair, ladies."

Liss smiled as he turned to leave, but it seemed forced. A lot had happened since yesterday afternoon, and although they had parted on good terms last night, Dev wasn't an idiot; he knew Liss was uncomfortable with their arrangement, even if it wasn't a true Engagement. Not that he blamed her. If their roles were reversed, Dev wouldn't choose himself either. They had been friends for as long as he could remember, and Liss had always been the bold one, the one whose light shone brighter than the rest, whose dreams were too big to fit in the valley. The last thing she wanted was to be tied down to a dense, towering oaf who, like Pile, could barely wrap his head around the idea of elsewhere.

Dev wasn't trying to put himself down. He realized his strengths and didn't lack confidence, but he also knew when he was outmatched. If Liss was a shooting star burning through the dark night sky, then he was a tree firmly rooted in the ground, even as the fiery spectacle overhead drew his curious eyes. And everyone knew a tree's greatest threat.