Arbiter (The Arbiter Chronicles Book 1) by Elisa A. Bonnin Page B

watching the clouds pass overhead.
    The next day, the High Lord came before sunset.
    Rae looked up from her seat next to the lake, watching the High Lord make her way over to her with the same practiced grace. She glanced up at the sky, but sure enough, the sun was still present, although it looked to be around late afternoon. She got to her feet, brushing stray blades of grass off of the fabric of her traveling clothes. She glanced at Cathel out of the corner of her eye, but the mage was already studiously looking the other way, his attention drawn to the book he had brought with him.
    “Arbiter,” said the High Lord as she reached her. “It is good to see you well.”
    “…High Lord,” said Rae tentatively, glancing back up at the sky. “…You’re early.”
    “I am,” said the High Lord, pointing at the eastern horizon. “The moon rises before the sun sets today,” she said. “And our lesson is better held early than late. Follow me.”
    Rae nodded, cautiously following the High Lord into the woods. This time, they didn’t go far, staying just out of earshot of Cathel and Ania and standing next to the larger river that fed the lake. The water flowed strongly in this spot, splashing merrily against the rocks and bubbling down towards the greater portion of the pool. She kept a careful distance from the edge, standing next to the High Lord.
    “…You have not asked me about Kaeltharin,” said the High Lord after a while, watching the sky begin to grow orange.
    Rae folded her arms. She tried, unsuccessfully, to stifle the sudden hopeful feeling that she felt. She had been waiting for the High Lord to speak about the Shard since they first arrived here, but now, four days in, she was starting to believe that that moment would never come. “…I thought you’d bring it up, on your own time.”
    “I had always intended to,” said the High Lord. “I will tell you what you need to know. In due time. There are still a few more things I must speak with you about.”
    Rae watched the High Lord carefully. “…I’m listening”
    “Do you understand,” asked the High Lord. “what it truly means to be Arbiter?”
    “…I make decisions,” answered Rae. The past few days, their conversations had been solely about her duties as Arbiter. Even though Rae was not sure she wanted to take on that responsibility…and in fact was almost certain she was going to refuse it, she knew the importance of the High Lord’s test. She had answered all of the questions truthfully. “My final decisions can’t be overturned. I get to decide on things that involve me, or things that are brought to my attention.”
    “As Arbiter, you are given the most freedom of any position of office,” said the High Lord. “You have the ability to decide. None can deny you the right to make whatever ruling seems right to you. Understand that. But understand as well that as Arbiter, you are the most bound. You yourself are bound by your decisions. Your Rulings cannot be overturned, not even by you. As such…you are responsible for the consequences of your actions.”
    Rae folded her arms, her expression growing thoughtful as she stared down at the water. “…You’re talking about the deal I made with the Reaper,” she said quietly.
    “In part,” said the High Lord. “Do you understand why the Reaper could not simply kill you?”
    She shrugged. She had thought about it once, wondering why the Reaper didn’t simply take her life like he had with all others. The best answer she could come up with was that he liked to toy with her. She was an interesting puzzle for him—a girl who could see him and could see what he did.
    It hadn't always been that way, she remembered. There was a time when the Reaper had been content to simply observe her. That was before he discovered that she had a voice of her own. The memory of their confrontation came back to her. She lowered her eyes as she always did at the memory. It wasn't something she liked