Spirits of Light and Shadow (The Gods of Talmor) by India Drummond

what sounded like recriminations.
    “How did you find out?” he asked. She cast him a glare, and he realized this wasn’t the most pertinent question. “Did you hear about the criminal charge, then?”
    With a start, she shook her head. “What charge? What are you talking about?”
    “I’m so sorry I’ve brought so much trouble to your door, but you need to come with me. It’s not safe for you here.” He handed her the notice and watched her dark eyes as she took in the words on the page.
    “Criminal heresy?” Her hand went to her mouth and she paled. “I’ve heard of this charge, of course, but for years the Sennestelle has practiced in the empire and been tolerated.”
    “It’s an old law,” he explained. “Nobody really pays attention to it anymore. Kilovians aren’t the only immigrants who do not embrace the Spirits of Light and Shadow.”
    “What happened? Why the change?”
    “My father clearly has enemies.”
    She frowned as though that didn’t answer the question. “I heard he disappeared.”
    Korbin frowned and shook his head. “Already? We only left at dark. They shouldn’t have discovered his absence so quickly.”
    “I heard this rumor when I visited my mentor earlier this evening. It couldn’t have been more than two hours after nightfall.”
    Korbin explained his father’s strange request and Saqine’s cryptic warning.
    Her hand trembled, and she leaned against her worktable. “It’s happening again,” she muttered.
    A sickening knot formed in Korbin’s stomach. Suddenly the situation was much more real. He’d grown used to a life in the shadows, avoiding the people he once knew. It had been almost a game. But looking into Octavia’s frightened eyes, their situation didn’t seem like a joke. “The man you knew as Dow was Dul Eliam Kerstone. He—”
    “The senator?” Octavia interrupted.
    She looked like she might collapse. The change shocked him. She’d always seemed so unshakeable.
    “Why? Why would he come here? Why would he do that?”
    Korbin guided her to a seat. “He is my friend. He was trying to help my father.”
    “You said you were a bastard. You’re friends with Dul Eliam? The man who runs this entire province? He was here. Right here. In my workroom.” She shook her head in disbelief and with a small moan added, “Now they know where I live.”
    “Eliam’s not like that. We should go to him. I believe he can help us.”
    “You lied to me,” she whispered. “You’re a Dul.”
    Korbin didn’t know why, but it was important that she believe him. “I didn’t. My father and I had a falling out a couple of years ago. He disowned me.” He showed her the insignia he wore around his neck. “I’m a Talmor Rider, a simple deliveryman.”
    She stared at him incredulously. “Yet today, you helped your father escape his enemies.”
    “Please, Senne Octavia. I want to help you.” He took the second half of the promised payment and put it on the table beside her chair. “You don’t have to come with me, but I think I can protect you. Eliam will shelter us until we find out who is doing this. He’s a powerful man.”
    She gathered her collar and pulled it closed. “I’ve had enough of powerful men.”
    “As have I,” he said softly. “Please come with me. I’ll take us to Eliam’s. If he can’t assist us, I’ll take you wherever you want to go. I’ll look out for you. I swear it.” He pressed his eyes closed. “This is my fault, my father’s fault. We brought this on you. Please allow me to pay my family’s debt by giving you what protection I can while we find out what’s going on.”
    She tilted her head as though considering, but the deep frown didn’t lessen on her brow.
    “This is a political move, and you and I are merely caught up in a bad moment. But my father is fine and he doesn’t wish to make any accusations against us. He can make these charges go away. Only the emperor himself or an act of the entire senate can