She watched his eyes as if to be sure she had his full attention. "The second reason for the Rada'Han is so that we may be able to control you."
Richard glared at her. "Control me? What does that mean, to control me?"
"It means what it says."
"I'm not putting a collar around my neck so you may 'control' me." He leaned a little closer. "Or for any other reason."
Sister Elizabeth held the collar up. "As you were told before, it is more difficult for you to accept the second offer. Please believe us, you are in great danger. Your time is running out. Please Richard, accept the second offer now, on the second of the three reason and offers. It will only be much more difficult to accept on the third of the three reasons."
There was something in his eyes Kahlan had seen only once before—the last time the collar was held out to him. Something alien, something frightening. It sent a chill through her. Goose bumps rose on her arms. The anger left his voice.
"I told you before," he whispered. "I will not wear a collar. For anyone. For any reason. If you want to teach me to use the gift, to control it, we can talk about it. There are things going on you know nothing about: important things, dangerous things. I have responsibilities as the Seeker. I am not a child like you are used to dealing with. I am an adult. We can talk about it."
Sister Elizabeth stared at him with fierce intensity. Richard retreated a half step. His eyes closed, and he shook slightly. At last, he straightened. His eyes came open as he took a deep breath. He returned the Sister's stare. Something had happened, and Kahlan had no idea what it was.
The strength in Sister Elizabeth's eyes waned. Her hands lowered the collar. Her voice came in a fearful whisper. "Will you accept the offer and the Rada'Han?"
Richard stood staring at her. The power was back in his voice. "I refuse."
Sister Elizabeth went pale as she stared back for a moment before turning to the woman behind her. "Forgive me Sister, I have failed." She put the Rada'Han in Sister Verna's outstretched hand. Her voice came in a whisper. "It is upon you now."
Sister Verna kissed her on each cheek. "The Light forgives you, Sister."
Sister Elizabeth turned back to Richard, her face gone slack. "May the Light cradle you always with gentle hands. May you someday find the way."
Richard stood with his fists on his hips as he watched her eyes. She lifted her chin. As Sister Grace had done, she brought her arm up and with a flick of her wrist brought the silver handled knife to her hand. Richard continued to watch her as she flipped it around toward herself. Kahlan watched, holding her breath, spellbound, as the woman prepared to kill herself. The silence seemed thick. For a heartbeat, everyone was stone still.
The instant the knife began to move, Richard did too. His speed was shocking. Before Sister Elizabeth realized what had happened, Richard had her by her wrist. His other hand came up and began prying the odd knife from her fingers as she struggled to keep ahold of it. She was no match for his strength.
"I told you my rule, you are not allowed to kill yourself today."
Her face twisted with futile effort. "Please! Let go—"
Her body flinched. Her head jerked back. There was a flash of light that seemed to come from within her, from within her eyes. Sister Elizabeth crumpled forward to the ground, Sister Verna pulling her own knife from the woman's back as she fell.
Sister Verna's gaze rose from the dead woman to Richard. "You must bury her body yourself. If you let another do it for you, you will have nightmares for the rest of your life, nightmares caused by magic. There is no cure for them."
"You killed her! You murdered her! What's the matter with you! How could you kill her!"
She tucked her knife up her sleeve as she glared at him. She reached out, snatching the silver knife from his hand and slipped it in her cloak.
"You killed her," Sister Verna whispered.
"Your hands have the blood on them!"
"So does the executioner's axe, but it doesn't wield itself."
Richard lunged for her throat. She didn't move; she simply continued to stare at him. His hands stopped before reaching her. Richard shook, straining against an invisible barrier as she watched him.
In that instant, Kahlan knew what the Sisters were.
Richard relaxed the pressure of pushing against the barrier. He pulled his hands back a little. He visibly relaxed. Gently, his face gone calm, he reached one hand toward Sister Verna. His fingers clutched around her throat. Her eyes went wide with shock.
"Richard," she whispered angrily, "Take your hand from me."
"As you have said, this is no game. Why did you kill her?"
His weight came off his feet. Richard floated a few inches into the air. He tightened his grip on her throat. When he didn't release her, fire ignited all around them, roaring to life, a whorl of flame closing around him.
"I said, take your hand from me."
In a moment more, the fire would consume Richard. Before she realized what she was doing, Kahlan had her fist out toward the Sister. Blue light crackled all around her wrist and hand. Little threads of blue lightning escaped from the sides as she struggled to restrain herself from releasing the bolt of power. Wisps of blue fire sizzled forth, throughout the spirit house, up the walls, across the ceiling and floor, everywhere except where the other two stood. She shook with the strain of holding back the power.
"Stop it!" The threads of blue lightning sucked the fire into them. "There will be no more killing today." The blue light extinguished.
Silence again filled the room as Sister Verna stared at Kahlan. A hard edge of anger stole into her eyes. Richard settled to the ground and took his hand from the woman's throat.
"I wouldn't have harmed him. I only meant to frighten him into releasing me." She turned her glare to Richard. "Who taught you to break a web?"
"No one taught me. I taught myself. Why did you kill Sister Elizabeth!"
"You taught yourself," she mocked. "I told you. This is no game. It must go by the rules." Her voice lost its edge. "I have known her for many years. If you had ever turned that sword of yours white, you would understand what it took for me to do as I did."
Richard didn't tell her he had turned the sword white. "You would expect me to put myself in your hands, after what you have done?"
"Your time is running out, Richard. After what I have seen today, I would be surprised if the headaches don't soon kill you. I don't know why it is that the pain hasn't already put you down. Whatever is protecting you won't last much longer. I know you don't like to see anyone die. Neither do we, but please believe that what is done is done for you, to save you."
She turned to Kahlan. "Be very careful with that power of yours, Mother Confessor. I doubt you have the slightest idea how dangerous it is." Sister Verna pulled her hood up as her brown eyes turned to Richard. "You have been offered the first and second of three chances, and refused. I will return." She leaned a little closer. "You only have one chance left. If you refuse it, you will die. Think on it carefully, Richard."
After the door closed behind Sister Verna, Richard squatted next to the dead Sister. "She was doing something to me. Magic. I could feel it."
"What did it feel like?"
Richard shook his head a little. "The first time they were here, I th
ought I felt something pulling me to accept their offer, but I was so afraid of the collar, I paid it no attention. This time, it was much stronger. It was magic. The magic was trying to force me to say yes, to accept the offer from the Sisters. I just thought about the collar until the force left and I was able to say no."
He looked up at her. "You have any idea what's going on? What she was doing, and what Sister Verna did, with the fire, and the rest of it?"
Kahlan's hand still tingled from the blue lightening. "Yes. The Sisters are Sorceresses."
Richard rose smoothly to his feet. "Sorceresses." He watched her eyes for a long moment. "Why would they kill themselves when I said no?"
"I think, it is to pass their power on to the next Sister, to make her stronger for when they try again."
He looked down at the body. "Why would I be so important, that they would kill themselves to get me?"
"Maybe it is as they say. To help you."
He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "They don't want one man, a stranger, to die, yet two of them have already died trying to get me to accept their help so a life wouldn't be lost? How does that add up?"
"I don't know, Richard, but I'm so scared it hurts. I'm afraid they could be telling the truth: that you don't have much time, and the headaches are killing you. I'm afraid you won't be able to control them much longer." Her voice broke with emotion. "I don't want to lose you."
Richard slipped his arms around her. "It will be all right. I will bury her. The gathering will be in a few hours. Tomorrow we will be in Aydindril and then I will be safe. Zedd will know what to do."
She could only nod against his shoulder.
16
Kahlan sat naked in the circle with eight naked men. Richard was to her left, painted, as were she and the elders, with the black and white mud except in a small circle in the center of his chest. In the dim light coming from the small fire behind her, she could see the wild jumble of lines and swirls sweeping diagonally across his face. They all wore the same mask, so that the ancestors' spirits might see them. She wondered if she looked as savage to him as he looked to her. The unfamiliar, acrid smell from the fire made her nose itch. None of the elders scratched their noses; they only stared at nothing and chanted sacred words to the spirits.