Lilla shrugged: ‘Fair enough,’ and Tayan knew that although it would be expensive, his husband wouldn’t begrudge him such a meal on their first day back.

Lilla stood and found their kilts, threw Tayan’s at his head and slipped into his own.

Tayan huffed and dressed, but his expectant grin faded as no prancing dog and smiling eja burst into their small, neat home. He padded to the door and pulled back the curtain. ‘Firepit’s not lit,’ he said, frowning.

‘Really? Maybe she spent the night at Toxte’s.’

Tayan chewed his lip. ‘And didn’t hear that we’d both returned home on the same day? No. I don’t like this.’

Lilla’s hand was gentle on his arm, and when he turned, he passed him the half-empty jar and then his tunic. ‘Then let’s go and find her,’ Lilla said and drank the last of the water Tayan had left for him. Together, they stepped out into a morning patched with cloud, the humidity already stifling, and strapped on their sandals. ‘Water temple?’

‘Makes sense.’

They were halfway down through the city, hurrying through the plazas and markets and sidestepping shrieking children and squabbling dogs when they heard a piercing whistle behind them and stopped to look. A grin was already breaking across Tayan’s face, but it faded when he saw the woman behind them wasn’t Xessa.

Eja Elder Tika strode towards them, her dog Yalla prancing at her side. ‘What wisdom from the ancestors, shaman?’ she demanded, without even any pleasantries. Tayan wasn’t surprised; Tika was elder because she was tough and well respected and an exceptional eja, though the spirit-magic did not ride her senses today. And at least this way, he could tell an elder what needed to happen and then go and find Xessa without feeling guilty.

‘The ancestors left me with little, elder. They say that only a Pecha can defeat the Pechaqueh. As such, it is clear to me that I must go to Pechacan, to the Singing City itself. There, I must convince a high-ranking Pecha that the war must end, that Yalotlan and Tokoban remain free.’

Tika was silent, tapping a fingertip against her pursed lips as she thought. ‘It is not what I had hoped, but then again neither was the outcome with the Zellih. Perhaps it is the only way, and I admire your courage. That is a long journey and a dangerous one. And I suspect the Singing City itself will be even more lethal. When will you set out?’

Tayan swallowed against the nerves fluttering in his belly. ‘That will be for the council to decide, elder. I would hope for at least some days here, to rest and prepare. And … now that you are here, elder, can you tell me where Eja Xessa is? Her house is empty and—’