“I can do it. If I’m careful—”
“How long would it take?” Achus asked skeptically. “The warlord has made his move, and he’s got Andros. How long will it be before he hashistrial and earns his execution?”
Achus was right. There wasn’t enough time for Theos to talk to the men individually. “We need them all together. Somewhere we won’t be attacked and arrested before we’re finished speaking.” He could only think of one place that would work. “The city. The main square. It’s neutral ground. Well, hopefully it’sourground. But at least neutral.”
“Will the reeve agree to that?” Achus asked. “She doesn’t generally seek your counsel, as I recall. And her priority will be the safety of the women, not the politics of the men.”
“She understands the situation. She knows that it will be terrible for the women, long-term, if the warlord gets his way.” He grinned with a confidence he didn’t truly feel. “And I think I can persuade quite a few of theotherwomen to help us out.”
“You don’t have time to seduce them all,” Finnvid scolded. “You’ll need to appeal to their brains, not their . . .”
“Hearts?”
“That wasn’t the body part I was thinking of, no.” Finnvid shook his head. “I think you’re right, though. The city would be perfect. We just need to find a way to make it happen.”
Chapter Thirty-One
“You want me to invite them all in to the city,” Photina said. Finnvid and Theos had made their way through the side gate to the city, gone to the temple, requested an immediate meeting with the reeve, been sent to her office in the middle of the night, and now she was scoffing at them. Finnvid had expected a warmer welcome, but understood her reaction when she said, “You want to bring that violence inside our walls, where our children will be exposed to it.”
“They’retheirchildren too,” Theos tried. “You know they won’t hurt the kids.Theirkids. They won’t hurt the women, either.”
“You know that for a fact, do you? Tell me, would you have predicted that the warlord and his allies would order the murder of an entire squad of Sacrati? Or arrest and execute the Sacrati captain without giving him even the hint of a fair trial?” The reeve strode around the office impatiently. “Things have changed, Theos. The warlord was biding his time, setting things up before you left. But now, he’s made his move. He’s breaking every rule he can find, and he has people helping him.”
“How many people?” Finnvid asked. He should probably be keeping his mouth shut, but he’d committed to all this, so he needed to be involved. “Do you have numbers? And how many of them are true believers, rather than just following orders?”
“I don’t know.” The reeve sighed and sank down into the chair behind her desk. “Andros was looking into all that until they stopped him. But my impression is that there are a lot of men looking for leadership, and with the captain gone, the warlord is the only one providing it. They’ll believe what he says because it’s easier than thinking for themselves.”
“Did Andros mention a letter?” Theos asked. “Did he show it to you, or mention it to the warlord?”
“He did. I saw it.”
“Where is it now?”
“He took it with him when he went to arrange Tamon’s release. The warlord said he’d trade the letter for the captain. But he lied.”
“So the warlord has the letter now. Or he’s destroyed it.”
Finnvid tried to be positive. “But the reeve’s seen the letter, and you’ve seen it. You can speak to what’s in it. And so can I. I can explain how the Elkati were tricked.”
“We can say what we want, but will they believe us?” Theos sounded like he was giving up already. And if Theos wasn’t determined, there was no way they’d persuade the reeve.
Finnvid hadn’t mentioned it before, hadn’t wanted to give Theos one more reason to consider Elkat a threat, not without hard proof. But he couldn’t refrain any longer. “There may be another layer to the warlord’s plan,” he said reluctantly. “It’s just a theory, but based on the letter, and conversations with my brother?” He took a deep breath. “It’s possible the warlord maywanta civil war, one that weakensbothsides.”
Theos’s eyes were narrow. “What would he gain from that?”
“It would kill many Torians, including Sacrati. In the warlord’s letter, he also suggested we exchange troops for ‘training.’ If enough Torians were dead, and if enough of the remaining soldiers were over in Elkat, your valley might be vulnerable to attack, even from a force that wouldn’t normally have a chance.” He waited for the others to catch up.
It was Theos who whispered, “The Elkati? You think he’s planning to allowthe Elkatito conquer Windthorn?”
“Under his banner, I assume. He’d have to arrange things so it wouldn’t look like a sign of Torian weakness.Thatwould certainly merit intervention from the central valleys. But a warlord using whatever troops were handy in an emergency?” He watched as the other two exchanged doubtful looks. “I don’t know. It’s just a theory. But you said no Windthorn soldier would ever attack the city. Elkati soldiers would not hesitate if they thought they had a chance.”
“And after killing a band of Sacrati,” the reeve mused in hushed tones, “they might just have the confidence to try.”
Theos looked toward the reeve, then shook his head as he turned back to Finnvid. “The women would fight,” he said. “Whatever Windthorn soldiers were left, plus the women—I don’t know that Elkat could win.”
“But you don’t know that theycouldn’t,” Finnvid said. “And that’s remarkable enough.”
“He couldn’t be so ruthless,” the reeve said, but there was doubt in her voice. “Or . . . if heisthat evil . . . whatelsemight he have planned? And what does that mean for the women? If he’s willing to go that far, would it be better to appease him, at least temporarily? If he’s trying to find ways to attack the city, we’re in even more danger than I thought we were. We need to be safe and careful until we have a plan weknowwill work.”
