"The secret is safe in the Citadel," Morek said. "No one serving on the Dragon Force will betray Kailin. Not the riders and not the support staff."
His faith in his people was naive, but I chose not to point out that there was rot in every society, even among the noble Elucians.
"Shovia is right." Kailin's hand in mine grew clammy. "I also think it stinks. I suspect that they are using me as bait."
I wrapped my arm around her middle, propping her up to make the descent easier. "Your brother would have known if that was the case, and he wouldn't have agreed. Perhaps they have a high degree of confidence in the loyalty of everyone who knows about you and what you did for Podana."
"Dylon might not know the plan," Kailin said. "But if there is a plan, Ravel does. Maybe that's the business he has to attend to in Skywatcher's Point? Keep an eye on me and catch the traitor?"
The same had occurred to me just moments ago.
"If there is a traitor, he or she is in the Citadel." I paused to collect my thoughts. "Someone sabotaged the pilgrimage, and it could have been one or more of the pilgrims. But there is practically no chance that they were among the twenty-four selected for the Dragon Force Academy."
"Maybe it wasn't a pilgrim," Shovia said. "Maybe it was one of the group leaders who accompanied us, or a medic. I don't think any of them were from the Citadel."
"Perhaps it was someone who was already here," I suggested. "But as impossible as it seems, if the saboteur was from the Citadel, he or she had to be a rider to get to the trail and back without being noticed. The problem with this hypothesis is that it would have made their dragon complicit, and that's even more unlikely. I can conceive of a situation where a rider is coerced into cooperating with the Shedun because they are holding a family member hostage, but the rider's dragon would never cooperate."
"I agree with Shovia," Morek said. "It could have been someone from the pilgrimage. They could have gone ahead while we slept and planted the explosives. Suspecting dragons and riders is too far-fetched."
She turned to look at him over her shoulder. "But not impossible. The higher-ups have probably gone through a similar mental exercise and realized that the only way to flush the traitors out is by dangling a very juicy bait in front of them."
I was concerned about having this conversation in a public space. The other cadets had gone ahead of us and were probably already back in their rooms, but voices carried in the stairwell.
"Keep your voices down," I said. "We don't know who can hear us."
"That's insane," Kailin whispered. "They could have at least told me."
She was right, but they must have their reasons.
"We are only speculating," I said quietly. "We can be entirely off the mark."
"The question is how they plan to protect you," Shovia whispered.
"Kailin is right about Ravel." Codric turned to her. "His volunteering to transport Alar surprised me, but now it makes sense. He and Onyx will likely shadow you."
"I don't like the odds." Morek shook his head. "It's not like the dragon can shelter in your parents' backyard. He will probably hunt or do whatever, and if the Shedun send assassins after you, he won't get there in time to protect you."
"Maybe Saphir is counting on my prophetic dreams to warn me." Kailin let out a breath. "I'm hoping that's not what he thinks."
We resumed our descent in silence, but as we reached the third floor, Codric paused and turned to Kailin. "Do you think they would let you take weapons?"
She smiled. "There is no need. Every Elucian house has at least one rifle, and ours has three. We don't need more."
It was just another reminder that Elucians lived in a different reality than most Elurians.
When we got to our rooms, we didn't have time to change out of our dress uniforms, and after hastily packing our bags, we were ready to go.
Shovia pulled Kailin into a fierce hug. "You come back to me in one piece, understand? I don't care if you have to hide under your bed the entire three days."
Kailin smiled and patted her friend's back. "I have the mighty Chicha to keep me safe, remember?"
Codric clapped me on the shoulder. "Keep your head on a swivel, cousin."
"I will, and I'll make sure Chicha is always near."
We headed out to the landing platform next to our dorm rooms, and a few minutes later, a shadow fell over us. I looked up to see Onyx circling overhead. The massive obsidian dragon descended in a leisurely spiral, and above him hovered Dylon's smaller dragonia.
"Hop on, Alar," Ravel said as soon as Onyx had landed.
