“Knight Captain, is this correct?” Owyn demanded.
“In part.” Jehan looked directly at Bellen, judging him to be the biggest threat.
“Since when does the City Guard oversee compliance with trade permit laws? Is that matter not under the purview of the Treasury?”
Jehan said nothing.
“Answer the question!” Bellen thundered.
“Iinvitedthe lady—”
“Do you have a warrant?” Owyn demanded. “Who signed it?”
“We were simply conversing.” Jehan glanced at me.
I actually felt sorry for him. “The Knight Captain extended his invitation to me, and I voluntarily accepted. I was not arrested, although he did neglect to provide a carriage.”
Bellen somehow got even larger. “Did she walk, or did she have to pay for her own carriage to be interrogated?”
Jehan took a step back, almost out of his own office. “Lord . . .”
“Be silent!” Bellen stepped over to me and offered his arm. “My lady, would you do me the honor of allowing me to accompany you out of this place?”
The entire point of coming here had been to figure out who had arranged this mess. That ship had sailed. All I could do was let Bellen complete his rescue in a blaze of glory.
“I would be delighted, my lord.”
“Splendid.” Bellen gave me a brilliant smile.
I put my hand on his arm and stood up.
“We are leaving,” Bellen announced.
As he led me out of the office, Bellen pointed at the Knight Captain. Before the door swung closed behind us, I saw the other two knights close on Jehan like two hounds cornering a raccoon.
Outside, sunshine flooded the streets. Lord Bellen gave me another brilliant smile. The man looked overjoyed.
“Lord Bellen, that was amazing. Thank you for my rescue.”
“Don’t mention it.”
He was leading to the right, where a massive white horse waited.
“My carriage . . .” Where the hell was the Shears’ carriage?
“Won’t be necessary,” he assured me. “With your permission.”
He didn’t wait for my permission. He picked me up and lifted me onto the horse. Oh crap. The saddle was neither Western nor Eastern. It had a weird-padded bar. It was probably a war saddle, designed to keep you on the horse no matter what.
What was I supposed to do with my dress?
Screw it. I swung my leg over and sat in the saddle properly. Clover stepped forward and tugged my dress into place with a perfectly neutral expression and subtly nodded. Oh phew. I had done the right thing and dodged a social bullet.
Bellen took the horse’s reins.
“My lord, is this your warhorse?”
“Indeed.”
