“There was no water, where we arrived.”
“There was. There is no water there now, unfortunately.” The Lord of the West March and the Hallionne shared a glance.
“...Is there any large body of water here?”
“There is no body of water with which you could commune, if that is your desire. Should you repair to the Hallionne near the heart of the green, there is the fountain. Or if you wish to visit my home, you might also make the attempt.”
The Consort is getting annoyed, Ynpharion said.
At me? Or at her brother?
Very reluctantly—or so it felt to Kaylin—Ynpharion said,at her brother.
Does she—does she thinkhehad something to do with whatever happened to the cohort?
I do not know.
Just ask her!
Lord Kaylin, what she tolerates from you, a mortal with terrible manners even for your kind, she will not tolerate from a Barrani Lord who serves her. She has not said that she does, and if she has not said it, she does not mean for me to convey that opinion.
You can’t tell?
She holdsmyname. I do not hold hers.
But—Nightshade can tell what I’m thinking, and I hold his name.
That is because you lack will and strength. Truly, if the outcaste desired it, he could wrest control from you with very little effort. And that is true, as well, of the Lord of the West March. I understand the inhibitions placed upon the Lord of the West March; there would be consequences should he do so. I fail to understand what prevents the outcaste from regaining control of his name. Regardless, I cannot answer your question because I cannot repeat it.
The Lord of the West March turned to the Hallionne Orbaranne. “If it will not trouble you overmuch, we will perhaps entertain our guests in the hall here.”
“Good,” Kaylin said, deciding. “Perhaps you can tell us what happened to the people who made their way to Orbaranne.”
He met her gaze and held it in uncomfortable silence.
13
Kaylin sat at the table upon which food had magically appeared. Her appetite had not returned, and would not return for some time, but at least the sight and scent of food didn’t make her nausea any worse. Bellusdeo looked at the food as well, as if assessing the likelihood that it contained poison. There was no fear in her expression; her eyes were orange, but that suddenly seemed a sensible color. At least they weren’t the blood red of fury that implied someone was about to die.
Kaylin had no illusions. If Bellusdeo went full-on Dragon here, it was Bellusdeo who’d die. And Bellusdeo, no fool, probably understood this better than she did. But this Bellusdeo, Kaylin had almost never seen. She was Imperial. Regal. She looked almost disturbingly Barrani; no hair out of place, no motion that was not graceful or deliberate. She took the seat that was held out for her—by the Hallionne, not the Lord of the West March; she fiddled with the various bits and pieces of junk that came before formal dinner—napkins, cutlery, weird plates.
Kaylin felt almost embarrassed. This style of social manners had not been part of Bellusdeo’s kingdom when she ruled it; she still considered it far too Barrani to be adopted by Dragons. But...she clearly, in spite of that, had learned, and learned perfectly. Kaylin once again felt like she was coming to the dinner table after she’d just run down a criminal suspect across two warrens.
“Hallionne Orbaranne, could you please tell us what you think happened? We know that Sedarias and the rest of her friends set out from the Hallionne Alsanis by the portal paths. They wished to arrive in Elantra quickly, and felt that the weeks of overground passage would cause too much of a delay.”
“The portal paths are not taken except in cases of emergency,” the Hallionne replied, “as I believe you know from your past experience.” Her voice was neutral, the way stone was neutral. Kaylin hadn’t expected that, and was surprised at how it stung.
“Could we take the portal paths now?”
Silence.
“Did the Hallionne not just say that they were not to be taken except in cases of emergency?” The Lord of the West March said.
“It’s an emergency,” Kaylin replied, in just as stony a tone as the Hallionne had used. “And I need to speak with Alsanis.”
“You might, at the Hallionne Orbaranne’s discretion, speak to him from here.”
“It won’t be the same, and you know it. They left the Hallionne Alsanis, and when they left they were safe. If they chose to take the portal paths, they did so from Alsanis. He’s aware of them in ways that nothing else is.” She tried very hard not to fold her arms defensively, and only barely succeeded. She was very, very troubled by the Consort’s advice. “And I have a pressing emergency.”
