Kaylin shot Bellusdeo a look. It bounced off her profile.
“No.”
“Do not make that face. I am not concerned with the possible actions of your guests—or rather, not their intentional actions. But the recent difficulty in the West March could not be laid at the feet of those guests. The Hallionne Alsanis was breached—without his knowledge—from the outside. It is just possible that, were it not for your interference, or the interference of your guests, the attackers would now control the Hallionne.”
“Terrano thinks that unlikely,” Helen told the Arkon.
“Oh?”
“Apologies. While we have not had this discussion in your presence, Arkon, we have discussed it, and at some length. Some of the concepts cannot be easily explained to Kaylin, and it was judged too risky to demonstrate. But the rest of the guests understand viscerally now. They will be watching and listening in ways they were not while in the West March. They understand how they were trapped, how that pocket space was created, and by what. I do not think the same trap will work again.”
“It is not the trap itself, with all due respect, but the possibility of attack.”
“Yes. I believe Lord Emmerian has done a comprehensive examination of the rooms which will be in use.”
The Arkon exhaled a steady stream of smoke, his eye color deepening to orange.
“Lord Kaylin’s guests have, as you suspect, no love of Dragons. They are, however, honorable in the ways of their kin. They owe Bellusdeo their lives. She fought to protect and defend them. They will make no attempt to harm her and, indeed, would risk much to save her—although, of course, that will not be necessary.”
“The Emperor remains at odds with the High Halls.”
“Because of the misunderstanding caused by Lord Kaylin’s familiar,” Helen said.
“Ah. Yes.” A beat of silence. “I am not a terribly political creature, as you must be aware. But, Helen, none of my kin are naturally political. Politics among my kin generally involved fire, flight and death. The Emperor is capable of subtlety when he is not enraged.
“Unfortunately, he remains very, very angry. We must be grateful that Bellusdeo is not.”
Kaylin snorted. “She wasn’t angry when itdidhappen. She thought they wereclever.”
“And they were,” Bellusdeo said, smiling.
“The High Lord has been stiff in his interactions with the Imperial Court; he cannot afford to capitulate to Imperial demands. His tenure is too new, too vulnerable. I believe,” he added with just a hint of question, “you have been provided with the relevant information. You understand that shouldanythinggo wrong this evening, it will deepen the rift between the two Courts, possibly irrevocably.”
“The Barrani won’t harm the Consort.”
“It would not be the first time that this particular set of Barrani have tried.”
“That was—” Kaylin snapped her jaws together to prevent words from escaping. What she thought was:So did Ynpharion, and he’s now one of the Consort’s closest personal attendants.But...that was information the Dragon Court didn’t need, if they didn’t already have it.
Ynpharion said nothing, although she was suddenly certain he’d heard that thought. There was nothing he could say. But if he could be accepted, so could the cohort.
“They won’t try now. They’ll never try again while they have any control over their own actions. I’d bet my life on it.”
“I am happy to hear you say that,” the Arkon replied.
Bellusdeo stiffened instantly.
“Because in some fashion, Lord Kaylin, youare.” He lifted a hand in Bellusdeo’s direction, possibly to forestall either words or fire, her eyes were so close to red. “The misunderstanding that occurred in the West March involved Lord Kaylin’s familiar. Do you understand? Any difficulty that occurs within Lord Kaylin’s home will be one misunderstanding, one coincidence, too many. The Barrani who are in conflict with both their own High Court and the Eternal Emperor will seize upon that. Should the Consort come to harm here, it will be laid at your feet. It might end all hostilities between the Emperor and the High Court—”
“Over my dead body,” Bellusdeo said, her voice a rumble of Dragon thunder.
“—but that is not an advantage to Elantra, as you must suspect. The Consort is not as secure in her seat as you believe. There are Consort candidates waiting in the wings, some of whom have passed almost all of the tests.
“And one is of Mellarionne.”
“I don’t think that was in the dossier Diarmat gave me.”
“It is a recent development. It was difficult to confirm.”
