“No. I’ll stick with you. Besides.” Rylana rose to her feet. “We can’t let Vormalt blow up that temple.”
Bracing herself, she spread her arms and walked toward the mayor, high priest, and Vormalt. Jildarin didn’t hesitate to follow after her. A hound bayed, its deep voice thundering through the trees.
“Mayor Sedgewick?” Rylana called, though the two gnomes and Vormalt had already spotted them and were staring at her. “You’ll want to search and detain Lord Vormalt.” She looked at him as he clenched a fist and scowled at her. “He’s planted what Ibelieve are explosives around the new-god temple, and he’s got what might be an activator wand in his bag to detonate them.”
Vormalt opened his mouth, looking like he wanted to deny the statement but didn’t know what to say.
“If you want the curse lifted, Mayor Sedgewick,” he settled on, “you’ll search and detainthem, not me.”
“I’ve nothing to hide.” Rylana spread her arms farther as the lieutenant, another peacekeeper, and one of the canine handlers with his hound jogged into view. Though its vest said “log inspector,” the copper-furred dog pointed its snout toward Jildarin and barked.
“Really,” he murmured.
“Is that the dragon chef?” the peacekeeper asked.
“We will detainallof you.” Sedgewick waved for the lieutenant to handle that. “Everyone out on Lucky Island in the middle of the night while the city is cursed is suspect.”
“You will attempt todetaina dragon?” Jildarin’s voice promising that would be unwise.
The hound barked at him.
He growled at the hound.
It tucked its tail between its legs and slunk behind its gnome handler.
“Should you wish to retain your diner and the right to work and live in Tranquility, you will come with us, Lord Dragon,” the lieutenant said. When Jildarin glared at him, the gnome hurried to add, “We will question everyone and determine if any laws have been broken. If you and your lady friend are innocent, you’ll be released promptly.”
“Search Vormalt’s bag before you detain any of us,” Rylana said. “You don’t want to lose your temple.”
Eyebrows rising, the high priest looked at the structure with concern.
“There are buried explosives next to two of the walls,” Rylana added. “I’m sure you can find the spots he dug up recently.”
“What are youdoingout here in the middle of the night, Rylana?” Vormalt whispered harshly.
“Fern frolicking.”
“Are you going out of your way to thwart all my plans?” He was still whispering, the gnomes distracted by their consideration of the temple, though they hadn’t yet run over to search for explosives. Maybe they worried about detonating them and blowingthemselvesup. Understandable.
“Youdidbreak into my father’s castle and tear up the library floor.” Rylana didn’t keephervoice down. The gnomes ought to have plenty of reasons to believe Vormalt far more of a criminal than she, but she would add to that opinion if possible. There was no reason she and Jildarin should be detained, however briefly. They were out here trying to help. Too bad that peacekeeper captain that Sylin had befriended and was working for wasn’t among the troops present.
One of the black dragons flew between Lucky Island and the western shoreline, low enough that her wingbeats were audible in the still night. One amber eye watched them. Rylana, deciding that being meek wouldn’t work with Jildarin’s relatives, lifted a hand and waved cheerfully at her. In the dark, it was hard to tell, but she thought smoke wafted from the dragon’s nostrils.
“Isn’t the pillar supposed to defend against that?” Sedgewick watched their scaled visitor with anything but cheer.
“It will if he flies close enough to the island to be considered on—over—land within the borders of Tranquility,” the lieutenant said.
“She,” Jildarin said. “That is Jixana-grozanarav of Clan Killcrusher.”
“Killcrusher, Chef?” asked the gnome who’d recognized him. “Isn’t thatyourclan?”
“Yes.”
“Is that a relative?”
One could say that…
“Some members of the clan object to my current occupation and interest in serving lesser species,” was all Jildarin said.
