Gail Martin - The Sworn

“And I’d trust Kellen with my life,” Cam said.

Wilym nodded. “So would I. After we left the king last night, I spoke to our escorts personally,” he said, with a glance to the soldiers. “We were also alone, and they were quartered for the night.”

“We saw no one and spoke to no one, sir,” said the guard closest to Wilym.

Wilym frowned, thinking. “After that, I went down to the stables to see that the horses would be ready, and I spoke to the king’s groom directly.”

“Were there others about?” Cam asked.

Wilym shrugged. “It was late. I don’t remember seeing anyone, but someone might have been within earshot. It wasn’t intended to be a secret mission.” He shook his head. “But I didn’t say anything about where we meant to hunt. This fellow didn’t follow us, hoping for a lucky shot. It took some time to set up that deer and make it look convincing, and then to get into position in that tree. Even the guards didn’t know where the king wanted to hunt.”

Donelan grunted. “I’ve had my eye on this spot for a while. Haven’t told anyone, but I had a feeling that I’d find a good stag here. Wasn’t about to talk about it and have someone beat me to it!”

“So that means that no one heard it from the king and stored it away for future use,” Wilym said. “That cuts down the suspects.”

“Did you talk with anyone else?”

Wilym thought for a moment. “Come to think of it, I went to the armory after that to get the king’s bow. Derry wasn’t there, but his assistant was very helpful.” His eyes widened. “Chatty, in fact. We were talking about where the deer have been plentiful this year, and he told me his favorite spots.” Wilym sighed. “I can’t believe how stupid I was. I told him enough about where we were headed that someone might have figured it out from that. I never thought-”

“Not your fault, lad, though in the future, I’ll thank you to treat my favorite hunting spots like the state secret they deserve to be,” Donelan said. “I’d trust Derry with my soul, but I don’t know his assistant. Hasn’t been with us much over a year.”

Cam and Wilym exchanged glances. “We still don’t know if it’s the assistant who betrayed you, or whether he told someone else, who used the information,” Cam said.

“It makes a short trail to follow. When we get back, I’ll bring him in for questioning. Could be, like you say, that he mentioned it in passing. We’ll find out.” From the look on Wilym’s face, Cam knew the other was blaming himself for the breach.

Cam nudged their prisoner with the toe of his boot. “Hear that? Whoever your man is inside the palace, we’ll get him.”

The assassin’s face was pale. From the bluish cast to his skin, Cam wondered whether the man would make it back to the palace. But the glint in his eyes was defiant. “Cut one down, and another will spring up. Isencroft must be free!”

“Gag him,” Wilym said to the guards, with a nod toward the prisoner. He walked over, knelt next to the man, and let his hands hover over the wound as he had done for Donelan. This time, Cam noticed, Wilym kept his eyes open. Wilym jerked the knife clear and the prisoner groaned. For a few minutes, Wilym worked over the wound. “That should keep him from dying before we reach Aberponte. We’ll see if he changes his mind about being helpful. If not, well-”

“If he isn’t helpful, hang him,” Donelan said. “That’s getting off easy for trying to kill the king. It would serve him right to be drawn and quartered, for losing me my stag!”

Now that the prisoner realized that death would not spare him imprisonment and interrogation, fear replaced defiance in his eyes. “He’s not kidding about the stag,” Wilym said in a cold voice. “The king takes his hunt very personally. If you want a quick death, and a painless one, you might want to cooperate.” Wilym gave the man a cold smile that was ominous.

For the first time, the assassin looked uncertain. Though he said nothing as the guards manhandled him toward the horses, Cam would have bet money that Wilym and the mages would get what they needed from the man if it came down to a choice between the gallows or worse.

“Whoever’s working with him probably isn’t the only traitor inside the palace,” Wilym said to Cam as they moved ahead, out of earshot of the prisoner. They stayed a pace behind the king, with their swords drawn.

“It’s not necessarily the servants who are disloyal,” Cam said. “It could be anyone they speak to outside the palace, from the woodcutters to their families.”

Wilym nodded. “Give me a foreign enemy any day. This disloyalty from within is like leprosy. A kingdom can’t stand when no one can trust his fellow countrymen.”

Even if we can defeat Alvior and his dark summoner, what will the war do to Isencroft? Cam worried. I can see what it’s done to Margolan to unseat Jared. It could take a generation to repair the damage the Divisionists have done. Lady Bright! We haven’t mustered the army yet, but the war’s already begun.

That’s Dark Haven?” Aidane stared at the dark, forbidding outline of the manor house. In the moonlight, the large building looked ominous. Aidane wasn’t sure what she had expected, but not this gray, sullen fortress.

“Dark Haven isn’t like the villas you’ve seen in Nargi,” Kolin said over his shoulder. “It’s a stronghold, not a place to lounge. You’ll be glad enough for the walls once you’re on the inside.”

Now that they were at the gates, Aidane was nervous. Not all of the apprehension was her own. Thaine’s spirit was positively jumpy. Thaine had been a reasonably pleasant traveling companion on the long trek from Dhasson, and in the nearly two weeks it had taken them to cross into Principality and reach Dark Haven, Aidane and Thaine had gotten to know each other through the silent conversation between their thoughts as Aidane bore Thane’s spirit in her body.

But if Aidane had gained a friend in Thaine’s ghost, it seemed to come at the expense of her welcome among most of the rest of the party. Cefra, once so outgoing, now regarded Aidane warily. Zhan’s attitude made it clear that he tolerated her because of Kolin’s forbearance. The peddler and the musicians kept to themselves. Only Jolie and Kolin made an effort to seek out Aidane, but even they seemed to be guarded. Aidane turned as Jolie rode up next to her.

“I’m still not sure it’s wise to bring you here.” Jolie kept her eyes on the road, but her words were intended for Thaine. “Jonmarc has a good thing going for him, finally. I won’t let you interfere.”

Aidane felt the shift in her posture that indicated that Thaine was coming to the forefront. “I didn’t come to bed him; I came to warn him. And if you recall, I’m the one who left him.”

Jolie gave Aidane an appraising glance. “I recall. You thought you’d bettered your prospects with your vayash moru patron.”

“It’s not like I broke his heart. We were never in love.”

“I just want to make sure that you don’t suddenly change your mind now that Jonmarc’s ‘prospects’ have improved.”

Aidane could feel Thaine’s impatience. “I haven’t changed my mind. This is about preventing a war. It’s the Durim I’m after. I want them to pay for what they did to me.”

Jolie’s gaze was skeptical. “I’ll be watching.”

Thaine’s disappointment was genuine. “You used to trust me.”

Jolie’s expression softened. “You might not have hurt Jonmarc with the way you left, but I wasn’t happy about it. You left a note and disappeared. Not much of a good-bye after you’d made your home with us for so long.”

Thaine’s regret was real. “I’m sorry. I was a fool. If it’s any consolation, I died for my foolishness, and I continued to pay for it, long afterward.”