Their greetings were sarcastic, but a smile hid behind each one. They were happy to see their brother. Maybe even me.
“I’m sorry we’re late,” I said. “Time got away from us. We—”
“No need to apologize,” Vairlyn said. “It’s been an eventful day.”
Bowls filled with cold mint soup were already placed in front of everyone. Vairlyn and Gunner sat at one end of the long table and the two seats at the head remained empty. Jase pulled one chair out for me, and then he took the other.
“Hmm,” Priya said quietly, noting my spot at the head of the table.
Wren and Synové sat near the middle, and I noticed that Mason was seated next to Synové. I wondered how she had orchestrated that. Samuel sat across from Wren, his right hand heavily bandaged and his arm elevated in a sling. Between his injury, Synové’s bandaged head, and the scrapes and cuts on Wren, Mason, and Jase, we were a sorry looking lot, though decidedly less bloody than earlier today.
“Did you see it?”
“Did you see it?”
Lydia and Nash bounced in their seats, echoing each other’s excitement.
“Open it! Read it!” Lydia said.
Lying beside my bowl was the letter from the queen. The seal had already been broken. I looked down at the other end of the table and Gunner shrugged. “You weren’t here. I wasn’t sure if it was urgent.”
I unfolded the letter and saw immediately that it was written in Morrighese, not Vendan. As I expected, the queen intended for them to read it. I read it aloud, though I was certain most of those present had already viewed it.
“Dear Kazi, Faithful Rahtan in valued service to the crown,”
Wren choked on her water and I sent her a warning look. The queen was more of a casual note writer. She wasn’t one for pomp and circumstance, and her formal greeting made it clear that none of her words were what they seemed. She had understood my letter to her to its core.
“I read your letter with delight and gratitude that the Ballenger family is extending its warm hospitality to you, and to my other esteemed guards.”
Delight meant the whole Vendan Council had a good laugh over it.
“Your revelations are indeed astonishing.”
I don’t believe a word.
“This wild and untamed territory you’ve described is intriguing, and I trust you are using your time wisely to learn all you can about it.”
I hope you’ve found our man by now.
“Lord Falgriz—
I stifled a snort of my own. Griz was no lord, and he hated the teasing title the queen sometimes called him.
“Lord Falgriz,” I continued, “is escorting my brother to the palace at Merencia where I intended to meet with him.”
Griz is waiting at the rendezvous point, along with troops.
“But I can put some of my longer-term plans on hold and make a short stop at Hell’s Mouth.”
Even a queen could not put some plans on hold.
“I accept the Ballenger invitation to visit. I look forward to seeing you at month’s end.”
If you have still not found your quarry by then, he is not there. Come home.
“Your faithful service is a gift to me and all the kingdoms. It will never be forgotten.”
She signed off with all four of her given names, which I knew she never used.
The letter held no surprises except for the last line. It was a reminder—I believe in you.
Pleased chatter erupted around the table, all of it polite because Wren, Synové, and I were present, but I heard the crisp ring of entitlement. This was something they felt they had coming, and it was long overdue, but I noticed Jase said nothing, his eyes focused on Jalaine instead. She’d said nothing ever since we arrived, her back stiff against her chair, her eyes cast downward at her lap.
While still looking at Jalaine, Jase asked, “Samuel, how is your hand?”
The mirth of the room dulled.
Samuel struggled to master his spoon with his left hand, the green soup spilling over the sides with his clumsy movements. “I’ll live,” he answered.
“Jalaine, look up from your lap,” Jase said. “Look around. You have nothing to add?”
“Jase,” Priya said, warning in her tone.
He shot her an icy stare to quiet her.
Jalaine’s attention rose from her lap. Her eyes were swollen and red. Her gaze circled the table, as if seeing everyone for the first time, until her eyes landed back on Jase. “Nothing to add, brother. Not a word.”
Wondering glances ricocheted around the table. Surprisingly, it was the nasty one who tried to bring a measure of cheer back to the room. “I have more good news,” Gunner said. “While you were away, another kingdom signed a lease for apartments. Cruvas will now make us a base for trading too. And that shipment we promised the Candorans? I have confirmation it will be here in two weeks.”
Now Gunner had Jase’s full attention. “Two weeks? That’s excellent news.” He leaned forward, eager to discuss it more, but then sat back. “We’ll talk more later.”
Vairlyn’s eyes nervously swept the table. “That’s enough about business,” she said. “Let’s enjoy our soup.”
Conversation erupted as everyone dug in. Nash asked Wren question after question, mostly about her ziethes, which I had persuaded her to leave behind in her room tonight, though she still wore a dagger. I was surprised to see Mason talking quietly to Synové, asking about her head, whispering something else I couldn’t hear. Priya questioned Samuel about the settlement, but I noticed Jalaine remained quiet.
“What’s wrong with your sister?” I whispered to Jase.
“I’ll explain later,” he answered and his hand reached under the table and squeezed my thigh. His expression was taut, and he looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here right now.
A loud clatter stopped the conversation and everyone looked at Samuel. His spoon had tumbled from his fingers and green soup splattered the table. “Sorry,” he said. “It may take me a while to get the hang of using my left hand.” He blotted the green spots with his napkin. Wren pushed her seat back and circled around to his side of the table, grabbing a mug from the sideboard as she walked. She placed the mug in front of him and poured the soup from the bowl into it. “There,” she said. “Drink. Problem solved.” She returned to her seat.
Samuel smiled and lifted the mug to his lips, but Jalaine’s eyes pinched with horror as she watched him. She pushed back her chair and fled the room.
“What’s wrong with Jalaine?” Lydia asked.
Nash looked at Wren. “Can I drink my soup from a mug too?”
“Should one of us go after her?” Aram asked.
“Jalaine will be fine,” Jase said firmly. “She’s just tired. I’m giving her some time off from the arena.”
Gunner leaned back and moaned. “Why would—”
“Gunner,” Jase said, stopping his brother mid-sentence with a sharp glance. I saw how quickly Jase could be two different people, the brother and the Patrei. That was the strain I had seen in his face earlier, the weight of it pressing on him.
His focus turned and I watched him eyeing Lydia and Nash, choosing his next words carefully. He stood and walked to the sideboard. He grabbed two mugs and set them in front of Nash and Lydia, then emptied their bowls of soup into them as he explained. “One of the crew we encountered today was a friend of Jalaine’s.”
Priya’s mouth fell open. Titus sat forward in his seat. Vairlyn’s lips pressed tight. Everyone but Nash and Lydia knew that the “crew” we encountered were dead at the bottom of a gully now.
“Who was it?” Aram asked.
Jase sighed. “Fertig.”
A hush fell at the same time Lydia shouted, “I know Fertig! He’s Jalaine’s beau.”
She and Nash began happily slurping their soup from the mugs.
Jase walked around the table, returning to his seat. “There’s more. Jalaine had mentioned Gunner’s message to Fertig—the one calling us home. That’s how he knew where to find us.”
Vairlyn leaned forward, her fingers pressing on her forehead.
“Fertig?” Priya said, as if she still couldn’t quite believe it.
“Why didn’t you say something when we were out there?” Samuel asked.
“I wanted to get information from Jalaine first.”
“Which one was he?” I asked.