Jason inclined his head towards Jim and Amirantha, and it was the Warlock who spoke. ‘We’re being played for fools, Pug.’
Pug’s brow furrowed as he asked, ‘What do you mean?’
‘I’ll explain,’ said Amirantha, ‘when Jim has told you what he saw a few days ago in the Jal-Pur, but it would help if we had another with us.’
‘Who?’
‘We need an expert on death.’
Pug looked slightly bemused. ‘I know just the fellow.’ He turned and held up his hand. The Warlock could feel shifting magic in the room, though Jim only felt his ‘bump of trouble’ start to act up. After a moment, Pug said, ‘You two, follow me.’ To Jason he said, ‘Put the toy away when we’re through.’ He stepped into the rift.
Jim turned and said, ‘Please send word to Captain Jenson to weigh anchor and make for Krondor. I’ll find him there.’ He turned and followed Pug.
Just before he entered, Amirantha turned to Jason and said, ‘You might also tell Samantha that Jim and I will be missing supper tonight.’ He then followed the other two men into the rift.
CHAPTER THREE - Sergeant-Adamant
CREEGAN GESTURED WITH HIS HAND.
Sandreena entered his quarters still covered in dust from the road and feeling hunger pangs. Once she had given care of her horse over to the stable boy, she had paused only long enough to drink deeply from the well behind the temple, but she hadn’t eaten anything but a handful of dried fruit and some nuts since leaving Land’s End. Her order was mendicant and there was no dedicated shrine or temple in Land’s End, so she had survived on what she had purchased in Durbin with the last of her coin.
The moment she handed her documents to the Father-Bishop she knew something was wrong, something that had nothing to do with the message she had delivered to him. He waved her to sit in a chair opposite his desk and said, ‘The Grand Master has passed.’
She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and made a short prayer to the Goddess to care for the old man on his way to Lims-Kragma’s domain. He had been a good man, almost saintly, and Sandreena had no doubt that he would be rewarded with a higher place on the Wheel of Life.
The Father-Bishop remained silent while she prayed; when she opened her eyes, she discovered him staring intently at her. ‘Father-Bishop?’
Creegan smiled; it was not a friendly or warm expression, but rather the smile of a man finding humour in a very dark place. ‘The end of life is not necessarily a cause for sorrow, daughter,’ he said using the address usually reserved for minor members of the order, clearly communicating the difference in their ranks. She was uncertain why he felt the need to emphasise it, but knew he did nothing without a reason. ‘The Grand Master served the Goddess well, for many years and has earned his final rest.
‘But the timing is…inconvenient.’ He stood and said, ‘I must leave at once for Rillanon, for the convocation is to be held only a week after the funeral, and the selection of the new High Priest is more critical than is usual.’
She knew he was referring to the matter of the demon host: the ‘Legion’ as it was called, was out there somewhere, threatening to bring its ravages upon this world. Few people within the temple, and even fewer outside, knew that the threat existed. Sandreena was aware of it only because of the confidence in which Father-Bishop Creegan held her. And fewer still knew of the relationship between the Father-Bishop and the Conclave of Shadows led by the magician Pug.
She merely nodded her head and said, ‘I understand.’
‘I know you do, Sandreena.’ He rose from the desk, and sat on the corner, looking down at her. ‘I have never told you, but there is a beauty to you that few notice.’
She was a little startled by the statement. There had always been an underlying tension between them, she found him a very attractive and powerful man, but his reputation as something of a womanizer, and their respective ranks, had always kept any inappropriate behaviour in check.
He held up his hand before she could speak. ‘I don’t mean your physical beauty—as impressive as it is when you choose to let others glimpse it—but rather a beauty of strength and purpose, what you’ve overcome and managed to achieve despite a desperately difficult beginning. It is most admirable.’ He stood up and moved to the window. Looking out, he said, ‘We may get more rain.’ The rain along the coast had made her trip even more difficult, so she hoped he was wrong.
‘I am leaving you in charge of the Order while I’m away.’
Her eyes widened. ‘Me?’
‘I’ll send Father-Bishop Bellamy back, to assume my duties, but in the interim, you will take my place here.’