“Oh!” Temeraire said, glaring down upon him; his eyes were smarting from the smoke and ash flying through the air, “you may well apologize: how dare you have taken Laurence away from me, and the crown prince, too, when this is the consequence? And I should like to know what those dragons of yours meant, leaping upon me when I came in; it is absurd to say they did not know who I was, or thought I should be a danger.”
Lord Bayan did not even answer, or rise from his kowtow; Prince Mianning only said to him, “Your service will be rewarded as it deserves.” It was a small consolation to Temeraire that the crown prince himself was in no better state than Laurence: half-naked and smirched with a fine layer of black soot, except for the trickles of sweat and one pale smudged handprint across his back with the fingers stretched improbably long, as though someone had tried to grab hold of him and the grip had slid off.
Lord Bayan still kneeling said, “I would be honored to offer you escort and shelter—”
“Lung Tien Xiang will escort Prince Lao-ren-tse and myself,” Mianning said and turning away gestured to Temeraire slightly, asking for a leg up. Temeraire was more than glad to provide it: he wanted nothing more than to get Laurence, and Mianning, too, well away from here; there was certainly no reason to stay. Laurence hesitated oddly, looking at Bayan as the lord rose up again; then he turned and climbed aboard as well.
As glad as Temeraire was to leave, questions pressed in upon him as soon as he was aloft again and Laurence securely with him; he turned his head to ask Laurence and only then received the full and appalling explanation. “What?” Temeraire cried, halting mid-air. “Whyever did you not say so! I should have torn him to pieces, at once; why did you not say he was a traitor and a murderer? I only thought he was a fool who had made a great mess of things.”
He felt truly indignant: indignant, and wounded, and all the more by hearing that Laurence had set the dreadful fire himself. Why had Laurence not relied upon him? Surely Laurence should have expected Temeraire to follow, to come to his rescue—or perhaps not. Temeraire was painfully conscious he had not saved Laurence in Japan; he had not found Laurence and brought him safe away.
But on this occasion, Temeraire thought, he might at least avenge Laurence’s ill-usage: he almost turned back at once, but Mianning said, “No: I can use Bayan’s life better than his death, at present.”
“Do you truly mean to allow a man who has failed once to slay you to get another chance at the prize?” Laurence said to Mianning, echoing Temeraire’s own feelings on the subject: Temeraire did not see that Bayan’s life was any use to anyone at all. “There can be no question of guilt, here—Bayan suborned your guard, abducted you, held you against your will. That the assassin came from him, at the first, can scarcely be in doubt.
“I beg you will forgive my frankness, Your Highness,” Laurence added, “but this matter affects our own mission as much as you yourself. We both know how Bayan would have chosen to use this: not merely to destroy us personally, but to destroy all hope of alliance between our nations.”
Laurence spoke very soberly; Temeraire knew Hammond had spared no efforts to impress upon him the urgent necessity of the alliance, and that Laurence felt very anxious for his part in achieving it, very doubtful of his own efforts. Temeraire had tried to assure Laurence that he would do splendidly, that there could be nothing wanting in his performance, but of course, Temeraire had not suspected that there would be assassins throwing bombs at him, and treacherous dragons abducting him; he had not expected such things in China, of all places.
He did not see any reason not to kill Bayan at once, as the author of these calamities, but Mianning answered Laurence, “And so, too, must I use his failure: to ensure that alliance, and the future of my nation and my reign. I have had no certain evidence, no sword to hold above their heads, until now, but they have overreached at last.” He leaned forward. “Lung Tien Xiang, take us back to the Forbidden City: I will return to my own palace.”
“With so many of your nearest guard turned traitor?” Laurence said.