Michelle West - Sun Sword 04 - Sea of Sorrows (36 page)

"If the Kalakar uniform is not to your liking, choose another. But, Captain—do not be late again."

The captain nodded quietly. "Not until the end of the war, I think."

"Good. Position your men and join me."

It was Duarte AKalakar's turn to pause. The pause was fleeting.
Boy
, he thought, the respect in the word profound,
you will be a shock to allies and enemies alike when you take to the field. And if the Ospreys
—
no, if
we
have any say in it, you'll get there
.

He followed Valedan, took the place the Tyr'agar indicated at his side. General Baredan di'Navarre was silent as stone—mausoleum stone—and just as cheerful. But the Tyr'agnate Ramiro di'Callesta looked up at the Tyr'agar.

And then at the man who stood beside him. Men fell into trenches narrower and shallower than his pause. But when he spoke, he said only, "You are familiar with the terrain of Averda."

"With the terrain of a decade ago, yes."

"This… is a map… of the territories that are likely to be threatened by the pretender's army."

He offered no warning; Duarte needed none. But he understood why the room was shorn of the Empire's finest Generals.

Valedan
, he thought,
do you know what you've done here
?

"The blue markers?"

"Belong to Mancorvo. As you are aware, the Mancorvans and the Averdans are… not friendly. But of the Tyrs, Mareo di'Lamberto is the man most likely to be swayed by the honorable cause.

"If he perceives that cause to be owned by anyone other than the Callestans," Duarte responded.

"Indeed, AKalakar. You are perceptive."

Duarte started at the map for a long while, absorbing the information; seeing in this map, in these men, in this gathering, the true harbinger of war.

"What is he doing?" Alexis said under her breath to no one in particular. Many of the Ospreys spoke out loud for no reason; Kiriel had ceased to find it disconcerting—but she still had difficulty separating the rhetorical from the conversational.

"I think," she replied, when no one rushed in to answer, "he is looking at the maps."

Alexis snorted. "We've been guarding that boy for months now, and he's never invited Duarte to stand guard over the tabletop."

"No," Kiriel said quietly.

Alexis' narrowed glance came in from the side; Kiriel ignored it. She had learned this from Auralis, who received a similar glance and handled it the same way. Only an idiot could fail to notice their bruises, cuts, and scrapes. But only another Osprey would know that beneath newer armor, and newer clothing, the wounds were deeper.

"You two are up to duty?"

They both nodded.

As if she'd expected a different answer. She shrugged; their funeral, if they were stupid enough to want one.

23rd of Scaral, 427 AA

The Terafin Manse

Elonne ATerafin was striking. She was not, Finch decided, classically beautiful, but her eyes caught one's attention from half a room away, and they didn't let go easily. Or at all. She had chosen—as had all of the members of the House Council—to keep a coterie of House Guards by her side, but they were few: four in total, two at the doors to the sitting chamber she had picked for this meeting.

Her rooms were finely appointed. Very finely. But they were not overdone. Finch wondered if she had chosen the decor herself.

"ATerafin," Elonne said, inclining her head. "I am pleased that you could make the time to accept my invitation."

/
bet
. Finch remembered to smile. The clothing she wore was less elegant than Elonne's; less daring. Elonne wore deep blue and deep green in a flowing trail from her left shoulder to the floor. Ellerson had chosen, for Finch, muted colors; a pale cream edged in simple gold. Not for her the single-shouldered dress; hers was more practical. And, if she were honest, more youthful. Ellerson had stressed that.

You are small for your age. And you are younger than Elonne by a good ten years. She should not expect much from you. Give her what she expects, or perhaps less.

"I'm honored to have been invited," Finch said at last. Elonne gestured to a chair, and Finch took it, trying to keep her back and shoulders straight. She had spent the better part of three days listening to Ellerson's disparaging comments, and she knew that slouching was not acceptable.

That was easier to remember than she'd thought; there was nothing comfortable about this room, this woman, those House Guards.

A servant came in through the double doors that led to the sitting room. He carried a tray with the stiff perfection of bearing that the best of servants displayed. His steps were light, his movements deliberate, his silence perfect.

Elonne gestured when he had set the tray down, and he made his retreat.

For the first time in a few years, Finch wished she was a servant.

Elonne's smile was about as friendly as a smile on such a patrician face could be. It did not immediately set Finch's teeth on edge.

What should I do if she offers me something to eat?

Eat it.

But what if
—

Finch, this is
House Terafin.
Elonne ATerafin would no more poison you in her own quarters than Jewel would
.

But what if
—

This is simply a meeting, no more. If you choose to refuse her hospitality, do so. But be aware that she will note that refusal, and understand exactly what you mean by it.

What would Jay do?

Jewel is a person who has always accepted a challenge.

Finch dearly wished that she were more like Jewel. As if he could hear what she hadn't said—and she'd said it enough since he'd arrived that that wasn't hard—he offered her his formal smile.
You are not Jewel ATerafin. You are Finch ATerafin. But think: Jewel chose you because she trusts you. I do not think that you
—
that any of you
—
understand how much she relied on you
.

Short of spitting in the face of Elonne ATerafin and storming out
—
which is something Jewel would be more likely to do
—
there is nothing you can do that is fatal here
.

Can't you come, too?

Not yet. It would be hard to explain my presence to Elonne, and if you said I was your domicis, she would merely think that the den is of value to The Terafin in and of itself, and the pressure she applied would be more extreme.

"I imagine that you're wondering why I've asked you here."

Finch nodded, and then forced herself to speak. "Well, yes, a little."

Elonne's smile deepened. She reached for an empty glass, and lifted the carafe from the tray. "Will you join me?"

Finch nodded again.

Elonne poured. Over her bare shoulder, the armor of House Guards caught light, drawing the eye.

"I imagine you have relatively few of the House Guard in your wing."

"Almost none. Unless The Terafin comes."

"Truly? And who attends Jewel ATerafin?"

"Her domicis."

Elonne's smile stiffened for a moment. She finished pouring a second glass in silence. "That would be Avandar Gallais?"

"I think so."

"You think so?"

"I can't remember his family name. We never use it."

Elonne's fingers brushed Finch's as she handed her the glass. Her eyes never left Finch's face. "You don't seem comfortable speaking of the domicis. Do you dislike him?"

Finch shrugged. And then, realizing that this would be an "etiquette mistake," she added, "I don't know him well enough to like or dislike him."

"Well said. Very well. You might consider asking The Terafin to extend the use of the House Guards to the wing."

"Oh, we've always had the right to call the House Guards, but we don't use them."

"Oh?"

Finch almost said something, but remembered that Elonne had House Guards in
this
room.

"We've never needed them," she said instead, and knew it was lame.

She put the glass down on the table, because it had started to shake. She knew that Elonne would notice it; she had the feeling that she noticed everything. Sort of like The Terafin, which made sense, since that's what she wanted to be.

"Have you had any word from Jewel since her departure?"

Finch said nothing.

Elonne lifted her glass to her lips. "Finch," she said, when she lowered it, "I am concerned for you and your friends."

"W-why?"

"It did not escape my notice that Teller ATerafin recently had an unfortunate accident. I believe he has recovered, but it must have been a shock."

When Finch didn't speak, Elonne frowned slightly. The expression added years to her face, stripping it of the semblance of amiability.

"I will be blunt, then. I know that Haerrad ATerafin had a hand in that injury."

"He d-did?"

"Can it be that Jewel has not seen fit to tell you of this?"

Think, dammit, think
. "She—she said that—that it might be because of someone in the House, but she didn't say w-who. We don't, we don't deal with the Council directly. This is the first time I've met anyone on it, outside of Gabriel."

"And Jewel, of course."

"Well, yes, and Ja—Jewel."

"It may be, in the absence of the younger ATerafin, that you will be called upon to 'deal', as you so quaintly put it, with other members of the House Council. Perhaps Haerrad will leave you be; he is not a subtle man, and may decide that without Jewel ATerafin to guide you, you are no more than glorified servants." Elonne smiled at Finch's snort. "But I believe that the ATerafin is far too intelligent to gather fools about her. She obviously values your skills and your knowledge."

"T-thank you."

"If Jewel ATerafin does not return, and you must concede, given the place of her departure, that this is a likelihood, I would be pleased to offer you my protection, and a place in my service."

Everything Ellerson said flew out of her mind, as if on the wings of the bird after which she'd been named.

"Jewel is going to return."

"Oh?"

"She's not dead. She's on a mission of—she's gone." Stupid, stupid, stupid. And to cover stupidity she did what she often did; she threw more words over the old ones in the hopes that she could bury them. "She can't be killed very easily. People—and a lot damn worse—have tried. She's smart, she's fast, and she's just—just hard to kill. Plus, she has Avandar with her, and anything that wants to kill her has to get through
him
first."

"Yet she ended up in the healerie, and her life was in the balance."

How much did this woman know?

"Anyone else would have been dead. And it doesn't matter if she came close, does it? She's still alive. She's coming back."

"And you think her talent so singularly strong that it guarantees a safe return?"

Finch's tongue tripped over her words again. "Her— her talent?"

"Finch,
I
am a member of the House Council. Jewel's ability, and therefore her value to the House, are well known to those who serve The Terafin closely."

It was meant to be a rebuke; it was. But Finch felt more comfortable with it than she had with the honeyed overture of friendship.

Finch shrugged. "Then, yes. Yes, her talent will keep her alive. It always has.
Always
."

Elonne smiled. "Good. Because she is of value to the House. I do not think, were I to make the decision, that I would squander her ability, or needlessly risk her life, by sending her so far away from Terafin, so frequently."

Most of the Terafin family that's died this year has died here
, Finch almost said. She bit her tongue, hard.

"But I thank you for confirming a suspicion. Let me restate my offer, then. I would be more than honored to take you under my protection for the duration of Jewel ATerafin's absence. You would, of course, remain within Jewel's wing, but you would be more heavily guarded, and more closely watched; I would guarantee no other undue interference in your affairs.

"No, don't answer me now. I realize that this has come as a surprise to you, but I wish you to think of what it might entail for your friends. I also wish you to think of the alternative. And do not mistake me, Finch; I do not seek to threaten, merely to inform. If you do not accept my protection, you may well be granted another's, and one less to your liking. Haerrad has privately expressed some interest in the merchant offices. This is normal; upon the House Council we frequently oversee less significant portions of the House operations. He has never mentioned you, or your friends, by name, although I am certain he knows them well. He has merely pointed out that some offices have been left, for some time, with less than full supervision, and he has also pointed out that he has the resources, and the prior experience, to be of aid.

"The Terafin has heard his offer, and considers it now. But among those offices would be yours."

Finch sat with her forehead against the cool wood of the kitchen table. She hadn't summoned the den; she was alone in the room, with the flicker of lamplight, the flow of candle wax. It was a waste, and she knew it, but she wanted light, and the sun had gone down far too quickly.

The door swung open. She recognized the fall of the step across the threshold and didn't bother to raise her head.

"ATerafin."

She mumbled Ellerson's name.

"The meeting was not to your liking?"

She lifted her face then, frowning slightly where Jewel would have scowled. "No."

"Did it go poorly?"

"Yes."

"How poorly?"

"She—she said—she said that Jay might not come back, and I sort of—" She looked away. "I sort of went on and on. Telling her she was wrong."

"You called her stupid?"

"No!"

"Good. She offered you her protection?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

He smiled. "There is very, very little else that she could offer you, Finch. You are more than you seem to be, but no one with any perception at all could think that you would be less. She has paid you a compliment, of a type. She knows that you—that none of the den—can be bought."