“I have already considered that,” Khelben told him, “and it was for that reason that I met with young Caladorn this morning. He is in charge of the tournament, and he is of noble birth. I advised him to withdraw from the games; barring that, I warned him to take whatever precautions he could.”
Danilo placed both hands on the table and leaned down to glare into his uncle’s eyes. “What would you say if I told you that Caladorn’s ladylove, Lucia Thione, is an agent of the Knights of the Shield?”
The archmage’s eyes widened, and an uncharacteristically earthy expletive burst from him.
“Well!” Danilo straightened up. “That’s not what I thought you’d say, to be sure, but apt nonetheless. May I take that as a confirmation?”
When Khelben again hesitated, Laeral broke in. “Lucia Thione was here earlier looking for Caladorn. She seemed anxious, almost distraught. I agree with Danilo. Someone has to warn Caladorn at once. If you’d seen that woman’s face, you’d know that the dangers arrayed against him are not limited to the arena. Go, Dan.”
The archmage conceded with a grim nod.
“Unless you’d rather speak to him yourself?” Danilo asked, hope in his voice.
“Go!”
After receiving Khelben’s assurance that the city officials would take care of Lady Thione and Lord Hhune, Danilo went He retraced his way to the tournament field, and the memory of the love shining in Caladorn’s eyes haunted him as he went.
Fifteen
Caladorn was hard at work when Danilo arrived at the Field of Triumph. When the young lord saw Dan, he sheathed his sword and dismissed his opponent with a nod. He strode over to the entrance and greeted the younger man with enthusiasm.
“Here to give me that match you promised, are you?”
“Well, not exactly.”
“I won’t hear otherwise! You’ve a sword already; shed your cloak and let’s have a go.”
“Caladorn, I really must speak with you. It’s most important”
“So is sword practice. We can talk while we work.”
With a sigh, Danilo did as he was bid. Ideally, he preferred not to break bad news to an armed man. Yet he had little time to spare with arguments, and Caladorn was adamant. The Harper drew his sword and mirrored his friend’s salute, then blocked the first ringing blow. He retreated and then feinted to the left. Caladorn blocked easily and riposted.
“The Knights of the Shield are active in Waterdeep,” Danilo began as he blocked.
Caladorn chuckled and made a flamboyant advance, his right foot stamping. He danced back before the Harper could retreat “And how would a bard know of such things? Oh, yes, I know of your rapidly growing fame. You are planning a new ballad about these infamous spies, is that it?”
“Not immediately, no.” Dan again blocked, riposted, retreated. “I don’t know how to tell you this, so I’ll be blunt Lady Thione is one of their agents.”
Caladorn’s face darkened, and for a moment he lowered his sword. “You’re right, lad, you don’t know how to tell me anything of the sort.”
The Harper brought his sword up in time to fend off a high, downward strike. “She paid my associate with a coin bearing the Knights’ mark.”
“So? It was passed to her!”
“By whom?”
“How would I know!” Caladorn slammed his sword back into its scabbard and folded his arms.
“I can tell you that,” Danilo said softly as he sheathed his own blade. “Lord Hhune, a guildmaster of Tethyr and an agent of the Knights, is now here in Waterdeep, working to establish guilds for thieves and assassins.”
“So? This has nothing to do with Lucia! She is a merchant, and she has done business with Hhune in the past. He must have given the coin to her during a business transaction. She probably never knew she had it!”
“For your sake, I hope you’re right. It’s interesting, though, that one of Lucia Thione’s servants paid for a performance at the Three Pearls theater, using some of Hhune’s marked coins.”
Caladorn’s face went very still.
“I’m sorry about this, my friend, but can you afford to dismiss all suspicion?”
The fighter shook his head in astonishment “Why are you doing this, Dan? What could you possibly know of such matters?”
“I’m a Harper, Caladorn. It’s my job to know what’s going on.”
The young lord’s laughter was harsh. “I’m still trying to absorb the concept of your bardhood! Don’t stretch my credulity to the breaking point.”
“Nevertheless, all I’ve told you is true.”
“I’ll not hear another word against Lucia.” Caladorn glared at the younger man, controlling himself with visible effort. At long last he whirled and stalked away, leaving Danilo standing alone in the middle of the arena.
“Well,” the Harper said wryly, “that went better than I expected. Things could be worse.”
His words were met by a boom of thunder. Dark purple clouds began to gather over the Field of Triumph, and a flash of lightning ripped across the livid sky.
“You’d think I’d learn not to say things like that,” Danilo muttered to himself as he sprinted through the first streaks of rain.
After Danilo left Blackstaff Tower, Khelben Arunsun strode quickly through the underground passages that led to Piergeiron’s palace. The unmasked Lord commanded the combined forces of the guard and the watch, and his command would be needed to arrest important persons such as Hhune and Lady Thione.
Hhune’s presence in Waterdeep had been noted, and he would have been carefully watched under any circumstances. As a guildmaster, Hhune was a powerful force in Tethyr. This made his connection with the Knights of the Shield all the more disturbing, for it combined two powers hostile to Waterdeep and to her Lords. But he was also a wealthy, traveling merchant, and these were always welcome in Waterdeep. By rescinding this welcome, Piergeiron risked endangering trade between Waterdeep and Tethyr. It was a delicate matter, and no decision that the First Lord made would be entirely correct.
Khelben’s entrance to the palace was hidden in a small anteroom. He strode quickly through the halls toward the council room, noting as he went that the careful eyes of Piergeiron’s guard were upon him. Even here, he noted wearily, he could not escape the burden of suspicion that the bards’ songs had placed upon him.
“I will do what I can,” Piergeiron said once Khelben had related the story, “but it’s hard to believe that Lucia Thione is connected with Knights of the Shield. We will need more proof of guilt before taking steps against someone so powerful and popular. A quick sentence by the Lords of Waterdeep could bring about a good deal of resentment and unrest. Our decision to censor the bards was notoriously unpopular, and it backfired most decisively.”
“At least have Lady Thione followed,” the archmage insisted.
Piergeiron grimaced and pointed to the arched window of the audience chamber. “That will be difficult at present I doubt that she, or anyone else for that matter, will be going anywhere until that storm passes.”
Khelben glanced toward the window. Blue lightning flared against roiling purple clouds. “Wizard weather,” he muttered. A roll of thunder punctuated his words.
“In that case, can you undo it?” the First Lord asked anxiously.
“Not without a certain elven harp.”
“Really! I didn’t know you played.”
The archmage responded with a grim smile. “I don’t, but I’m beginning to think that perhaps I should have learned.”
By midafternoon the sky was as dark as night. Rain pelted the outdoor market, sending merchants and shoppers, street performers and pickpockets scurrying for cover. Taverns, festhalls, and shops filled to capacity and beyond as the townspeople and visitors sought shelter from the violent thunderstorm. On and on the rain went, past the time of sunset and the official beginning of Midsummer. In every tavern and festhall in the city, bards and performers recited to their captive audiences tales of past evil that had been foretold by Midsummer storms.