“What can you tell us about Sean Carr, Aran? Why would he do this?” Terryn asked.
Aran shook his head. “I don’t know. These are troubled times, brother. They breed troubled minds.”
“In some more than others,” Brinen said.
Aran pushed away from the table and stalked to the door. “There is a reason for what happened, and we will find it. Until that becomes the focus of discussion, I will not hear any more of these accusations.”
He slammed the door as he left. A bitter smile curled on Brinen’s lips. “I’m sure he’ll start with his own staff.”
“Enough, Brin,” Terryn said.
Draigen sighed. “Yes, enough. Pray, get some rest, Brinen. We have much to do in the next few days, and I would prefer you strong.”
Brinen stood and bowed. “As always, sister, I abide by your wishes.”
He favored a short bow to Terryn as well, then closed the door quietly behind him as if to distinguish himself from his brother.
Draigen sighed. “They will argue to the ends of the world.”
“The fact remains, sister, you were attacked by one of our own, regardless whose subclan he was from,” Terryn said.
She poured herself a cup of tea from the service on the low table in front of her. “I was attacked by someone suborned. Aran is correct. Shifting politics make for uncertainties.”
“I apologize for my lack of depth on the subject, but are you saying the Inverni are not united in the effort to gain U.S. support?” Laura asked.
Terryn did not change his expression, but amusement flickered across Draigen’s face. She lowered her tea and rested her hands in her lap. “And she touches another family dispute.”
“Draigen did not want to meet with the president,” he said. “She was concerned it would appear as a weakness to solicit human aid.”
Vindicated apparently, Draigen smiled a small smile. “I acquiesced to my brother’s wishes on the condition I move quickly before political opposition at home solidified.”
“Is the opposition coming from within your own clans?” Laura asked.
“Unfortunately, yes,” said Terryn.
Draigen waited for him to continue. When he did not, she retrieved her tea and sipped. “The Inverni are a complicated people, Agent Tate. Clan strife defines us. Under the present circumstances, there are clans, such as the Alfreys, who feel that the Seelie Court has already declared war against us. There are also clans who feel the matter can be worked out diplomatically. I believe this trip has found ill favor among the former.”
“Aran’s people often align themselves with the Alfrey point of view,” Terryn said.
“The Seelie Court may be exploiting that,” Laura said.
Again, the small smile played on Draigen’s lips. “I never discount the hand of High Queen Maeve in matters involving our people.”
Terryn favored her with his own smile. “Times have changed, Draigen. This world is not ours. Maeve has done well opposing the Elvenking. That benefits all the Celtic fey.”
Draigen frowned. “The Elvenking rules a land while we huddle in pastures.”
Terryn shook his head. “Maeve chose the right alliances at the right time. What she did in the Treaty was what she thought she needed to do to protect all our people. She was wrong to do it. I believe she can change her mind.”
Draigen glanced down. “Then we must hope she does so quickly, brother, because while she fortifies her front door against the Elvenking, her kitchen garden may be overrun by her own subjects. We may not be able to stop it.”
He stood. “I will think on that as always, sister. You, too, need rest now.”
Laura stood as well. “I will continue to offer my services, Lady Regent.”
Draigen smiled up at her. “My younger brothers may suspect your talents, Agent Tate, but if Terryn has faith in you, so shall I.”
Laura followed Terryn into the hallway. Anxious and alert Inverni Guardians watched their every move. Brinen waited in the small elevator lobby and gestured at the Guardians nearby to move out of earshot. “Terryn, we need to talk.”
“I’m listening,” he said.
Brinen glanced at Laura. “Perhaps we can go to my rooms.”
Terryn pressed the elevator call button. “Speak freely, Brinen. I have appointments.” A pause followed while Brinen stared at Terryn. “I said speak freely, brother. Sendings are not necessary in front of Mariel.”
Brinen compressed his lips. “I am concerned, Terryn. This attack on Draigen exposes a rift in the clan that the Seelie Court will exploit.”
Terryn pursed his lips. “The Seelie Court exploits everything to its advantage. You know that.”
“I care less about that than the unity of our people, Terryn. They need a strong leader,” Brinen said.
“They have one, Brinen. I have faith in Draigen.”
“Do you have faith she will survive another attempt on her life, Terryn? Our people want their true underKing. While Draigen leads, they doubt her authority. While Draigen leads, brother, you leave open the door for the unwise to press their case for war.”
“And how does goading Aran prevent that, Brinen? You do no good pitting yourself against him.”
“I remind him that he and his people are watched, Terryn. I remind him, brother, that we will not allow them to lead us to our destruction,” Brinen said.
“We need to be united, Brinen. I would rather persuade Aran and his people to our way of thinking than order them,” said Terryn.
Brinen placed a firm hand on Terryn’s arm. “You may not have that luxury. Our sister could have been killed today. While you demand from abroad that she stand firm in your resolve, she must face the pressure at home. She may not break from you, Terryn, but she may not survive it. Can you live with that?”
Terryn didn’t answer right away. The pain of his brother’s words showed on his face. “We will find a way, Brinen. I will find a way.”
Brinen brought his face close to Terryn’s. “You are our leader, Terryn. Our people will follow you.”
“I will think on this, Brinen,” he said.
“That’s all I ask, as ever,” he said. Brinen released his arm. The two brothers faced each other. Laura didn’t think they were sending to each other but searching each other’s faces for some answer neither knew. Brinen bowed and left the lobby as the elevator arrived.
The elevator doors closed. The turmoil that Terryn projected made Laura uncomfortable. She wanted the calm, secure InterSec leader she had worked for all these years. This troubled Inverni was someone she didn’t recognize, and she didn’t know what to say. When they reached the InterSec floor, Terryn lingered outside the door, and she looked back at him. “Terryn?”
“What do you make of this?” he asked.
She considered. “Brinen doesn’t think Draigen can handle the situation.”
“Does he speak true?”
She paused. Asking her what she had sensed revealed a level of suspicion she hadn’t expected. “Are you saying you don’t trust him?”
Amused, Terryn grunted. “I trust my family to perform their duties. That’s not the same as telling me the truth.”
Laura took a steadying breath. “Brinen spoke true. He is worried.”
“He and I usually agree,” he said. “He has been my eyes and ears at court, and I value what he says.”
She tilted her head toward him. “Not that I don’t want you here, Terryn, but I’ve never understood why you made Draigen your regent and didn’t take the underKing title.”
His expression made it obvious that it wasn’t the first time someone asked him. “It was well-known that I wasn’t in favor of my father challenging Maeve. When he died at her hands, it would have looked like she paved the way for me to take the underKing title because I was less likely to defy her. At least, many of the Inverni would have seen it that way. Draigen, though, was as forceful as my father on the issue. I made her regent to keep the Inverni united when we lost our underKing. I’ve never regretted that decision, but now I wonder if things should change.”