"I gravely miscalculated," Riqua said coldly, looking down at Elana's body. "I believed that I knew who had made Elana. It appears that I did not. What did she tell you?"
"That she had no choice, that she had been told to bring me to him. She didn't have to say his name."
"Arontala," Tris supplied.
"Great. Just great," Vahanian snapped, with an accusing glare at Riqua. "Are the rest of your brood coming after us now, too?"
"You have nothing to fear from them. They are my creations. This one," she said, with a disdainful look at Elana's remains, "came to us a few months ago. Perhaps Arontala has planted his own among all the families, watching for you."
"Does he know we're here?" Tris asked.
"Doubtful. Elana wasn't strong enough to alert him. More likely, she'd been given orders to watch for you, in case you showed up."
"The dagger," Kiara said, looking down at the hilt in Elana's corpse. "It can turn the undead or destroy the soul." She reached down and withdrew the blades, cleaning them on the hem of Elana's dress before resheathing them.
Carina sat down on the slab, visibly shaken. "I didn't even realize that I grabbed a sword," the healer murmured, "I just knew someone was taking Kiara away."
"You picked a good time to get over using a blade," Vahanian said.
"Elana was sure the rest of you couldn't interfere," Kiara said.
Vahanian glared at Carroway. "You were supposed to be on guard duty."
"I was. I didn't see anything," Carroway said, appalled. "I swear by the Lady."
"You couldn't have prevented what happened," Riqua said. "We're skilled at passing unnoticed."
Gabriel joined them, and Tris thought he saw uneasiness in the vayash moru's face. Riqua looked at Gabriel. "I thought you were sleeping."
"I've learned to sleep lightly."
Kolin and Keir joined them and, at Riqua's word, pushed their way in to gather up Elana's body. "Place it outside, where it will catch the sun. She doesn't deserve burial."
When they were gone, Riqua turned to Gabriel. "If Arontala has his fledglings planted among our houses," she said, "you can't be safe among any of our kind you didn't make yourself."
"I'll revise my plans," Gabriel said.
"Do we get a vote on that?" Carroway muttered.
"We can't lose more time," Tris said. "The Hawthorn Moon is only a few weeks away."
"You'll reach Shekerishet by the Moon," Gabriel vowed. "You have my word."
"Cross your heart and hope to die?" Vahanian asked.
"Now, despite this... misfortune," Gabriel said, "you need to rest, and so do I."
"I don't feel very tired right now," Kiara replied, rubbing her neck where Elana had gripped her.
"I think we should stay together," Carina added.
"I'll watch over you personally," Riqua said. "I have eternity to rest and, unlike Gabriel, I don't have to save my strength for the journey. I assure you, none of mine will harm you while I'm your protector."
Vahanian looked as if he were about to make another comment, then saw the ice in the vayash moru's eyes and thought better of it. "Let's get to it, then," he said.
What Vahanian lacked in diplomacy, Kiara thought as they filed out, he made up for in voicing the sentiments of them all. She fastened her sword belt and walked to the door, where Tris waited to follow her.
Riqua led them to her own quarters, a sumptuous tomb obviously intended for one of noble birth. It had been transformed to a well-appointed boudoir, with one significant difference. In the center stood an ornate catafalque, and atop it an alabaster image of Riqua. Exhausted, Kiara and the others made impromptu beds of couches and pillows, choosing to stay close enough together that no one could pass among them without waking the others.
Kiara gave Carina's hand a grateful squeeze. "Have I ever told you how happy I am that you're a light sleeper?"
"I'm glad I was able to stop her. But I can't believe I used a blade."
"What exactly do your healer rules say?" Vahanian asked from where he had stretched out, blocking the doorway with his body. He closed his eyes, trying to relax.
"The taking of life or the shedding of blood in anger with a knife or blade is forbidden."
"Then you're clear."
"What?"
Vahanian opened one eye. "Elana was already dead. Undead. You didn't take her life. And whatever that stuff was on the floor, it wasn't her blood."
Kiara chuckled. "He's got a point, Carina. I like his logic. And admit it—it wouldn't be the first time healers have split hairs on some obscure rule."
"I'll have to think about it tomorrow," Carina said, settling in next to Vahanian and sharing his cloak. "That just might make sense in the morning."
Kiara smiled, finding a spot beside Tris, glad for the arm he slipped around her shoulders and the warmth of his heavy cloak.
When the others were quiet, Tris turned toward Kiara. "I have something I want you to carry for me."
"Not another magic dagger, I hope?"
Tris carefully withdrew the precious vial of Bava K'aa's elixir from where it hung on the strap around his neck. He slipped it over Kiara's head. "Wear this for me, please."
"What is it?" She looked at the vial, which glowed a faint violet through the thick glass.
"It's a potion. Grandmother left it for me with Riqua. Quite literally worth a king's ransom." He reached out to touch her cheek, and kissed her. "It will cure a mortal wound." She gasped, looking at the vial with renewed respect. "Keep it safe, please? If it's needed—and I hope it isn't—you're more likely to be able to do something with it than I will."
"I don't like it when you say things like that," she said, suppressing a shiver as she carefully slipped the vial down the throat of her tunic.
Tris put his arm around her. "I have every reason to want to live through this," he said, tangling his fingers in her hair, glad for her nearness. "You know that."
"I know. But it doesn't make me worry less."
Tris kissed her gently, and she leaned back against his shoulder. "I've thought a lot about what you said, back in Principality, about being the 'hound of the Goddess.' Coming when the Lady calls and doing as She bids. I only wish I were a fox hound, and not turned out after a beast."
"But look at your pack," she said. "A good pack can bring down a very large bear."
"Have I mentioned, recently, how much I love you ?
She nestled closer. "Yes, but tell me again." Tris let his kiss answer her, and then folded her close. They shared the warmth of his cloak in the crowded room, content for the company as they fell asleep in what might be the last safe night before the Hawthorn Moon.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Ban Soterius shivered and gathered his cloak tightly around him in the harsh winds of northern Margolan. It was the fourth month, the Lover's Moon, but the winds had turned unseasonably cold, even for the unpredictable weather of the north. Rain fell, mixed with sleet, in a last winter storm. Soterius had ridden a candlemark since leaving the shelter of the village where he raised his most recent cluster of fighters, and had yet another candlemark to ride before reaching his destination. Although it was not yet dusk, the heavy gray clouds made it seem much later. Soterius found himself wishing for sundown, when Mikhail promised to join him.
The trek across northern Margolan had been successful so far. He had gathered thousands of volunteers and deserters into the ranks of his militia, seeding small groups of rebels to harry Jared's troops.