Laurel caught my arm. “Are you all right, Rabbit?”
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m just tired.”
Thadro gave me a faintly derisive look. He looked as though he could go on a week’s march and then fight both sides of a war all by himself.
Laurel tucked his paw in the crook of my arm. “Considering your adventures today, it’s not surprising that you’re exhausted.”
Murmuring agreement, I gratefully leaned on the Faena. The hot bath I had earlier had long since worn off, and my body was sore and stiff, my head beginning to throb.
Upon arriving at the king’s residence, we found Cais waiting for us in the foyer. I eyed the majordomo, worried that he was going to herd us once more to Jusson’s study. But the king had apparently decided that he could wait for Thadro’s report, as Cais bowed and indicated the stairs.
“My lords, gracious sirs. Allow me to see you to your rooms.”
That was more than fine by me. It had been a very long day, full of incident, and I wanted food, then my bed. We followed the majordomo up to the second floor, where Beollan and Ranulf immediately disappeared into their rooms, Beollan with a murmured goodnight, Ranulf with a grunt and a decisive snap of his bedroom door. Down the hall beyond my room I could see King’s Own standing outside what I assumed was the royal chamber. Vaguely wondering on how Jusson and Wyln’s meeting had gone, I went to my own door—and continued past my door as the Lord Commander did not stop. However, Cais did.
“Lord Thadro,” the majordomo said.
I stumbled to a halt as Thadro paused, turning around to look at Cais.
“His Majesty specifically asked to see you alone when you returned,” Cais said, his voice pitched low.
Frowning a bit, Thadro looked at me and then Laurel.
“Let me see to Rabbit,” Laurel said softly, before Thadro could speak. “Then, if the king wishes, I will join you as you give your report.”
Thadro’s frown abruptly deepened. “Lord Rabbit is a lieutenant in the King’s Own, not a child to be put to bed with warm milk.” He cast me a disapproving stare. “Though perhaps that’s what’s wrong with him—too much coddling.”
I was too tired to work up much astonishment at hearing my boyhood on a farm and my subsequent time in Suiden’s troop described as coddling. However, Jeff’s eyes narrowed as he gazed at some point in the distance.
Laurel opened his mouth to respond, but Thadro held up his hand, concern mixing in with the contempt. “Spare me the excuses, Master Laurel. I can see he’s about to fall over.” He dropped his hand. “Go to bed, Lieutenant. I will see you in the morning.”
“Yes, sir,” I muttered as he continued down the hall to the king’s chamber. I started to walk back to my bedroom, but apparently I wasn’t moving fast enough. Laurel grabbed one arm while Jeff took the other, and they both hustled me through the door just as Cais opened it. The majordomo shut it behind me, and I heard a bolt turning.
Laurel rumbled as he propped his staff against the wall. “I don’t remember the honored commander being quite so testy last time we met.”
Jeff, Cais and I all looked at him blank-faced. We were not discussing the king’s Lord Commander with the Faena.
“Right,” Laurel said with a short chuff. He walked over to an ewer on the washstand and sniffed at the water in it.
“It has not been a good day, Laurel,” I said, as I also leaned my staff against the wall. Pulling off my gloves, I undid the the frogs on my borrowed cloak—and Cais was there to take it and the gloves away. As he did, I noticed that the room was empty except for us. “Where’s Arlie?” I asked.
“He went to get Lord Wyln,” Jeff said, also undoing his cloak. He blinked a little when Cais took his too.
“He did?” I asked. “Why wasn’t Wyln with you Laurel?”
“The garrison commander put us in different quarters,” Laurel said, looking underneath the washstand. “Apparently Commander Ebner’s grandsire fought in the last war and passed down tales about the Faena. Honored Ebner was not about to have me in the middle of his soldiers, so I was lodged as close to the gate as possible—with guards to take care of my every need.”
“Yeah,” Jeff said. “And Ebner wasn’t having an elf enchanter so close to the full-of-unsuspecting-humans town, so he put Lord Wyln at the other end of the garrison. Even though Arlie knew the guards posted at Lord Wyln’s quarters, they still wouldn’t let him pass without Ebner’s permission. He had to go to the commander’s office to get it.”
I had been so glad to get to my familiar cot in my familiar barracks when we’d arrived back in Freston yesterday afternoon, that I’d not paid much attention to the disposition of my teachers in the talent, nor did I question the ease with which I slipped their leashes this morning. Now, however, I was worried. While Laurel seemed to shrug off his treatment in the garrison, I had a hard time believing that Wyln had been so sanguine about not only being separated from both Laurel and me, but also having human guards set upon him. Frowning, I sat down to take off my boots, and Cais was immediately there with slippers.
“Allow me, my lord.”
“Uh, sure,” I said.
“Arlie’s probably with the king and Lord Wyln, and now the Lord Commander too,” Jeff said as he walked over to the fire to warm his hands. He gave a twisted grin at my expression. “I know, but at least he didn’t have to go see magicked dead bodies—” He stopped and cast a glance at Cais, biting his lip.
“Don’t worry, Jeffen,” Laurel said as he rummaged in the clothespress. “I’m sure honored Cais is very deep in Jusson Iver’son’s confidence.”
“My family has served the House of Iver since its founding, Master Laurel,” Cais agreed, standing to help me remove my tabard and shirt. “You’ve met my nephew, Lord Rabbit.”
“I have?” I asked, pausing in my undressing.
“Finn,” Cais replied.
“Oh,” I said. I thought back to my time in Iversly. “You have other kin in service with you, don’t you? In the palace and in the guard?”
“Brothers.” Cais gave his dry smile. “Don’t worry, my lord. We’ve had several centuries to learn how to keep secrets.”
Thinking that Cais and family must’ve known some whoppers, I glanced down to see the majordomo holding out a dressing robe. My dressing robe, full of purples, reds and blues. I looked over by the clothespress and found three trunks pushed against the wall. While the garrison may’ve been in lockdown and guarded to the hilt, someone managed to liberate Jeff’s, Arlie’s and my footlockers. I started to ask if whoever retrieved our trunks had spoken with Suiden or Javes, but at that moment there was a tap at the door, and I turned, tensing.
“It’s all right, my lord,” Cais soothed. Tucking the robe around my unresisting body, he went to the door and opened it to reveal Nephew Finn with a cart—and I felt stupid with relief that it wasn’t Thadro. Then I got a whiff and every thought fled.
“You have had a very busy day,” Cais said as he stood aside to let Finn in. “And it occurred to me that you’ve not had time to eat.” He closed the door and locked it again with a definite click.
My stomach gave a weary growl as Finn pushed his wonderful cart past me, hoping that finally someone would listen.
Laurel had joined Jeff at the fire and he now looked up from rummaging in his carrypouch. “Haven’t eaten today?” he asked. “Rabbit, is this true?”
“I had breakfast this morning,” I said, following close behind Finn. He stopped the cart by a small table with a couple of chairs. Cais joined him and they began to unload it.