“Easy enough to guess,” Karla replied. “Are you going to do it?”
“Yes.” She smiled dryly. “It won’t keep him home long, but maybe long enough not to be obvious—at least as far as his sister is concerned.”
A small ornate box appeared, floating on air. The lid opened, revealing a special kind of gold coin.
“What do you need?” Karla asked.
“A discreet jeweler.”
“Well, then. I think I should go to Amdarh this evening and pay a call on Banard. His daughter runs the shop now and designs most of the jewelry, but he still creates a few pieces for select customers.”
Two days later, Daemonar slipped into Titian’s room without knocking, then kept his eyes focused on the door when he realized she wasn’t dressed.
“You could have knocked,” she said, sounding snappish as she hurriedly pulled on the rest of her clothes.
He did a quick count and wondered if Lucivar had figured out when Titian’s moontime would start before he decided on when the family would go to Amdarh. She would be done with the vulnerable first three days before they left home, which would make it easier for everyone.
“Hurry up,” he said, wanting this done before his father got home.
“Okay. Now, what . . .”
He rushed to her side. Calling in Witch’s gift, he placed the gold pendant in Titian’s hand.
She studied what looked like a gold coin, except no one had seen a coin like this in centuries. It had a unicorn’s horn over a simplified etching of Ebon Askavi on one side and a stylized A on the other side. It was held within a simple gold ring attached to a gold chain.
“Daemonar . . .”
“It’s a mark of safe passage,” he said quickly. “It’s a protection. And it has to be our secret. We have to blood it on the back. Then, if you’re in trouble and need my help, you use this and I’ll know. Even if you can’t get word to me any other way, I’ll know.”
“Where did you get this?”
“Wear it under your clothes. Better yet, keep a sight shield on it. No one can know you have this, Titian. No one. Not even Father.”
She studied him. “Will you get in trouble if someone finds out?”
“Maybe. But that’s not important. What’s important is that someone will reach you before your shields fail.”
“Is Jaenelle Saetien going to have one of these?”
“I don’t know. I just . . . Please, Titian. Please wear this, always, and keep it a secret unless you need to use it. If you do, nothing else will matter.”
She hesitated, probably thought he was being bossy and overprotective. He might have thought it, too, if Witch hadn’t honored his request.
Girls talked about things, told one another things. He knew that much from the times when Jaenelle Saetien stayed here or Titian went to the Hall or to Amdarh for a visit. But his sister wasn’t going to take this seriously if he didn’t tell her something, so he had to take that chance.
“How many sides does a triangle have?” he asked.
Titian frowned. “A triangle has three sides.”
“No. A Blood triangle has four sides. Steward, Consort, Master of the Guard. And the fourth side is the one who rules all three.”
She gave him a long look, struggling to understand what he didn’t dare say in words, didn’t dare say even on a psychic thread. Then she looked at the mark of safe passage and rubbed the etching on the front. “That’s Ebon Askavi.”
“Yes.”
“And that’s a unicorn’s horn.”
“Yes.”
“Father has one of these. He fiddles with it when he’s at his desk thinking about something that bothers him. He told me once that he got it from the . . .” She looked up, stunned, and Daemonar knew she understood what he was telling her. “You . . . She . . .”
He pressed a finger against her lips. “Never spoken. Ever. To anyone.” A pause. “The triangle isn’t always made up of Consort, Master, and Steward.”
He didn’t think her eyes could get any bigger, but they did.
Three men. Three Warlord Princes. Yes, they were family, but they were also a triangle that served an extraordinary Lady.
“She’s always been my Queen,” he whispered. “She’ll always be my Queen.”
“She gave this to you? For me?”
“Yes.”
“What do we . . . ? How do we . . . ?”
He removed his working knife from its sheath on his belt, pricked his left thumb deep enough to get a good bead of blood, then pressed it against the back of the mark. When Titian held out her left hand, he pricked her with the knife and watched as she added her blood to his. Then they watched as the blood disappeared, leaving no sign that the mark was more than an odd pendant.
But they felt a connection to each other that was more and different from family as the spells Witch had woven into the mark absorbed the blood.
Titian slipped the chain over her head and tucked the pendant under her clothes before adding a sight shield.
“Is she wonderful?” she asked.
Daemonar smiled. “Yeah. She’s wonderful.” He blew out a breath. “But she’s probably going to give me a whack upside the head for telling you as much as I did.”
She rose on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. “Our secret, brother. I promise.”
“Having that doesn’t mean you should get careless about the shields.”
“Don’t spoil the gift by being bossy.”
Daemonar slipped out of Titian’s room and went to his own to study. He’d done what he could to keep Titian safe. He just hoped he’d done the right thing.
FIFTEEN
“They’re letting rubes in now?” Hespera said. “This school is supposed to be exclusive.”
Delora watched the group of adults and youngsters stroll toward the dormitories. It wasn’t unusual for parents to escort their children to a new school and get them settled in before classes started. After all, aristo families wanted to make sure everyone knew how important their own darlings were, even if they failed to understand that the pecking order changed the moment those parents walked away. And most of them never knew who was really in control of the students the moment the instructors were out of sight—who had gained control step by careful step since her first year at this school.
Helpful Delora. Kind Delora, who, with her closest friends, guided the newcomers through the first days at the school. Instructive Delora, secretly disciplining students who failed to understand who should claim their loyalty and obedience. There were some she couldn’t touch—not yet, anyway—some who had enough clout and influence of their own that they wouldn’t keep quiet, keep things secret, regardless of the punishment that would follow.
She wasn’t sure if the Eyrien girl would be useful or not, but the other girl, with some delicate coaching, could have enough clout and influence to help her undermine the Queen who was her primary adversary. Jaenelle Saetien SaDiablo had such a need to rebel against the burden of her powerful family, and that made her malleable—made her vulnerable to someone who offered sympathy, thoughts, and opinions that fed that rebellion.
Delora allowed herself a little smile as she watched that particular group of adults and newcomers. She’d been preparing this ground since the first time she’d met Jaenelle Saetien at some children’s party years ago. That the girl had convinced her parents to let her attend this school was confirmation that Jaenelle Saetien would be guided by her instead of listening to anyone else.
And wasn’t that delicious?
She’d never seen Lucivar Yaslana before, but she knew who he was. Everyone who was anyone knew who wore the Ebon-gray. He had no official influence in Dhemlan, so it wasn’t likely he would be useful, even if the winged girl turned out to be malleable. But Daemon Sadi! Beautiful, even at this distance. Certainly desirable. And the way he moved, all power and grace. There was no way to get control over him. Not directly.