Books swore under his breath. Sespian looked out the window. Starcrest… had grown hard to read again.
“Guess that explains who’s assassinating the Company of Lords,” Sespian murmured.
“I wouldn’t be sure,” Amaranthe said. “Those heads suggest Flintcrest is dismantling Forge right now. Either way, we-I-have to get Sicarius back. There must be a way to kill that wizard or find some other way to free him.” With so many people in the room, Amaranthe didn’t go into how much she owed Sicarius or how she wouldn’t be able to sleep as long as she knew he was out there, being forced to carry out some sadistic bastard’s whims again. Curse everything, she’d tried so hard to get him away from that, to create a less violent world for him to live in, one in which… She swallowed and made the simple argument that would ensure their help. “I’m sure none of us wants to see him in our enemies’ hands. We all know what he can do.”
Starcrest and Tikaya exchanged looks.
Yes, they were a part of that “all.”
“Maldynado,” Amaranthe said, turning, but he had slipped out at some point. To find Yara? “Never mind, I’ll get Akstyr. I’ll need his advice. And I welcome any other advice.”
“Do you intend to walk into Flintcrest’s camp?” Starcrest observed her through hooded eyes, no doubt thinking this a bad plan.
“Of course not. Although…” If she allowed herself to be captured, or even pretended to be switching sides, might she not find herself in a meeting with Flintcrest and his Nurian advisers? If she could see Sicarius, talk to him for a few minutes… What, girl? If this was anything like their time together on Darkcrest Isle-she shuddered at the memory-she’d be powerless to get through to him. “No.”
“Good,” Starcrest said. “In case you might change your mind, I’ll point out that my presence in the city isn’t widely known yet-with luck, none of those vying for the throne have learned about it-and we have an advantage as long as that remains so. Though I don’t know Flintcrest, Marblecrest, or Heroncrest well, it’s possible they’ve read my work.”
Possible? Amaranthe snorted. Try likely.
“They may know enough of me to suspect that I’m behind the explosions. It’ll be better for our plans if they believe they have to defend against an outside threat to the empire.”
“Yes, I understand,” Amaranthe said. “I have to figure out a way to get to Sicarius, to his keeper though. I’ll ask Akstyr if there’s any way we can sever the link, but I’m guessing the wizard is the only one who can free Sicarius. Either voluntarily or not.” She let the statement hang in the air, figuring they’d know what she meant.
“A likely assessment,” Tikaya said. “Only those with a great deal of training can resist mental intrusions from strong telepaths or devices crafted by telepath Makers.”
Amaranthe winced, remembering how easily Retta had gotten through her own defenses with that tool. Tikaya was grimacing as well. Sharing a memory of a similar experience?
“Does anyone have ideas on how I can reach the wizard without having to go through Sicarius?” Amaranthe asked. “I’m assuming he’s being used as bodyguard as well as assassin. Not unlike a soul construct.” Maybe that was what had happened. Sicarius had gotten rid of the wizard’s soul construct, then been turned into the replacement.
“Let me think about it and look over the data you brought.” Starcrest lifted the journal; he hadn’t had time to more than glance at the first page yet. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t go on a mission to save him without letting me know first.”
“I won’t, my lord.” She would gather her people to discuss this. She thought about asking Starcrest if he truly meant to think about it or if he was too busy juggling all those others balls. It would seem rude though, or demanding. She ought to be able to come up with something anyway. Sicarius was her prob- no, just hers. “Sespian, Books, do you want to help, or…?”
Maybe she shouldn’t have asked. They were helping Starcrest, and they’d probably find that nobler work than worrying about Sicarius.
“I’ll help,” Sespian said, surprising her. He pushed away from the chair to join her at the door.
Books’s lips flattened, but he pushed away from the table too.
“You can stay,” Amaranthe told him. “I’ll let you know if we need your help.”
He continued to stand. “You may need my input during the planning stages, to keep from coming up with something… imprudent.”
Amaranthe managed a smile. “When have you ever kept me from imprudence before?”
“I keep hoping there’ll be a first time.”
Hand on the door, Amaranthe meant to walk out, but a knock on the other side surprised her. She stepped away to let in a nervous private with an arrow clenched in his hands. A piece of paper was tied around the shaft.
“Sir, ma’am,” the private murmured, not looking up as he ducked his head toward people. “Uhm, my lord, Starcrest? I’m sorry to bother you, but I couldn’t find my LT, and I thought this might be important.”
“What is it, Private?” Starcrest held out his hand.
“I don’t know, my lord, but it has your name on it.”
“An arrow with your name on it?” Tikaya asked. “That’s distressing.”
Starcrest grunted and accepted the shaft. The private hadn’t dared unravel the note, but STARCREST was indeed written across the visible side, the name in block letters. Starcrest held it up to his wife, his brows lifting slightly. Tikaya considered it through slitted eyes, then shook her head.
“Nothing Made about it, no taint.”
Amaranthe hadn’t realized Tikaya had personal experience with the Science, but supposed it wasn’t uncommon on the Kyatt Islands, hence why Akstyr wanted to move there.
“Where’d you get this, Private?” Starcrest asked as he unfastened the note.
“The side of the building, my lord. Someone fired it toward us from several rooftops away. We, my corporal, I mean, sent men off to try and catch the archer, but I don’t think they did. I figured I’d rush this inside right away in case it’s important.”
“You did well. Thank you, Private.”
The soldier took this as a dismissal and scurried out the door.
Starcrest unrolled the note and handed it to his wife. “It’s encrypted.”
Amaranthe sucked in a breath. “Like the letter from Sicarius?”
“Maybe,” Starcrest said. “There’s a line of Nurian at the bottom though.”
“What’s it say?” Though they hadn’t invited her to, Amaranthe inched around to their side of the table. She remembered the block letters used to address the first letter to Starcrest, and these looked the same. But why would Sicarius have added Nurian? Unless the wizard had. What if he’d caught Sicarius trying to pen a note? Or-a queasy surge flooded her stomach-what if they’d been working together to write it? It could be a trap. “Would your awareness of the Science allow you to sense if it’d been poisoned?” she found herself asking.
Tikaya gave her a sharp look. “No.”
Starcrest grew grimmer, but all he said was, “We’ve already touched it. What’s it say?”
“It’s the same code as was used on the letter he wrote to you,” Tikaya said.
No longer inching, Amaranthe came to stand at her shoulder. The message was gibberish to her eye. She bounced on her toes, waiting for a translation. Why was Sicarius sending letters to Starcrest instead of her?