you?” Senneth asked Justin. “Who shall we notify of your demise?”
He put a fist to his shoulder and bowed low over the fire. “Tell King Baryn, of course, that one of his Riders has been gathered to the Pale Mother’s arms. And send my weapons to be divided among the Riders so that they can carry some part of me into their next skirmish.”
She looked at Tayse. “Your wish as well, I suppose?”
“Tell the king, tell the Riders. My father is a Rider still,” he said. “One message will inform everyone I wish to know.”
Involuntarily, they all looked at Cammon, though no one was rude enough to ask the question. But he was a sensitive, and, anyway, he had started this line of questioning. “I assume I’ll be with all of you if I go in the next few weeks,” he said cheerfully enough. “No one else to tell.”
Kirra stirred. “This is gloomy talk,” she said. “Can’t we discuss something else?”
“Name the topic,” Tayse said.
Kirra glanced at Senneth. “Don’t you find yourself wondering,” she asked, “what Halchon Gisseltess thinks he’s doing slaughtering innocents so near to Helven land? Don’t you find yourself wondering what Martin Helven might think of such an act?”
“Yes,” Senneth said. “We might find out a great deal if we were to make a visit to Martin Helven.”
“How would you do that?” Tayse asked, his voice sounding interested. “Just ride up to his estates and ask him?”
“His primary residence is in Helvenhall, only a few days away,” Kirra said. “Fairly large city, as cities go here in the inland properties. We could take a room at the most expensive inn in town, and I could send a message to his estate. I am, though none of you seems to appreciate it, the oldest daughter of a very wealthy man, and I can move in the most elite circles. I think he would come visit me one afternoon. And maybe he would tell me some of the things we wish to know.”
Senneth sighed. “I like that part of it. The rest doesn’t sound like so much fun.”
Tayse turned his attention back to Senneth. “Why?”
Kirra was smiling. “She knows I’ll want her to pose as my maid, since obviously a serramarra of Danalustrous would not be traveling unaccompanied.” She glanced around the fire. “There are just enough of you to appear to be a respectable guard. We would have to do something about your clothes, though. You would need to be wearing proper livery.”
“That’ll be easy to come by hundreds of miles from your father’s house,” Justin sneered.
She was still smiling. “You forget,” she said. “I’m a shiftling. I can change anything to look like anything else. I can make myself a ball gown out of these travel trousers, and I can dress you in the colors of Danalustrous.”
“Can you make Senneth look submissive?” Tayse asked. “Because I would think that would take some pretty strong magic.”
There was muffled laughter around the fire. Senneth felt her face twitching into a childish scowl.
“Senneth has enough of the shape-shifter’s skills to disguise both her strength of body and strength of will,” Kirra said. “I am sure she can make herself look quite dull.”
“I’m willing to dress up as a nobleman’s guard,” Tayse said. “I think it would be interesting to see what we might learn.”
Everyone else murmured an agreement. Senneth sighed again, for she knew the plan had merit. It wouldn’t work in Rappengrass or Gisseltess, but Martin Helven had always been a reasonable—and not particularly observant—man. “Very well,” she said. “On to Helvenhall.”
CHAPTER 5
T WO days later they rode into a tidy little city that rose with a self-important grandeur in the middle of the flatlands. Tayse looked around with interest, for he’d never been there. With him, it was an automatic thing to begin assessing and cataloging. Here was where the city was vulnerable to attack, here was where the back alleys lay if someone needed a
He put a fist to his shoulder and bowed low over the fire. “Tell King Baryn, of course, that one of his Riders has been gathered to the Pale Mother’s arms. And send my weapons to be divided among the Riders so that they can carry some part of me into their next skirmish.”
She looked at Tayse. “Your wish as well, I suppose?”
“Tell the king, tell the Riders. My father is a Rider still,” he said. “One message will inform everyone I wish to know.”
Involuntarily, they all looked at Cammon, though no one was rude enough to ask the question. But he was a sensitive, and, anyway, he had started this line of questioning. “I assume I’ll be with all of you if I go in the next few weeks,” he said cheerfully enough. “No one else to tell.”
Kirra stirred. “This is gloomy talk,” she said. “Can’t we discuss something else?”
“Name the topic,” Tayse said.
Kirra glanced at Senneth. “Don’t you find yourself wondering,” she asked, “what Halchon Gisseltess thinks he’s doing slaughtering innocents so near to Helven land? Don’t you find yourself wondering what Martin Helven might think of such an act?”
“Yes,” Senneth said. “We might find out a great deal if we were to make a visit to Martin Helven.”
“How would you do that?” Tayse asked, his voice sounding interested. “Just ride up to his estates and ask him?”
“His primary residence is in Helvenhall, only a few days away,” Kirra said. “Fairly large city, as cities go here in the inland properties. We could take a room at the most expensive inn in town, and I could send a message to his estate. I am, though none of you seems to appreciate it, the oldest daughter of a very wealthy man, and I can move in the most elite circles. I think he would come visit me one afternoon. And maybe he would tell me some of the things we wish to know.”
Senneth sighed. “I like that part of it. The rest doesn’t sound like so much fun.”
Tayse turned his attention back to Senneth. “Why?”
Kirra was smiling. “She knows I’ll want her to pose as my maid, since obviously a serramarra of Danalustrous would not be traveling unaccompanied.” She glanced around the fire. “There are just enough of you to appear to be a respectable guard. We would have to do something about your clothes, though. You would need to be wearing proper livery.”
“That’ll be easy to come by hundreds of miles from your father’s house,” Justin sneered.
She was still smiling. “You forget,” she said. “I’m a shiftling. I can change anything to look like anything else. I can make myself a ball gown out of these travel trousers, and I can dress you in the colors of Danalustrous.”
“Can you make Senneth look submissive?” Tayse asked. “Because I would think that would take some pretty strong magic.”
There was muffled laughter around the fire. Senneth felt her face twitching into a childish scowl.
“Senneth has enough of the shape-shifter’s skills to disguise both her strength of body and strength of will,” Kirra said. “I am sure she can make herself look quite dull.”
“I’m willing to dress up as a nobleman’s guard,” Tayse said. “I think it would be interesting to see what we might learn.”
Everyone else murmured an agreement. Senneth sighed again, for she knew the plan had merit. It wouldn’t work in Rappengrass or Gisseltess, but Martin Helven had always been a reasonable—and not particularly observant—man. “Very well,” she said. “On to Helvenhall.”
CHAPTER 5
T WO days later they rode into a tidy little city that rose with a self-important grandeur in the middle of the flatlands. Tayse looked around with interest, for he’d never been there. With him, it was an automatic thing to begin assessing and cataloging. Here was where the city was vulnerable to attack, here was where the back alleys lay if someone needed a
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