by Rachel Ford
She blinked, turning back to me from the window. There was a sheen of moisture in her blue eyes that hadn’t been there a minute ago. “Yes.”
I wondered, not for the first time, if I’d made the right call, letting her be a part of this. If it was me, I knew I’d want to be on the taskforce. But Ana wasn’t me. I still didn’t know the depth of her bond with Ilyen. I couldn’t know if the torture of sitting negotiations out would have been more acute than being a part of them, hearing the character assassination that was sure to come, seeing so many wyverns up close and personal after her last encounter.
All I could know was what she had told me: she wanted in. Of course she did. But was she ready? Was she in a state to know her own limits?
As her KP, it was my job to make that evaluation. My gut had told me she was, and she could. Now, seeing the sadness in her eyes, I felt an old, familiar ache, a kind of sympathetic misery. I knew, in a way, what she was feeling. And I wondered again if my initial call had been right.
Would I have spared her pain, in letting her sit this out? Did I even have the right to make a choice like that on her behalf?
As her KP, yes. I had the right to make any call I wanted. But I wasn’t that kind of KP. And I had made my choice less as a KP, and more as a person. I’d been in Ana’s shoes once. And I couldn’t imagine having to sit back and be patient.
No, that wouldn’t have eased her suffering. Whatever particular hardships she would endure in being here, they’d be all the more acute if she was left to suffer from a distance.
I mused in silence for a while. Then, I spoke. “I’m sorry, Ana. About everything. About your KP. And now this.”
She drew her eyes from the window and smiled. “Me too, Lilia. But – not everything. I’m glad I met you.”
“Oh.” I suppose I hadn’t thought of that. I wouldn’t have predicted it a few weeks ago, but I was glad I met her and Phillip. Still, it was hard to separate the meeting from the circumstance.
She seemed to read my mind. “I wish it would have been under better circumstances. But – at the risk of sounding like a kiss ass – you’re a damned good KP.”
“Well, thank you. I’m not sure I believe it, mind.” I smiled too. “But I am trying.”
“It’s true.”
“Well…I’m glad I met you too. Both of you.”
Chapter Eighteen – Derel
We all rose early the morning of the first session. The KP told Claxton she didn’t have to, that we could fend for ourselves rather than dragging her out of bed at such an ungodly hour. But she’d hear none of it.
Instead, she scoffed. “And leave that poor boy to eat your cooking? I’m not so cruel as that.”
So she rose before all of us and had a piping hot breakfast waiting. I think she was as nervous as we were. She tutted and harrumphed her way through the morning, chiding us for interfering here or eating too little there. “You need your strength if you’re going to face down those Southern bastards. Finish your plate.” And, “Are you a mouse, Ana? Have another helping.” Phillip and I both laughed out loud when she told the KP, “That’s enough coffee for you, young lady. You’ll have the jitters.”
Lilia caught my gaze and shook her head, and I laughed again. For all her impertinence – and Claxton was nothing if not impertinent – she almost made us forget the day ahead. Maybe that was her goal. Maybe it was just how she eased her own nerves.
Regardless, I was grateful. I had a feeling we’d have spent the morning eating cold meats in sullen silence, were it not for her.
Breakfast came to an end soon enough, though, and we had to head out. “Stay close to the keep,” Lilia told Phillip. “Just in case things don’t go well today.”
“I should be going with you, KP.”
Here, she took him by the shoulders, and looked him squarely in the eyes. “I need someone to take care of the people of Shire’s End. If there’s a dragon attack, they’ll flee here. And in my absence – and if something happens to Derel and I – I need someone I can trust, Phillip. You haven’t been my squire for long, but you’ve got a knight’s heart. And you will make sure our people are safe.
“Won’t you?”
He nodded solemnly. “Yes ma’am. Or die trying.”
She nodded too. “Spoken like a knight.” Then, she smiled. “With any luck, I’ll see you tonight. But if not…well, do the Callaghans proud. The Callaghans and the Aaronsens.”
“I will.”
“I know you will.”
“I’ll have dinner waiting,” Claxton called. “You make sure you get home in one piece, Miss Lilia. No picking fights with dragon lords.”
She grinned. “I’ll do my best, Agnes. And you get some rest today.”
The old woman snorted. “There’s too much work for resting. Now go on: get to your own work and leave me be.”
Whatever her virtues, Claxton was clearly not one for long, drawn out goodbyes. I remarked as much as we got into the skimmer, and the KP laughed. “No. That she’s not.”
“You think we need goodbyes, then?”
I’d said it casually, as if it didn’t bother me. “I think it’s a possibility, Ana. I think, if these negotiations don’t go the way we want – or, if war is why they’re here – we may end up in a battle with who knows how many wyvern riders.”
I nodded. “You think they’ll attack the town then?”
She nodded too. “The town. The base. If they’ve got an army ready to invade, they’ll start here.”
I sighed. By treaty, we weren’t allowed to fly over Southern territory. We weren’t allowed to surveil what was happening beyond our borders. But that’s what Trajan had been doing, wasn’t it? That’s quite possibly why he tried to murder Ilyen, Phillip and me – so that we couldn’t report his illegal surveillance.
So Valarian and his men knew what was happening behind our borders. They killed my KP to get that intel. But we had to play by the rules. We had to stay in our own territory, clueless as to what lay beyond our borders – whether it was an army of thousands, or a handful of scouts. And now, today, we had to sit across the table from Ilyen’s murderers and listen to their lies. We had to listen as they blamed Ilyen for his own death and cast aspersions on one of the noblest knights I’d ever met.
My stomach roiled, and I wondered if Claxton’s breakfast had done me a disservice after all.
“You okay?” Lilia wondered.
“KP?”
She shrugged. “You look a little…off, is all.”
“Well, I think I might puke. But otherwise, I’m fine.”
She didn’t laugh. “I know you don’t want to hear it, so I’m going to say it one last time, and then not mention it again. But you don’t have to be here, Ana. Not unless you want to be.”
“Lilia, I’ll be sick wherever I am. I’m sick at the idea of Ilyen being on trial by those sons-of-bitches, after they murdered him. I’m sick at the idea of Trajan’s commander stepping foot on our soil. But that won’t change just because I don’t see it. I want to be there.”
She smiled, raising her hands at the vehemence in my words. “Alright, alright. Like I said: last time I mention it. I just wanted you to know the offer still stands – will stand, if you change your mind, at any point.”
I smiled too. “Thanks. I do appreciate it. But I’m in – all in.”
She nodded her approval, and we traveled in amicable silence after that. I tried to find something to say to fill the quiet, but the truth was, my mind was too preoccupied. And the situation was too grim for small talk, even if I could have mustered a half-hearted effort.
We arrived at sunup and found a growing entourage of knights assembled. Commander Lidek stood in the rear, and Alduran took the lead. We stood near the front. “It might be better if you stayed with the commander,” he cautioned. “Since you and SKP Valarian didn’t see eye to eye last time, it might be better if he sees less of you this time.”
Callaghan raised an eyebrow at him and made no move to budge
. “I am Knight of the Shire, KP Alduran. No Southerner steps foot in the shire without me being present – and him knowing it.”
He shook his head, and I smiled to myself. I knew she had no desire to be front and center. Negotiations and politics were no love of hers. But I couldn’t help but admire her doggedness and refusal to be sidelined. The cool confidence, almost dismissal, of Alduran when he tried was just icing on the proverbial cake. She was not to be trifled with, and the other knight, frowning all the while, knew better than to argue.
The KP is a badass, I thought. That Southerner might get more than he bargained for, with her here today.
Not long after we arrived, a swarm of great, dark bodies appeared on the southern horizon, growing larger and larger until they reached us. I shivered at the sight, counting an even dozen dragons, and more knights, with some riding two or three to a beast.
Valarian was in the lead, and he dismounted before the others. He was, I saw, unarmed this time. No blade or holstered pistol hung at his side. He was dressed in long, flowing robes, the patterns on which matched the caparison on his dragon. The other knights and their wyvern were similarly attired, each wearing the colors of their houses or units.
He stood in place for a moment and threw a glance around, eying us all one by one. Then, he moved for Alduran.
With a quick nod of the head, he said, “KP Alduran.”
“SKP Valarian: welcome back to the North.”
He nodded again. “I thank you for the reception, and for agreeing to meet with us.”
“Of course. We are honored to receive you and the representatives of the South.”
Here, the southern knight introduced a slew of persons. I tried to keep the names straight. There was Gandril, the legal expert; Esilerian, Trajan’s representative; Frilk and Freylor, diplomats from the Southern capital; and the rest were knights. He introduced a dozen grim-faced knight protectors, all in dress uniforms and carrying no weapons. After the third or fourth name, I lost track.
Alduran, in turn, introduced us. He passed by Callaghan with a quick, “You’ve already met KP Callaghan. This is Squire Derel. And here –”
Valarian had icy eyes for the KP, but at my name he paused. “Derel?”
The taskforce man blinked, turning a cautious glance between us. “That’s right. Over here, I’m honored to introduce Barrister Flint, the lead –”
“Is this the Derel that was there, when my knight was killed? The one who shot my dragon?”
I swallowed, frozen in place. How the hell does he know that? No one had mentioned my name, or Phillip’s. So how did he know?
Alduran stammered out a few, non-committal words, apparently as stunned as I was. It was Callaghan who spoke coherently. Cocking her head to one side, she smiled warily. “You are well informed, SKP. But that’s right: we are in the presence of one of the best markswomen alive.”
Valarian clenched his jaw as he looked me over. “So you’re the reason I lost a knight and a dragon?”
“No sir,” Callaghan answered. “Your knight is the reason. Derel’s the reason your knight didn’t kill more of our people.”
“That,” Alduran declared with a conciliatory chuckle, “is what cooler heads than ours are going to decide today. Allow me to introduce Barrister Flint, SKP.”
With a final, stony gaze at me, Valarian moved on, making his way down the line. I caught the KP’s glance and flashed a grateful smile. I was glad she had the presence of mind to counter his accusations. I wasn’t sure I would have.
She nodded thoughtfully. It didn’t take much to guess the subject of her musings.
The Southerner knew my name. He knew that I’d been the one to shoot Trajan’s dragon.
How? It was an unspoken secret that the South had spies here. Everyone knew that. Just as we knew we had spies there. Now and again, someone would get caught relaying sensitive information, or copying classified files, or running secure intel across the border. The offending government would disavow any knowledge of the captured party. There’d be quiet trials and long sentences, and that’d be about the size of it.
That’s if it even got that far. There had been a few high-profile suicides, a decade and a half back, when prominent members of our military cabinet were investigated for espionage. There were whispers that a few of our spies had been captured, and never seen or heard from again. But that was when I was a child. That was before Ilaria took the throne. Now, it was all a lot quieter, and lower profile.
It was the kind of thing that sent a shiver up your spine, if you thought on it too long. So, usually, I didn’t.
Except now, I didn’t have much choice. Someone had leaked my name, and probably Phillip’s too. Someone had told Valarian. Had it been done maliciously, by a spy or someone on the Southern payroll? Or was it an innocent slip? Had they sent someone over the border to ask questions, into Terrence’s Fort perhaps? I could see Jason or Karina, the couple that had found me in my burnt, incoherent state, innocently providing details about that morning. There’d been so many strange faces pouring over the countryside, looking for answers. Who would suspect another?
And if it was knowledge that they’d procured from a border incursion, what else were they up to?
My mind was reeling as introductions wrapped up, and we made our way back to Cragspoint.
Lidek had the most formal meeting space of the facility ready for us. It was a perfect blend of grandeur and sobriety, from the purely functional, dark wood of the tables and chairs to the elaborate friezes depicting mythological parlays along the walls.
Whereas the commander had managed to keep himself out of view so far, now he was seated at the head of the table. Callaghan, as Knight of the Shire, sat beside him, and as her squire, I occupied a seat to her right.
As it happened, I was almost directly across from Valarian. His chair was on the opposite side of the table, just one over from mine. It was a position I happily would have given up. But the KP had it a little worse: her seat faced his. As they settled into place, their eyes locked.
And, I’d have sworn, they didn’t break the death stare until one of the priests directed us to bow our heads and close our eyes in prayer.
When it wrapped up, Barrister Gandril, the Southern legal representative, got to his feet. “Respectfully, KP Alduran, Commander Lidek, and members of the council, on behalf of the people of the South and King Agalyn Ignis, I would offer a statement.”
Commander Lidek nodded imperiously. “Speak your piece, Barrister. We will hear you.”
Gandril threw a sober glance around the room. “Thank you, Commander. Thank you all for receiving us today, to discuss the unfortunate incident in question.
“It is the position of the South that our knight, Kaladorn Trajan, violated Northern airspace, illegally crossed the borders of the neutral zone, and unlawfully attacked KP Ilyen and Squires Derel and Aaronsen.”
I think we would have heard a pin drop after that declaration, had anyone loosed one. I glanced at Lilia. She was frowning in confusion. So was the commander. Alduran’s jaw practically gaped.
On the Southern side of the table, the reaction was quite different. Some of the knights wore expressions of contrition. And as for Valarian? Well, his features were drawn into a fierce, angry scowl, his jaw set and his eyes fixed on the table before him.
No wonder, I thought, he’s so pissy. He knew this was coming.
Gandril continued in a moment. “Representative Esilerian, have you anything to say in the deceased’s defense?”
Here, the other man rose. He was tall, swathed like all the rest in long, heavy robes, and he seemed to tower over the table as he stood. “No, Barrister: on behalf of Kaladorn Trajan, I accept the charges.”
Gandril nodded, his expression grim. “Then it is my duty to offer, on behalf of my nation and king, our sincerest and most sorrowful admission of guilt in this matter, my lords. We can offer no excuse, for the actions of Trajan were inexcusable. We can offer no rationale, for these were n
ot the acts of a rational mind.
“We can only offer our remorse, and hope that, in admitting the shame of one of our own, we may restore some of the goodwill the kaladorn has eroded.”
Chapter Nineteen – Callaghan
Unexpected didn’t begin to cover it. In every possible way I’d imagined today playing out, an admission had never even entered my mind. At first, I was stunned. But, as Alduran accepted the avowal of guilt and waxed loquacious about the strength of the bond between North and South, my senses ebbed back.
What the hell are they up to? Maybe it was all the years of talking to Lidek. Maybe I’d taken more of his paranoia to heart than I realized.
But a full acknowledgement of Trajan’s crimes? No. They’d never cave that easily. What did they gain from doing so? Nothing. Nothing, anyway, that wouldn’t have been preserved by playing hardball.
Sure, they kept the peace. But they knew we wanted to do that too. Otherwise, Ilyen’s death would have already led to a war, rather than the slow, careful investigation that had followed.
Maybe it’s PR. They’d been caught surveilling the North. They’d been caught attempting to murder three of our people. For all of Valarian’s bluster, there was no getting out of that.
Maybe this about-turn was just to save face. I didn’t believe for a minute that Trajan was a madman acting on his own, as Gandril seemed to be implying. Was this show of openness, then, to stop any deeper questions?
Better to own up to the sins of a dead rogue slave than to seem to coverup those crimes. Better to be contrite peacemakers, now that they’d been caught with egg on their faces, than to belligerently deny their complicity. This way, Trajan’s acts were just his. To continue in denials, they became the actions of the South.
The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. I wondered that I hadn’t considered this possibility. I suppose it had been Valarian’s hostility. I’d been prepared for a long, bitter war of words. I’d never considered this capitulation.