room. It was still dark, and she heard heavy breathing from the bed. Alyssa shook her head. She’d have welcomed the company, but whatever the faceless woman had endured the night before had taken a hefty toll. Let her rest, she thought. Come nightfall, she’d need Zusa’s strength to keep her promise to the Watcher. She closed the door, pulled her hat lower over her face, and headed to the servants’ back entrance.
Torgar was waiting there as she’d requested.
“Got somewhere secret to be?” he asked.
“Just take me to the gate,” she said coldly. “And remember how much I paid you.”
He patted his pocket, rattling the gold within.
“It’ll be hard to forget, not for many glorious nights of drinking and whoring. My tongue’s yours, milady.”
She hated his lecherous grin, but she bowed her head and gestured for him to lead the way. Following behind as if she were a simple servant on errand, she kept her head low and did not make eye contact with any of the other guards patrolling the area.
“Stay safe,” he said when she was at the street, and he shut the gates. “It’s a scary place out there for lonely ladies…especially ones who ain’t looking like they should.”
Alyssa ignored him, and with as much speed as she could muster without looking suspicious, she hurried toward the outer sections the city. The streets grew less crowded as she moved further away from the docks and into the slums of Angelport. Most ignored her, only a few tossing her strange looks. Glancing down at her clothes, all spotless and clean, made her realize how naive she’d been. Simply wearing their clothes would not make her look like one of them. Desperately wishing she’d waken Zusa, she continued on, her jaw clenched to hide her growing fear.
She reached her destination without incident, and sighed with relief. It seemed no one had recognized her. She knocked twice, waited, then twice more. From the opposite side, she heard a click, and then the door swung open. Stepping inside the small building, Alyssa removed her hat and bowed.
“My, my,” said Graeven, bowing in return. All around him, the gathered elves glanced their way. “For what reason does our gracious hostess come to pay us a visit?”
Alyssa looked about, counting the number of elves in the two-bedroom home. At least thirty, if not more.
“Are the accommodations sufficient?” she asked, smoothing out her shirt, which had wrinkled from her walk, the cotton inferior in quality to what she was used to.
“Cramped, but we cannot complain,” Graeven said. “I doubt Lord Ingram would have given us anything as welcoming. Lice-ridden beds and rat-infested walls do not suit me, nor would staying outside the city like unwelcome invaders.”
“Though we are unwelcome,” said a lady elf, who came and gracefully curtseyed to Alyssa. “Lady Gemcroft, I assume?”
“Indeed,” Alyssa said, returning the curtsey despite her lack of a dress. “May I have the pleasure of your name?”
“Laryssa Sinistel,” she said, her voice oddly beautiful, like the soft sound of glass chimes. She wore a green dress shining with sapphires shaped like a hundred raindrops. Alyssa had to hide her shock upon hearing the name of the elven princess.
“Your Highness,” she said, bowing low. “I am honored to be in your presence.”
“You are one of the few in this city,” Laryssa said. “Words of welcome are not what your people gave to us as we entered the walls.” She glanced to Graeven, who sported a swollen cut above his right eye. “No, they hurled stones and curses. I once thought my people were rash to condemn humans, to be so eager for a cleansing war. Now I wonder.”
“They are merely scared,” Graeven said. “They know little beyond what they are told. It is the human leaders we must convince, and they’ll make the rest of the populace follow.”
“Perhaps,” Laryssa said, and she smiled again at Alyssa. “But we will discuss this all too soon with Lord Ingram and his various puppets. Let us not worry on this now. Why have you come, Lady Gemcroft?”
Alyssa swallowed, and tried to remember every lesson she’d ever been taught. She’d have one chance at this. Originally, she’d thought to pitch it to the elven ambassador, but with Laryssa there, it was clear who would be in charge.
“A friend of mine has been wrongfully imprisoned by Ingram,” she began.
“Who?” asked Graeven, interrupting her.
“A friend,” she said, struggling not to glare. “I have tried to convince Ingram to turn him over to me, but he refuses. He’ll execute him tonight, and I fear I can do nothing to stop him. I know the skill of your warriors, it is almost legendary to us humans. I ask that you free my friend and bring him to me for safety.”
Laryssa’s oval face remained perfectly still as she listened, her blue eyes staring. Alyssa felt like the young child she was before the ancient elf. When she finished making her request, she crossed her hands behind her back and lowered her head, the best show of humility she could think of. Laryssa brushed aside the bangs of her hair, so blonde it was almost white.
“What you ask could spark a war,” she said. “This friend must mean a lot to you.”
“He once saved my son’s life. This is the least I can do in return.”
“So honorable,” Graeven said, and he sounded amused.
“And foolish,” Laryssa said. She gestured to the many other elves who lingered about in chairs and cross- legged on the floor. “We come to prevent a war, yet you would have us openly invite it? Freeing your friend would risk the deaths of my beloved friends and family, whom I have known for hundreds of years. Should Ingram’s guards die in the attempt, war could consume us all, and thousands more will perish on both sides. Is your friend worth that? To you, perhaps, but not me. We are thankful for your hospitality, Lady Gemcroft, but we will not perform such madness in payment.”
“Surely the risk is not so great as that,” Graeven said, turning to his princess. “We could easily dispatch a handful of guards, and if done right, no one will know of any elven involvement.”
“And what will we say if caught?” Laryssa asked. “That we did so at the request of a friend? We do not know this man, and have no interest to him. Any lie we offer will ring hollow, and I refuse to be put into such a position. I am sorry, Alyssa, but we can offer no aid.”
Alyssa nodded, first hesitantly, then more firmly.
“I understand,” she said. “Forgive me for wasting your time.”
“Time with you is never wasted,” Graeven said, bowing low.
“Hurry to your home,” Laryssa said. “Our first meeting with Ingram is soon, and I would wish you there to help us as promised.”
“Of course.” Alyssa curtseyed, put her hat back on, then exited the home. Barely three steps out, the door reopened, and Graeven appeared.
“Do not give up hope just yet,” he said, walking beside her. “You are a powerful woman with many resources. I lament Laryssa’s hesitance, but we may still help if only in secret. Should you rescue your friend, and need a place for him to hide…”
“I’ll keep it in mind,” she said, trying to disguise her impatience. “Now please, I don’t want to draw any…”
“Say no more,” the ambassador said, offering her a wink. “Pleasant nights, milady.”
With him gone, Alyssa returned to Laurie’s mansion. Waiting at the gate, Torgar shot her a pleased grin.
“Did anyone notice my absence?” she asked.
“All lips are sealed,” said the mercenary, opening the gate so she could enter. “Now hurry. Laurie’s already left for the meeting, and I think he’ll be quite unhappy if you’re not there with him.”
9
The dark void of Zusa’s sleep slowly filled with dreams, at first calm, then terrifying. She ran through the streets of Veldaren, lions giving chase. Fire consumed their enormous bodies, their roars thundering in her ears. High above shone a blood-red moon. Twice she turned to fight them, but she was naked, and held no weapons. At
