'Now Silverdun. You know that Silverdun was with Mauritane on whatever bloody secret mission that Titania sent him on. He fought at the battle of Sylvan. He's a very clever fellow, and no slouch with the Gifts, either.
'And as for that thing, as you have so gallantly put it, I have expressed to you on more than one occasion not just how valuable she is, but how much more valuable she may become with the proper training, which I expect you to provide.'
Sela realized they were talking about her. She was that 'thing.' She had known for a long time, ever since she'd been taken from Lord Tanen and brought to Copperine House, that she was different somehow. Perhaps even special. She even understood why she was 'valuable.' She had skills: She could read others; she could kill. All of the things that Tanen had brought out in her; those things that she'd tried hard at Copperine House to forget. Now these things determined her worth.
Tonight she did not want to be different. She wanted to be like anyone else. A pretty blonde-haired girl that Silverdun might see and fall in love with.
Not a thing.
'But there is one more piece of information that you do not have, and which I have reserved in anticipation of this very moment.'
'And what is that?' asked Paet, seething with anger. Sela did not need to read a thread to know what Paet was thinking. This was Everess's favorite game: to withhold a vital piece of information, hide it behind his back like a club, and then beat you over the head with it.
'That I did not choose Silverdun, or Ironfoot, or Sela.'
'No? And who did? Was it Aba's guiding hand? Regina Titania herself?'
Everess smiled. 'The latter, actually.'
Paet's eyes widened. 'You expect me to believe that the Seelie queen reviewed your request for personnel and personally selected these three to be Shadows? During her rest period while hearing petitions, perhaps? Or in between drinks at a ball?'
'I can only tell you what she told me. I went to her to discuss the matter of reopening the Office of Shadow. We spoke briefly, perhaps five minutes. At the end of the meeting, she wrote three names down on a slip of paper and handed it to me.'
'And you are only just now telling me this?' said Paet. 'Why?'
'As you are so fond of telling others, Paet, it was not necessary for you to know.'
Paet seethed.
'One last point,' said Everess, pouring himself another drink. 'You accused me of lying to our recruits. Did you not just this evening admit to doing the same thing? I fail to see why you have singled me out for opprobrium on that count.'
'What I did,' said Paet, 'and will always do is conceal that information which has been deemed classified. That is not quite the same as lying, unless you'd like to spend the rest of the evening arguing the semantics of it. What you have done is deliberately mislead them.
'Of course you fail to see the distinction. You're so comfortable with falsehood that you can't tell the difference.'
Everess's face had slowly reddened throughout Paet's brief speech. 'There is a line I suggest you do not cross, Chief Pact. I allow you to speak to me freely, and not as the commoner you are to the nobleman that I am. But I will only take so much abuse from you.'
'Then I'll add only one more thing, nzy lord,' said Paet. 'If you ever keep me in the dark about something so critical as the selection of my officers again, there will be hell to pay.'
'I'll take it under advisement,' said Everess. 'Now, are we quite finished?'
Paet stood. 'For now. Until the next time you find a way to be a thorn in my side. And before you take any more umbrage, be advised that I will speak to you any way I damn well please.'
He strode away and out of Sela's vision. Her heart was racing. She tiptoed back to her room and lay down, willing herself to be calm.
She had known that Paet and Everess weren't on the best of terms, but now it seemed as though they detested one another. She had never trusted Everess. Did that mean she ought to trust Paet? He was difficult to read, almost closed to her.
That reminded her of Silverdun's trick during the meeting earlier. How had he managed to shut her out so easily? No one had ever done that to her before. And what had he been thinking when he'd done it?
There were so many questions, so many puzzles. Just when she thought herself an expert on Fae nature, she realized that she really knew nothing at all.
Sleep was a long time coming.
