“I met the wagons on the road, so I’m glad to see that our guests are on their way,” the spymaster said. “A good night’s work, and the only casualty was poor Granger. I was so impressed by young Lady Harper. If she ever expresses an interest in—”
“Where have you been?” Hal demanded. “Where are my mother and sister and the rest of the families? Robert and I were supposed to escort them to White Oaks.”
“They’re not going directly to White Oaks,” Karn said. “But, don’t worry, they will be safe and comfortable—and out of the king’s hands. That will free everyone to negotiate in good faith.”
“If you meant to double-cross us, why not just leave us to rot in Newgate?” Robert said, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
At that particular moment, mage or no mage, Hal was ready to draw his own sword and make the spymaster bleed, to the Breaker with the consequences.
“How have I double-crossed you?” Karn said, with a puzzled frown. “We had a common goal—to take the hostages out of the hands of Jarat Montaigne, and we have done that. No doubt he’ll be more amenable to striking a deal with the thanes with his bargaining power diminished.”
“It seems to me that your goal was to take the hostages out of the king’s hands and take custody of them yourself,” Hal said. “For what purpose, I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”
“That’s easy enough,” Karn said. “I’ll tell you. But first, let me ask you a question. What is likely to happen if the hostage families are returned to the thanes?”
We’ll all live happily ever after? Hal thought. I can take an army north?
“Will your father and his allies be more likely to come to the table?” Karn persisted.
Hal wanted to say yes, but he knew in his bones that wasn’t true. He shook his head. “Freed of worry about the hostages, the thanes will march on Ardenscourt and depose the king sooner rather than later.”
“Won’t that be nice? Maybe your father will be crowned king. King Arschel,” Karn said, as if savoring the phrase. “You and Robert can be princes. Though Matelon had better watch his back. I happen to know that the DeLacroix family is moving behind the scenes to make sure that it’s King Pascal. In fact, an attack on the capital could be the starting point for a new civil war. Meanwhile, the empress is marching. As things stand, I suspect whoever wins will have a very short reign.”
Hal thought of the harbor at Chalk Cliffs, full of the empress’s ships, of the beaches teeming with horse soldiers, and he had to agree.
“I know your father has a policy against giving in to the demands of hostage-takers,” Karn said. “He won’t accept an unsatisfactory deal on account of them. And Jarat would never offer a reasonable deal as long as he held the hostages. It will be my job to convince Jarat to offer terms that the thanes can accept. The fact that his mother and sister are with the hostages might help that case. It will be your job to persuade the thanes to sign on.”
“I’m a soldier,” Hal protested, “not a diplomat.”
“Who better to convince an old warrior like your father?” Karn said.
“That’s not going to happen,” Hal said. “It doesn’t matter who’s holding the hostages. It just means that he’ll be even more determined to hold you accountable.”
“Perhaps some of the other thanes will be more receptive,” Karn said. “To be honest, I am not close to the young king. As spymaster for the kingdom, it will be my fault that the hostages escaped. By the time Jarat realizes that he needs me—or, at least someone smarter than Granger—I’ll have taken my bow on Executioner’s Hill.”
“Do you really think so?” Hal said skeptically. “Surely General Karn would intervene to—”
Karn laughed. “You have been away from court a while, haven’t you? My father will do everything in his power to pin it on me. If he intervenes, it will be to put the noose around my neck.”
“If the thanes take the city before then—”
“Then they will be fighting each other for the honor of executing me,” Karn said. “You see? No matter what happens, I will need leverage to protect myself and those who are important to me.”
Hal was mystified. Who was the spymaster trying to protect—other than himself?
“If what you’re saying is true, the thanes are smelling blood in the water,” Hal said. “Even if King Jarat offers improved terms, they will not be in the mood for negotiation.”
“I realize that this is a desperate plan, but such are the kind made by desperate men. I will do everything in my power to prevent the empress from claiming the west as well as the east.”
Hal and Robert exchanged glances. Hal had his own reasons for wanting to march against the empress, but what drove Karn? He seemed the type that would land on his feet no matter what. It brought to Hal’s mind his own conversation with Lyssa Gray, when he assured her that her life wouldn’t change much under Arden’s rule.
This spymaster has secrets, too, he thought. Hal needed to buy time, to consider what move to make next.
“All right,” he said, as if giving in. “The thanes will want to know who’s holding our families now. What am I supposed to tell them?”
Karn frowned, thinking.
“The queen in the north?” Barrowhill suggested, leaning against a tree and using the blade of a dagger to strip dirt from under her nails.
“If I tell them it’s the queen in the north, I know exactly what will happen,” Hal said. “My lord father already thinks I’ve been bewitched by the wolf queen. If I told him I helped put our families into the enemy’s hands, he would know it for sure. He’d clap me in irons and send in the
