It was a frighteningly precarious position for a house to be in—their finances depended directly on pleasing the Lord Ruler. Elend thought that he was being careful, but Vin was worried. He wasn’t taking Shan Elariel seriously enough—of that, Vin was certain. She turned, walking intently from the balcony and down to the main floor.
She found Shan’s table easily; the woman always sat with a large group of attendant noblewomen, presiding like a lord over his plantation. Vin paused. She’d never approached Shan directly. Someone, however, needed to protect Elend; he was obviously too foolish to do it himself.
Vin strode forward. Shan’s Terrisman studied Vin as she approached. He was so different from Sazed—he didn’t have the same … spirit. This man maintained a flat expression, like some creature carved of stone. A few of the ladies shot disapproving glances toward Vin, but most of them—Shan included—ignored her.
Vin stood awkwardly beside the table, waiting for a lull in the conversation. There was none. Finally, she just took a few steps closer to Shan.
“Lady Shan?” she asked.
Shan turned with an icy glare. “I didn’t send for you, country girl.”
“Yes, but I’ve found some books like you—”
“I no longer require your services,” Shan said, turning away. “I can deal with Elend Venture on my own. Now, be a good little twit and stop bothering me.”
Vin stood, stunned. “But, your plan—”
“I said that you are no longer needed. You think I was harsh on you before, girl? That was when you were on my good side. Try annoying me now.”
Vin wilted reflexively before the woman’s demeaning gaze. She seemed … disgusted. Angry, even. Jealous?
She must have figured it out, Vin thought. She finally realized out that I’m not just playing with Elend. She knows that I care for him, and doesn’t trust me to keep her secrets.
Vin backed away from the table. Apparently, she would have to use other methods to discover Shan’s plans.
Despite what he often said, Elend Venture did not consider himself to be a rude man. He was more of a … verbal philosopher. He liked to test and turn conversation to see how people would react. Like the great thinkers of old, he pushed boundaries and experimented with unconventional methods.
Of course, he thought, holding his cup of brandy up before his eyes, inspecting it musingly, most of those old philosophers were eventually executed for treason. Not exactly the most successful role models.
His evening political conversation with his group was finished, and he had retired with several friends to Keep Lekal’s gentlemen’s lounge, a small chamber adjacent to the ballroom. It was furnished in deep green colors, and the chairs were comfortable; it would have been a nice place to read, had he been in a slightly better mood. Jastes sat across from him, puffing contentedly on his pipe. It was good to see the young Lekal looking so calm. These last few weeks had been difficult for him.
House war, Elend thought. What terrible timing. Why now? Things were going so well….
Telden returned with a refilled drink a few moments later.
“You know,” Jastes said, gesturing with his pipe, “any one of the servants in here would have brought you a new drink.”
“I felt like stretching my legs,” Telden said, settling into the third chair.
“And you flirted with no less than three women on your way back,” Jastes said. “I counted.”
Telden smiled, sipping his drink. The large man never just “sat”—he lounged. Telden could look relaxed and comfortable no matter what the situation, his sharp suits and well-styled hair enviably handsome.
Maybe I should pay just a little more attention to things like that, Elend thought to himself. Valette suffers my hair the way it is, but would she like it better if I had it styled?
Elend often intended to make his way to a stylist or tailor, but other things tended to steal his attention. He’d get lost in his studies or spend too long reading, then find himself late for his appointments. Again.
“Elend is quiet this evening,” Telden noticed. Though other groups of gentlemen sat in the dim lounge, the chairs were spread out enough to allow for private conversations.
“He’s been like that a lot, lately,” Jastes said.
“Ah, yes,” Telden said, frowning slightly.
Elend knew them well enough to take the hint. “Now, see, why must people be like this? If you have something to say, why not simply say it?”
“Politics, my friend,” Jastes said. “We are—if you haven’t noticed—noblemen.”
Elend rolled his eyes.
“All right, I’ll say it,” Jastes replied, running his hand through his hair—a nervous habit that Elend was sure contributed somewhat to the young man’s growing baldness. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with that Renoux girl, Elend.”
“There is a simple explanation for that,” Elend said. “You see, I happen to like her.”
“Not good, Elend,” Telden said with a shake of his head. “Not good.”
“Why?” Elend asked. “You seem pleased enough to ignore class variances yourself, Telden. I’ve seen you flirt with half the serving girls in the room.”
“I’m not heir to my house,” Telden said.
“And,” Jastes said, “these girls are trustworthy. My family hired these women—we know their houses, their backgrounds, and their allegiances.”
Elend frowned. “What are you implying?”
“Something’s strange about that girl, Elend,” Jastes said. He’d gone back to his normal nervous self, his pipe sitting unnoticed in its holder on the table.
Telden nodded. “She got too close to you too quickly, Elend. She wants something.”
“Like what?” Elend asked, growing annoyed.
“Elend, Elend,” Jastes said. “You can’t just avoid the game by saying you don’t want to play. It’ll find you. Renoux moved into town just as house tensions began to rise, and he brought with him an unknown scion—a girl who immediately began to woo the most important and available young man in Luthadel. Doesn’t that seem odd to you?”
“Actually,” Elend noted, “I approached her first—if only because she had stolen my reading spot.”
“But, you have to admit that it’s suspicious how quickly she latched on to you,” Telden said. “If you’re going to dabble with romance, Elend, you need to learn one thing: You can play with women if you want, but don’t let yourself get too close to them. That’s where the trouble starts.”
Elend shook his head. “Valette is different.”
The other two shared a look, then Telden shrugged, turning back to his drink. Jastes, however, sighed, then stood and stretched. “Anyway, I should probably be going.”
“One more drink,” Telden said.
Jastes shook his head, running a hand through his hair. “You know how my parents are on ball nights—if I don’t go out and bid farewell to at least some of the guests, I’ll be nagged about it for weeks.”
The younger man wished them good night, walking back toward the main ballroom. Telden sipped his drink, eyeing Elend.
“I’m not thinking about her,” Elend said testily.