She thanked the Elven Home Guards for their assistance; gathering up their weapons and cloaks, they went out the door and down the hallway as directed. Behind them, the Home Guards watched them go.
Ajin walked slightly apart from her companions, lost in thought. There was a great deal to consider and not a lot of time in which to do so. The variables of her plan worried her, especially when it came to her father. He was growing steadily less dependent on her. She still had his ear, but she did not feel he was as strongly inclined to defer to her judgment. She worried that he no longer trusted her as he once had. On every one of her other campaigns, he had awaited her summons before acting. But this time, his precipitous departure for the Four Lands was a clear indication of his loss of faith. Whether this was due to the rumors of men like Sten’Or or his own misguided lack of faith, it was hard to know. But overall, his trust in her had eroded.
She did not like to think what that meant. But she knew she would have to do something about it.
Still in the lead, she rounded a corner in the hallway and watched a door open ahead of them. A familiar voice was speaking, a voice she could not mistake. She slowed, then stopped short in surprise.
She was face-to-face with Dar Leah.
TEN
For a time that neither could have measured, Dar Leah and Ajin d’Amphere just stared at each other. Then, unexpectedly, she smiled. “We just can’t seem to stay away from each other, can we?”
She stepped closer to him. Their eyes locked, then she looked past him to Brecon. “And look who you have with you! The king’s youngest. What sort of mischief are you two up to, I wonder?”
“You should look to your own conscience, Princess,” Dar snapped.
Ajin’s exquisite features showed an exaggerated dismay. “Should I? Whatever for?”
“What did you tell my father?” Brecon demanded, stepping forward to confront her. “What did you say to the Elven High Council?”
Ajin spared him no more than a momentary glance. “Perhaps you should ask him. If he wants you to know, I expect he will tell you. It isn’t for me to say.”
“It’s a bold move, coming here like this,” Dar said. “You risk much in revealing yourself this way.”
She shrugged. “No more than I am willing to risk. Confrontation is better than hesitation, and I’ve always believed caution is overrated.”
“So what are you doing here?”
She seemed to give the matter a few moments of thought. “I don’t suppose there is any reason not to answer. I came to offer an alliance. I want the Elves and the Skaar to become friends.”
Dar shook his head. “A nice sentiment, but I suspect your friendship comes at a price.”
“My enmity comes at a price, Dar Leah, not my friendship. Only those who stand in my way need fear anything from me.”
“The Druids, for example? They paid a rather high price—even the ones who were unaware of what was happening right up until the moment of their deaths. So how did they stand in your way?”
“You were there on the Plains of Rabb. You saw it all yourself. Those Druids who accompanied you acted impulsively and foolishly. They threatened us, and it cost them. Those at Paranor turned a blind eye to what their leadership was doing to them. They did nothing to hold those leaders accountable and thereby invited their own fate. The Druid order was sickened from head to foot. It would have come down eventually, like any dying tree, even if I had not acted.”
Dar raised an eyebrow. “Not a conclusion I would have reached. The Druid order was a living, breathing, working collection of men and women who were doing something they strongly believed in and they did much good over the years. The head might have been muddled, granted, but the body was functioning. But then, I think we see things a bit differently, you and I.”
She stepped back, as if giving herself space. “It’s a difference mostly of degree.” She paused, giving him a look, her blue eyes taking his measure. “Why are you here? Have you come for a visit with the Elessedil family? Or for something more pressing?”
He smiled blandly. “The Elessedils are friends from a long time back, Princess. I haven’t visited for a while.”
“And you decide to pay a visit at a time when the Keep has disappeared and the Druids are mostly gone? An odd choice.”
“I have nothing better to do. Besides, I thought they should know what you did at Paranor. But I suppose you already told them, didn’t you?”
“I thought it should come from me. But if you worry for their safety, you needn’t. I am no threat to them, and Gerrendren knows this. I intend the Skaar and the Elves to be allies, just as I said. A simple enough arrangement that will benefit us both.”
Dar didn’t miss the way she used the Elven king’s first name. As if they were already close friends. He remembered Brecon saying that beautiful women easily charmed his father, and he experienced a moment of intense frustration.
“You wish to ally with us?” Brecon was openly appalled. “An invader who covets our land and would kill our people?”
Ajin turned on him at once. “Caution, Prince Brecon. You speak harsh words without cause. The Skaar do not covet your land and have no intention of killing your people. We have come to find a new home, yes—but not at your expense. Our interest in the Four Lands lies elsewhere.”
“Yet what happened to Paranor and to those Troll tribes would suggest your interest lies everywhere,” Dar countered.
Ajin shrugged. “Things are not always as simple as we would like them to be. You will come to realize this in time. Now I have to go. This unexpected encounter has been pleasant, but I have work to do.”
Brecon stepped forward to block her way. “Maybe you should be made to come to terms with what you’ve done first. Perhaps letting you leave would be a mistake.”
Despite his anger with Ajin, Dar Leah stepped between them, sensing that matters might be getting out of hand. There wasn’t much to be gained by picking a fight at this point. And trying to stop Ajin from leaving was pointless. Any guest of the Elven king was under his protection, and any attempt to interfere would win a harsh reprimand and perhaps cost both of them the king’s good graces.
“Peace, Brecon,” he said quietly, drawing his friend back. “Let her go for now.” He glanced at Ajin. “Another time.”
She smiled in response and put her hand on his chest. “I told you we would meet again. I suspect we are not yet done with each other, Dar Leah. I believe we will have further encounters down the road. I hope so. I look forward to them.”
“You should be careful what you wish for, Princess,” he said.