“Talked to your scout master and fellow scouts,” Darius inserted out of the blue, bringing Shea’s eyes back to him. “They said it was your idea to check the other trails.”
Again Shea shrugged.
“That was pretty smart. You probably saved the Hawkvale and his guard’s life.”
He was leading up to something, Shea realized. That’s why he’d brought up where he knew her from and then praised her initiative. He’d probably known exactly who she was before he ever walked in here. Chances were he’d talked with anybody she’d ever interacted with. That’s why she was in here for so long. Long enough for the adrenaline to fade and for her to fall asleep.
But to what purpose? Maybe to catch her in a lie or get her to boasting about all her achievements.
Impressive. He was good. He probably expected to shake some information loose before she even realized what she had revealed. It was clearly a tactic he’d used before. Caden too, if the way they played off one another was anything to judge by.
“How’d you know which routes to look for him on?” Darius asked.
“Didn’t know. I got lucky.”
Darius arched an eyebrow and pulled a face as if to say he was impressed. “That’s some luck, you happening on the exact right place.”
Yeah, some luck. She was handcuffed to a chair facing an interrogation. If this was good luck, she kind of preferred having no luck.
“No answer?” Darius asked, arching an eyebrow.
Caden was a dark shadow at his back, his hands hanging loose by his sides as he cataloged every fleeting expression that crossed Shea’s face.
“You didn’t ask a question.”
Darius straightened and gave her a sidelong glance. “I don’t know quite what to make of you. From what I’ve gathered from your fellow scouts, they don’t know either.”
Shea met his gaze with an impassive look of her own.
He clasped his hands behind his back and said, “Shane, last name unknown. A Lowlander. Village also unknown. You’ve got skills that are highly unusual for a Lowlander and most Trateri. Not only can you read a map, but you’re skilled in creating them as well.” Seeing little reaction, he continued, “I’ve talked with our scout trainers.” That got some reaction, though a minor one. “They’ve never heard of any Lowlander named Shane. In fact, they said no Lowlander had ever completed an apprenticeship. They were quite insulted when we suggested one had. Seems they don’t think much of your people.”
Well, crap.
Darius wasn’t done. “Now normally, at this point, it would be assumed you’re either a liar or a spy. You’re not entirely a liar because your companions tell me you’re the best scout they’ve ever worked with. You are also in possession of an exceptional amount of knowledge about beasts. If you’re a spy, you’re perhaps the worst one in history. Not only have you been turning in accurate maps for months now, but you led a scouting party to the Trateri leader and then put yourself in great danger to save him.”
Shea resisted the impulse to shift or look away. She may not have been a spy, but she was definitely a liar. They had no idea how deep her lies ran.
“Yes, you’re a total mystery,” Darius said, running his eyes over her.
That had not been her intention. Her hope had been to appear boring and ordinary so nobody would think to look closer.
“How did you know to look there?” Darius asked, a trace of steel threading through his voice.
Shea bit the inside of her lip as thoughts turned over in her head. As far as she could see, it hurt nothing to share about the conversation she’d overheard and the rest that had led to finding Fallon.
Hiding the truth or downplaying what she knew might even be seen as more suspicious.
“The maps they gave us were wrong.” Shea watched them carefully for a reaction, but whatever they felt was kept locked down. Caden’s face stayed serious and stony, but Darius was just as good at keeping his emotions locked down behind his blandly amused expression. “Routes were missing and others were mismarked as dangerous when they weren’t. I tried to talk to the master cartographer on duty about it, but he left his post before I could. When I followed him, I overheard him and two others, a man and a woman, discussing the fact he’d distributed false maps. From there, it was just a bunch of little things that added up considering the situation.”
“And what situation was that?”
She gave him an incredulous look. “You don’t send every scout available out to search for some run of the mill foot soldier. It had to be somebody important. Important people always have enemies. It’s not a far jump from there to someone trying to assassinate the man.”
Darius allowed his lips to tilt upward in a small smile. “And yet, you’re the only one who leapt to that conclusion.”
Shea couldn’t help that and in truth it said more about their fighting force than it did her.
They were wasting time interrogating her when they should be talking to some of the cartographers. They made the maps. By now, they had probably checked the maps in question so they should know she was telling the truth.
The second man could also have corroborated her story. The fact they were still questioning her said they were playing some kind of game.
She didn’t know what time it was, but she was tired. Even with adrenaline keeping her alert, she could feel exhaustion crouched right below the surface like some great beast waiting for the right moment to pounce.
“If you checked the maps or even talked to the other guy we saved, you could find out if I’m telling the truth,” Shea burst out. Her patience was fast disappearing and with it the brakes she normally kept on her mouth.
“We have,” Caden said quietly.
Shea inhaled sharply. Then what the hell was the last half hour about. They must know she wasn’t a spy.
“Indeed. I’ve got men out hunting down the cartographer responsible for creating the faulty maps. The cartographer master, scout overseer and Vincent are being held. Once we’ve got all the information from them we can, we’ll give them the trial. Those that survive will be exorcised from the clans.”
“Then why am I still tied to this chair?” Her voice snapped with anger.
Darius shrugged one shoulder. “Because we can.”
A power play. Great.
“And for all the reasons I spelled out before. You’re an enigma that just doesn’t fit.”
Darius waved one of the guards over. Shea felt a surge of relief as he pulled out a key and began unlocking her cuffs.
“You’re free to go now. On the behalf of the Trateri, I extend our heartfelt gratitude at your actions.”
“If this is how you treat people who do you favors, no wonder no one thought to stray from their orders.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Shea wanted to draw them back.
Caden’s face darkened at her insubordination, and the guard drew in a deep breath before giving her a look to say he thought she was an idiot.
Right now, she kind of agreed. She was an idiot with a big mouth.
Darius gave her a sidelong look, one that held a trace of recognition.
“I’ve heard something similar before.”
Shea felt the weight of his eyes as she looked away to rub her wrists. They didn’t hurt, but she needed an excuse to avoid his gaze just then.