Something banged against one of the leaded windows.

Instantly alert, Lord Bight snatched his long dagger and placed himself out of sight of the window. The noise came again-a muffled thumping followed by an owl’s shrill call of distress.

Lord Bight leaped for the window, a curse on his tongue. The dagger clanged to the floor. He yanked open the leaded frame and threw out his arms to catch the bedraggled bird that flopped through the casement. He recognized the owl immediately, for she had been in this room before.

“Varia!” he said in astonishment. “What are you doing here? Where is Linsha?”

The owl tried to stand upright and failed. Her leg and one wing were bloody and torn; her body was so thin he could feel her bones beneath the feathers. She looked up at him, her dark eyes huge.

“We need Crucible,” she rasped.

The four riders reached the base of the hill, and the three Legionnaires continued to urge their horses along the road toward Mirage and the Legion headquarters. Only Linsha turned her horse to the right on the path she often took to Iyesta’s lair.

Lanther almost missed her departure. He glanced back to be sure everyone had survived unscathed and saw the tail of Linsha’s horse disappearing into the darkness of another path. Reining his mount to a stop, he waved on the other two, wheeled his horse around, and galloped after her.

He rode hard, pushing his mount on the uneven, night-dark trail, and caught up with her near the crumbling foundations where the road crossed the remains of the old city wall.

“Where are you going in such a hurry?” he yelled over the pounding hooves.

A look of irritation flashed over Linsha’s face. Although she was deeply indebted to Lanther and his men and greatly relieved that she was free, she had hoped to slip away in the darkness for just an hour or two without curious eyes and questions she could not answer.

“I’m going to Iyesta’s lair,” she said tersely.

“She’s not there. She has not been seen since the storm.”

“I know. But I can’t believe she has left. I want to go look around.”

“Now?” he sounded surprised and dubious. “Wouldn’t daylight be better?”

Daylight wouldn’t matter where she wanted to go, but she didn’t want to tell him that. Instead she slowed her horse to a trot and said as patiently as she could, “Sir Remmik will have the circle out in arms looking for me before too long. He won’t let this go.”

“We have a few hiding places you can use.”

“I know. I accept your hospitality. I just have to do this first.”

He heard the urgency in her voice and accepted her decision. “Fair enough. I’ll go with you. The militia is camped all over the grounds, keeping watch on the dragonlord’s lair and treasure until she returns.”

Linsha felt a pang of uneasiness. “Shouldn’t they be out preparing the city’s defenses? I heard there is a strange fleet near the city.”

“We’ve heard that as well, and we have scouts out to watch for its approach. The militia is doing what it can.”

She frowned. He certainly sounded casual about all of this. Everything she had heard in the Citadel had sounded dire. Was it possible Sir Remmik had exaggerated the situation to help grease her conviction through the council? She desperately wanted to believe this gathering disaster was being inflated out of proportion-that Iyesta had left on business of her own and would soon return, that the fleet was not hostile and would pass Mirage by, that Thunder was playing at overlord and would stay on his side of the river, and that the storm damage would be easily repaired and the Missing City would return to normal. But things rarely turned out so neatly. What she really wanted was facts, hard fresh news from a source she could rely on. She wanted Varia. Where was the owl?

She made no more comment hut held her words until they reached the dragon’s lair. She had to admit the militia was vigilant in protecting Iyesta’s lair. Sentries stopped them in three different places before they reached the courtyard in front of the throne room.

A dense darkness filled the old ruins, for no torches or campfires were allowed to burn, and the pale moon had already set an hour before. The crowd of people hoping to see Iyesta had given up and returned to their homes, leaving the dragon’s guards and the militia to keep their fretful vigil.

Linsha halted her horse and glanced around to get her bearings. She could already see the lair was empty; however, there were one or two other places she wanted to check that might not have been carefully examined.

“Stay and do not move,” spoke a voice at Linsha’s right. “There are a dozen weapons aimed at you right now.”

Linsha raised her hands to show they were empty. Lanther did likewise.

“Mariana?” she called softly. “I know your voice.”

“Lady Linsha?” The reply was immediate and filled with surprise. “We thought you-” The words broke off as if the speaker reassessed the possibilities. “Lower your weapons,” she ordered her silent guards. “I will talk to them.”

A form, lean and lithe, took shape out of the night and came to stand by Linsha’s stirrup. Mariana Brown-stem was a friend, as well as a half-elf and a captain of the dragonlord’s militia. She gave Linsha a feral grin. “If Lanther is with you, then I am guessing the Solamnics have lost their prey.”

“For now,” Linsha replied.

“I am pleased. I did not understand their desire to destroy their hest Knight.”

“It depends on how you interpret ‘Best Knight.’ ”

“You are welcome to stay here. The Solamnics would not dare to probe too deeply into militia territory.”

The words clashed in Linsha’s mind. Militia territory. Solamnic jurisdiction. Legion domain. Each group had its own territory and influence that it jealously defended to the detriment of cooperation, allied effort, and possibly the safety of the city. Time would tell if the three groups could find a way to work together without Iyesta. In the meantime, she supposed she should be grateful that the Legion and Iyesta’s militia liked her well enough to offer her sanctuary from her own Order.

“Thank you. What I’d like to do now is look around the grounds.”

Mariana pursed her lips. She knew well Linsha’s skill at gathering information. “Do you know something about Iyesta’s departure?”

“No more than you. I just want to satisfy my own curiosity.”

The half-elf scanned the eastern sky where a blue-white star was glimmering on the horizon. “It will be dawn soon. If you will wait for daylight, I will escort you.”

Linsha knew she had little choice now. Of course, it was very possible more people knew about the labyrinth under the city, yet Iyesta had deliberately told her only she and the dragons knew of the eggs. If she had an escort following her everywhere she went, she would not be able to visit the egg chamber. That would have to wait for later when she could go alone.

There was nothing else for it. Dismounting, she followed Mariana to a lightless camp in the shelter of the courtyard wall. A sentry led the horses away. Lanther threw down a blanket and stretched out on his back to rest. While Mariana treated the raw wounds on her wrists, Linsha recounted the trial and Sir Remmik’s verdict.

“What will he do now?” Mariana asked.

“If he doesn’t recapture me, and I can’t find a way to clear my name, he will have me blacklisted from the Order. I will become an exile and a target for every Solamnic Knight who wishes to remove a blight from the good reputation of the Order.” Linsha heard herself and recognized the bitterness creeping into her voice. She thought this would never happen again. The ugly business with the Clandestine Circle in Sanction had been bad enough. She had been blacklisted for several months while she tried to convince the Solamnic High Council that Lord Bight was better left alive and the Clandestine officers had overstepped their authority. The Council finally reinstated her pending the outcome of the trial and cleared her record when the case against her fell apart. Sadly, she did not think that was going to happen this time, unless she found the culprits and presented them, their bloody weapons, and their signed confessions to Sir Remmik.