amusement factor.â
âThatâs goodâas far as it goes.â Lissandra reached out and touched the globe in the center with an expression of bemusement. âBut it doesnât let us know we have mages working on our territory, not unless you can get the vrondi to tell us.â
âI do have some other plans,â Vanyel admitted. âIâd like to get the vrondi to react to strange mages with alarmâand since theyâre now bound into the Web, that in itself would feed back to the Heralds. But I havenât got that part worked out yet. I donât want them to react that way to Herald-Mages, for one thing, and for another, Iâm not sure the vrondi are capable of telling mages apart.â
âNeither am I,â Savil said dubiously. âSeems to me itâs enough to let mages know theyâre being watched. If youâre guilty, that alone is enough to make you jumpy.â
Kilchas had managed to stand up while they were talking; he reached for the globe and tried to pick it up. His expression of surprise when he couldnât made Vanyel chuckle weakly.
âThatâs a heart-stone now,â he said apologetically. âItâs fused to the table, and the table is fused to the stone of the Palace and the bedrock beneath it.â
âOh,â Kilchas replied, sitting down with a thump. Vanyel banished the shields, then turned to the only person in the room who hadnât yet spoken a single word.
Van leaned against the back of his chair, and faced Tantras. âWell?â he asked.
Tran nodded. âItâs there, all right. Thereâs something there that wasnât a part of of me beforeââ
âWhat about the trouble-spots?â Vanyel asked.
The other Herald closed his eyes, and frowned with concentration. âIâm trying to think of a map,â he said, finally. âIâm working my way around the Border. Itâs like Reading an object; I get a kind of sick feeling when I come up on some place where thereâre problems. Iâll bet it would be even more accurate if I had a real map.â
Vanyel sighed, and slumped his shoulders, allowing his exhaustion to catch up with him. âThen we did it.â
âI never doubted it,â Savil retorted.
:Nor I,: said the familiar voice in his head.
âThen itâs time for me to go fall on my nose; I think Iâve earned it.â Vanyel got to his feet, feeling every joint ache. âI think all of us have earned it.â
âAye to that.â Lissandra copied him; Kilchas levered himself up with the aid of the table, and Savil needed Tantrasâ help to get her onto her feet. Vanyel headed for the door and pulled it open, leaving the others to take care of themselves. Right now all he could think about was his bedâand how badly he needed it.
He walked wearily down the corridor leading out of the Old Palace and toward his quarters, doing his best not to stagger. He was so tired that it would probably look as if he was drunk, and that wouldnât do the Heraldic reputation any good....
:Oh, I donât know,: Yfandes chuckled. :You might get more invitations to pasties that way.:
:I might. But would they be parties Iâd want to attend?:
:Probably not,: she acknowledged.
It didnât occur to him until he was most of the way to the Heraldâs Wing that his bed might not be unoccupied....
But it was; he pulled his door open to find his room empty, the bed made, and no sign of his visitor anywhere. Evidently the servants had already cleaned and tidied his quarters; there was nothing out of the ordinary about the room.
He clung to the doorframe, surprised by his own disappointment that the young Bard hadnât at least stayed long enough to make some arrangements to get together again.
This time with a little less wine....
That disappointment made no sense; heâd only met the boy last night. And he couldnât afford
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