Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar by Mercedes Lackey Page A

before she rode into the chaos of the household unprepared.
    Clyton almost charged right past her despite the fact that Lena was standing alone in the middle of the road. She had persuaded the dogs to stay out of sight in the woods.
    “What’s going on, Lena?” Samira asked. “Are you all right?”
    “Pretty much,” Lena replied, “but Lord Kristion is dead, and things are not going well.”
    “What happened to him?” This was Samira’s current Circuit, so she knew that Lord Kristion had been young and healthy.
    “He went out hunting with his best friend a couple of days ago . . .” Lena took a deep breath and blurted out the rest: “Lord Teren shot him by accident, and Lady Shantell called Lord Teren a murderer, and now she’s ordered the Kennelmaster to kill all of the dogs, and Jasper’s really upset about that.”
    Samira pinched the spot where her nose met her forehead as if the muscle had gone into spasm and shook her head. “Are you sure it was an accident?”
    “Lord Teren says it was, the servants who were with him say it was, and the dogs say it was. I believe them.”
    “What does the Magistrate say?”
    “Apparently Lord Teren is the Magistrate.”
    “Yes, that’s right; he is.” Samira sighed. “Why does Lady Shantell want to kill the dogs?”
    “I don’t know. Maybe because she can’t kill Lord Teren?” Lena shrugged. “It’s too bad her religion isn’t one of the ones that teaches forgiveness of one’s enemies.”
    Samira looked at her oddly. “It does teach that.”
    “Are you sure? She certainly isn’t acting like it, and she scolded me for worshiping Thenoth. And her own son seems to believe she’ll kill the dogs; he was out in the kennels crying over them this morning.”
    “The dogs are still in the kennels?” Samira raised her eyebrows. “Knowing you, I’m surprised there’s a dog on the estate she can still find.”
    “Minda just had puppies; they can’t be moved. The rest aren’t there. The Kennelmaster doesn’t want to follow Shantell’s orders, and if he can’t find the dogs, he can’t kill them.”
    “I’m sure he appreciates your help,” Samira said dryly.
    “He seems to, actually. I also pointed out that there may be legal questions—the dogs may belong to Jasper instead of Shantell, and her husband may have named someone else as Jasper’s guardian.”
    “That’s a good argument,” Samira admitted. “How likely is it?”
    “Lord Teren said that Lord Kristion had named him.”
    Samira groaned. “I can tell that this is going to be complicated.” She and Clyton started forward at a walk that Lena could easily keep pace with. “Let’s go face the noise.”
    :Stay in the woods,: Lena told the dogs as she accompanied Samira and Clyton toward the main entrance to the estate.
    “Have they set a time for the funeral yet?” Samira asked.
    “This afternoon.”
    “It is afternoon,” Samira pointed out. “When this afternoon?”
    Lena cast an anxious look at the angle of the sun. “The ninth hour,” she said in a small voice.
    “Less than an hour from now. I need to wash and change into a clean uniform, and you look as though you dressed in the dark and then spent the day in the kennels and the woods.”
    “I did.”
    Samira’s eyes closed briefly and then opened again. Apparently she had been Mindspeaking to Clyton, because he stopped long enough for Samira to reach down, grasp forearms with Lena, and swing her onto Clyton’s back. “What’s the fastest way to reach the stables without Lady Shantell seeing us?”
     
    They left Clyton being rubbed down by the Stablemas-ter, and Lena turned Samira over to the housekeeper to be shown to a guest room. Then she ran for her room, washed in the now-cold water that someone had left out for her that morning, and pulled on a dress that was suitable for the funeral. She slipped quietly into the chapel, aided by the fact that most of the household was gathered there. Samira, resplendent in the