“Your aunt is a remarkable woman. She has been my guest for years, and I’m still not sure of her limits. Sadly, there are still contracts on her life.”
The selection had reminded the galaxy that Caldenia existed. Some of the contracts had expired but now they were back.
“She will be our guest for a while longer.”
“I think she enjoys it,” Kosandion said. “It is a welcome rest after decades of pressure.”
Lady Wexyn turned to Kosandion and waved.
“I am summoned,” he said. “It’s been a pleasure, Dina.”
“I’m glad Gertrude Hunt could meet your needs.”
He took off down the stairs.
Resven approached. Below, Kosandion put his arm around Lady Wexyn’s shoulders, and she slid her arm around his waist.
“They make such a lovely couple,” Resven smiled. “He couldn’t do better.”
I almost did a double take. “You were in on it?”
He nodded.
“Since the very beginning?”
He nodded again.
“Resven, you are an excellent actor.”
“Innkeeper, I am whatever my Letero requires me to be. I wish you luck in your search for your friend. Take care, Karron is a brutal place. I can’t imagine what sort of creature would make its lair there.”
“My…” “Boyfriend” no longer seemed adequate, and we hadn’t talked about getting married. “Lover” seemed too cheesy. “Sean will come with me.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Your partner is impressive.”
“Partner.” Yes, that was good. “He is.”
I walked away from Resven, passed through Kosandion’s quarters into the hallway, and entered the throne room. It seemed cavernous now, empty and abandoned. Guests gave the inn life. They came from faraway places, bringing their magic and vitality with them, and they breathed it into the spaces they occupied. But eventually they left. The guests always did.
I passed the Ocean Dining Hall. Orro and his kitchen helpers were drinking whatever liquids got their various species intoxicated. They had done their job well, and now it was time for the kitchen staff to party. I slipped by the doorway, dampening the noise of my footsteps. I had seen kitchen staff parties before, and I needed to steer way clear of this one.
At the far end of the throne room, two people were talking. Miralitt and Derryl. The werewolf woman wore the uniform of a Capital Guard. So, she must have decided to take Miralitt’s offer.
The Capital Guard didn’t hire werewolves. The people of Auul made great mercenaries, but they resisted assimilation into other cultures. They were loyal to each other beyond all others, and that loyalty made them immune to the Dominion’s collective empathy. Sooner or later, they abandoned their duty and returned to their werewolf settlements.
Derryl was different. She wanted to leave the memories of Auul behind, and she desperately needed a place to belong and a cause that had nothing to do with growing fur and being compared to other werewolves. The people of Auul had fought the war for their planet for decades, and their martial arts were unparalleled. Derryl had all the proper training, and she had excelled in it, because she had pushed herself harder than anyone to gain that expertise. Technically, Miralitt agreed to hire her as a favor for Sean, but all four of us knew that it was a huge win for Miralitt. Hopefully, it would be a big win for Derryl as well.
I walked by them. Derryl bowed her head to me. Miralitt nodded.
It was almost as good of a solution as what happened to Prysen Ol. The First Scholar had been so pleased with himself, he’d actually squawked while explaining it to me. Prysen Ol was brilliant and conflicted, ripe for some guidance and conversion to a higher purpose. The Holy Ecclesiarch knew exactly how to mold him, and by the time he was done, the Dominion would gain a rare talent. Apparently, the First Scholar hadn’t gotten very far with his pleas to Kosandion, so he had gone to his favorite debate companion and announced that he had found his successor. I had my doubts, but stranger things had happened.
They even let Prysen Ol keep Tomato with him. The assassin and the green bear had a blood brother pact. There was probably an interesting story behind it, but I didn’t have time to listen to it.
I passed through the last hallway and walked into the arrival chamber. Sean and Tony stood in front of the portal. Sean wore an enviro-hazard combat suit. Dark gray, it covered him head to toe, leaving only his face bare. His favorite green knife was in a sheath on his waist. He’d strapped a gun to his back, and another to his right thigh.
“… Got this. Don’t worry, nothing will happen to the inn,” Tony was saying.
The two of them turned toward me.
“Are you sure about this?” Sean asked me.
“Very sure.” I took off my robe.
I wore the same suit. My energy whip rested in its holder on my thigh. Sean had insisted that I bring a backup weapon. I held out my hand. My broom landed in it, flashed with blue, and turned into a spear.
The suits came with respirators and full-face plates which could be extended on a moment’s notice, turning the suits fully airtight. Light and flexible, this gear was designed for planetary combat in hazardous environments.
“I would rather you stay,” Sean said.
We had been over this. If whatever took Wilmos had targeted Sean, it could have sent his corrupted ad-hals after him any time he had left the inn. Of the two of us, he spent more time away from Gertrude Hunt. It didn’t want him. It wanted me, and I had to figure out why.
Tony agreed to stay behind to see our guests off. Most of them had left anyway. The oomboles had taken off before the final ceremony was even over, relieved after Resven assured them that their minor ask would be granted.
Cookie departed right after the oomboles. He’d been giddy about winning the Dominion from Clan Sai. Unfortunately, Clan Sai would retaliate, and soon, so Cookie and his entourage were needed back at the Merchant house to prepare their defense.
Dagorkun had left too, after thanking Sean and me for our hospitality. He had a lot of things to discuss with his parents. Gaston and Karat were still at the inn. Gaston had the stamina of a camel, but his body finally gave out and he went to bed and likely wouldn’t get up until tomorrow. Orro’s kitchen helpers would leave after the party, the First Scholar and his assistants were already gone, and Kosandion, Lady Wexyn, and Resven would depart in the next hour or so. Tony would handle that.
We had to rescue Wilmos. I looked at the portal. No reason to delay any further.
“Ready?” Sean asked.
I held out my hand. “Hold my hand?”
Sean reached out and took my hand in his. We walked into the portal together.
28
A door opens…
The final portal gate was a rounded arch of pale blue metal. In random places, the smooth metal shell had broken away, exposing the complex tangle of electronics underneath. A small symbol had been etched into the center of the arch at the highest point of the curve—a stylized explosion.
“Of course,” Sean said.
It was a Tuhl portal. Because why not?
“What are the chances of us exploding, do you think?” I asked him.
“Zero if we don’t enter.”
Not entering wasn’t an option. Wilmos was somewhere on the other side.