Firebrand

It was, Karigan knew, her own fault, her reluctance to share everything about her life as a Green Rider with him. Doing so, she believed, would only cause him to fear for her all the more, but maybe he would have come to the conclusion about her adulthood much sooner, had she been more forthcoming. She still could not, she decided, bring herself to tell him much of her trials, but perhaps she could tell him enough to satisfy his curiosity.

She told him about her journey into Blackveil, focusing on the details of the forest environment, the members of the company that went in with her, but she left out certain details of the dangers she faced. She touched lightly on the horror of companions who had been lost. She did not speak of the Coutre forester who’d attempted to murder her and why. She did explain how she helped the Sleepers of Argenthyne cross into Eletia through a piece of time, but she skipped over how she had barely escaped an attack by tainted Sleepers and how she was tested by the mirror man.

Then there was the complicated tale of her crossing into the future. She glanced at her father. He looked like he was having a hard time digesting it all, and despite her circumspect telling, he looked a little pale.

“I think,” she said, “I’m too tired to tell the whole thing right now.” And she was. Very. “Also, I should check in with Captain Mapstone.”

“No need,” the captain said from the doorway.

“Captain!” Karigan stood, and Ghost Kitty rolled away with an irritated meow. How long had the captain been standing there?

“I have been checking on everyone myself and taking stock,” the captain said. “We fared surprisingly well, considering. Your aunts have been making themselves useful.”

“Good. I mean, that is good, isn’t it?”

The captain smiled. “Yes, good. They are helping a great deal.”

That was a relief. “You are . . . well?”

“Castle grounds were hit lightly. The attack was concentrated in the castle. Nothing, from what I’ve heard, down in the city.”

Karigan’s father stood beside her. “Then all is well? It’s all over?”

“I would not say all is well,” the captain replied. “There were casualties, and your daughter tried to burn down the castle.”

“Um—” Karigan began. Her father glanced sharply at her.

“Little harm done,” the captain said, “and done for a good cause. Your daughter probably did not tell you that she prevented the queen from being taken from us by an elemental spirit.”

“No, she did not.” He gave Karigan a reproachful look.

Karigan smiled faintly and shrugged.

“Yes,” Captain Mapstone said, “the king told me about it himself.” She went on to describe the scene with great flourishes.

Karigan tried to prepare herself for her father’s response, but he did not overreact. He did not demand or plead with her to leave the messenger service, which he might have done at some earlier time. No, he tilted his chin up and said, “You are fortunate to have a G’ladheon on the job.”

A pleased smile crossed the captain’s face, and Karigan, both astonished and delighted, laughed.

“Is our queen in any further danger?” he asked. “I met her some time ago, before she was betrothed to the king. It was that night when Prince Amilton tried to take the throne. She stood strongly against him, and it pains me to think of her suffering.”

“We do not know, of course,” the captain replied, “but one of our Riders, Merla, had an awakening of her special ability during the attack. It seems she can create protective wards, and the Eletians are guiding her on how to set them around the royal apartments.”

That was good news, Karigan thought. Her father had stiffened beside her when the captain mentioned Merla’s special ability, but he surprised her again when he said, “I am pleased that the queen may be protected by those with such abilities against enemies who would cause her harm. It has taken me a while to learn the concept of magic being used for good, but now I understand.”

“Glad to hear it,” the captain said, “as the special abilities of my Riders may make the difference in any conflict to come.”

Her words hung heavy in the silence, though Karigan swore she could hear whispers in the depths of the dark corridor beyond her chamber.

“Why does your Rider not use her ability to . . . ward the whole castle?”

“In time,” the captain replied, “she may, but the use of any ability has its cost, and just warding the queen’s sitting room gave Merla a case of the hives.”

Karigan’s father glanced at her, and she could see him wondering about her ability and what it cost her, but to his credit, he did not ask.

“If you like, merchant,” the captain said, “I’d be happy to answer your questions about Rider abilities. They are not usually discussed outside our ranks, but as you already know as much as you do, and since we have benefitted so much from your generosity over the years, you are our trusted ally, and it seems acceptable to discuss it with you.”

He nodded. “Yes, that would be interesting.”

“I do not make the offer without motive,” the captain said, a crafty gleam in her eye.

“I do not suppose you do.”

Karigan glanced from one to the other, not sure what to make of the two of them, and quite certain she didn’t want to think too deeply about it.

“Find me in the stables tomorrow morning around the ninth bell,” the captain told him. “We have unfinished business.”