Cast in Honor (Chronicles of Elantra, #11)(100)

If Kaylin adored Ybelline—and she absolutely did—she didn’t adore the other Caste Court officials even one tenth as much. In general, officials were the last people Kaylin was sent to speak with; they made her feel instantly defensive, and defensive Kaylin offended the officials. Things generally went downhill from there.

Ybelline, well aware of Kaylin’s discomfort, shook her head. “They are more hardened in their suspicions of outsiders, but they are aware that you are capable of touching the Tha’alaan on your own, and they have seen what you desire for, and of, it. They find you...ill-mannered and hasty, but they respect what you have done in the past.

“And regardless, they are the men and women who are willing to visit—and revisit—their own deaths in an attempt to make sense of what occurred.”

“Did Gilbert have anything helpful to add?”

“Not intentionally.” She glanced at Gilbert. “And perhaps I am also too hasty. But—and I’m certain this will not shock you at this point—I believe the Arcanist in his memories may have some light to shed on the difficulty.”

“You didn’t recognize the Arcanist?”

Ybelline fell silent, in all ways. Kaylin was genuinely surprised. “Ybelline—”

“I believe I have seen that man before. Or one dressed very like him.”

“In real life?”

“No, Kaylin. In memory. In the memories that we are forced to invade, and of which we are allowed to speak only in the presence of Imperial court officials. I will speak with those officials when we are done.”

“I think Teela has some idea of the man’s identity. Or at least of the tiara’s significance.”

“You wish me to leave this to your Teela?”

“I’d just as soon you spent as little time with Imperial officials as possible.”

“Even the Hawks?”

Kaylin grimaced. “Maybe especially the Hawks.” Because it was through the Hawks, for the most part, that the Tha’alani “interrogators” were summoned, and through the Hawks that the Tha’alani were exposed, consistently, to the worst mankind had to offer.

“I understand why the Hawks were created. I understand their purpose. If it were not for the Hawks, we would never have met, and I would consider that a great loss on my part.” She straightened and pulled away from Kaylin, testing her legs for strength. They held her up, but she wasn’t going to be running anytime soon.

Kattea had managed to drag Gilbert in more or less the right direction; he still looked unfocused and inattentive. Kattea, however, looked more frustrated than worried.

Yes, Kaylin thought, the child had only known him for a handful of weeks. But she was right: she understood Gilbert better than Kaylin did. Maybe necessity had forced that understanding on her.

“Should Gilbert go, too?” Kattea asked. Gilbert’s reaction to being touched by a Tha’alani had eased the younger girl’s fear in a way that Kaylin’s interaction with the younger children hadn’t. And of course, that made sense: children were not powerful, or not more powerful than Kattea—but Ybelline, adult, was.

Gilbert finally noticed where he was. Or at least that he was somewhere that wasn’t strictly on the inside of his own head. “I am not certain that will be necessary,” he told Kattea. “Or that I would be welcome; I may cause...confusion.”

Ybelline actually laughed. She was careful not to touch Gilbert, but she did not look at him with worry or dread. “You will certainly cause that.”

“What is your preference?”

“I am torn—my people share thoughts and experiences, but we are not all of one mind, and we bring different knowledge to those shared experiences.”

“I can attempt to contain my thoughts.”

“I rather think that would be beside the point” was the castelord’s gentle reply. “They are waiting.”

*

To Kaylin’s surprise, Draalzyn was present. Draalzyn was seconded to the Hawks, but worked for the most part in Missing Persons. He was older than Ybelline, his hair streaked with gray, and at the moment, he was just as pale as Ybelline, although this wasn’t always the case.

His eyes did narrow when he caught sight of Kaylin.

Kaylin nodded.

“Private Neya,” another man said. Scoros. Of all the Tha’alanari, Scoros was the least intimidating, if one excluded Ybelline.

“You’ve grown a beard.”

“I am making the attempt, yes. It is supposed to make me look more mature, and therefore more worthy of respect. You don’t like it?”

“It’s...different.”

He chuckled. “My family is not enamored of it, either; Eladara says it is uncomfortable, and my son detests it enough that he tried to shave it while I was sleeping.” At Kaylin’s expression, his chuckle became a laugh—and his laugh, like Ybelline’s, was one Kaylin loved. But it faded as Gilbert entered the room, Kattea clinging to his arm.

“Corporal Handred is not of the Tha’alaan,” Draalzyn said.

“No. Nor are our other guests.” Ybelline emphasized the last word very slightly. “But in this, they are all intent upon preserving the city. You have seen some part of what we have only barely managed to contain; you cannot imagine that the deaths coming to Elantra will occur in our quarter alone.”