Stormcaster (Shattered Realms #3)(87)

Remodeling Granger’s face might prove useful, in the short run, if it frightened the bailiff enough to secure his cooperation. In the long run, however, Granger would never forget his humiliation and would eventually seek revenge.

One more task for Destin’s mental list: kill Granger. After the reception.

Unlike many at court, who tried to spend as much time in front of the king as they could, Destin valued his privacy. So, in addition to his apartment within the palace, he kept a suite of rooms at the Cup and Comfort Inn on the riverfront. Any kind of pleasure could be had at the Cup and Comfort for a price, but what Destin treasured most was anonymity. This was a place where he could be himself.

So it was with not a little alarm that he unlocked the door to his rooms at the inn to find Lila Barrowhill sleeping in his fireside chair.

He froze in the doorway, but she must have heard him, because she opened her eyes and smiled at him sleepily. “I hope you don’t mind that I let myself in. I didn’t want to draw attention by sitting outside your door.”

Destin stepped inside and shut and locked the door behind him. Then turned to glare at her, his arms folded.

Lila grinned when she saw his expression. “Blood and bones, Karn, I’m so glad you’re still alive. It always seems that I’m a lot happier to see you than you are to see me. Well, except for that time you came to Oden’s Ford. Then there was that time in King Gerard’s garden—”

“How did you find this place?”

“I needed a cup and some comfort, and this place was recommended,” she said. She held up a cup she’d no doubt filled down in the taproom. “It’s truly amazing. You really can get anything you want here.” She winked at him.

“If you’re thinking that you can blackmail me, you—”

“Heavens, no!” Lila actually looked offended. “If you think I have any interest in your private life, so sorry, I don’t. And I don’t want you to have to ‘disappear’ me. The best thing about being shameless is that I have no interest in shaming anyone else.”

Destin couldn’t help thinking that she was not quite as shameless as she made herself out to be. But he sighed and slid out of his court coat and hung it up carefully. He then walked around the room, creating wards to frustrate eavesdroppers. Then poked at the fire.

“Karn. You can’t have been gone from Delphi that long.” She fanned herself. “Do you really need a fire?”

“Did I ask you for your opinion?” With the fire going to his satisfaction, he sat on the edge of the hearth. “How can I help you, Lila? Surely you aren’t hurting for business, with a civil war in the offing and the ongoing war with the Fells—”

“And an invasion from the empress in the east.” She eyed him, her head cocked. “But you already knew about that.” There was a trace of a question mark at the end of that statement. It struck him that she was watching him in the same way he’d watched Queen Marina, trying to ferret out whether he’d been involved.

“Actually, I just heard,” Destin said. “What can you tell me about this empress? Did a northern princeling refuse her hand in marriage or what?”

“Not all wars are about unrequited love,” Lila said.

Destin couldn’t help laughing. He’d missed Lila, he had to admit.

“What have you heard?” he said.

Lila gave him a look that said, You first. Then relented. “What I know I heard from my relatives on the coast.”

“The smugglers?”

“We prefer ‘merchants and traders,’” Lila said. “Anyway, they said all the ports on the east coast are in an uproar, trying to fortify against possible attacks by sea, people wondering what the empress’s intentions are. They’re used to pirates—they know there’s always a risk when they put to sea. But this is the first time pirates have come inland, acting like they mean to stay.”

“Have they advanced beyond Chalk Cliffs?”

“I don’t know,” Lila said. “I’ve been on the road.”

“Are you selling magecraft to them?”

She shook her head. “My understanding is that they don’t use magecraft. Their soldiers are magelike, but they don’t use amulets and they cannot be controlled with collars or defended against with talismans.”

“Too bad,” Destin said, rubbing his chin. “You think you have a whole new market, and it comes to nothing.”

“Exactly. So. How are you getting on with King Jarat?”

“Why?” Destin asked warily.

“This empress is bad for business,” Lila said. “I wondered if he would be amenable to helping the northerners boot her out.”

Destin stared at her, then burst out laughing.

Now it was Lila’s turn to glare at him.

Destin blotted tears from his eyes. It had been so long since he’d had anything to laugh about.

“What’s so funny, Karn?”

“I—I’m sure if you explained the damage to your business, King Jarat will get right on it. Maybe you could offer him a split of the profits.”

“Well, I wouldn’t put it exactly that way, but—”

“I’m serious. He could use the cash. He can use it to buy more ordnance from you.” Destin raised his hands, palms up. “Perfect.”