The Traitor Queen (The Traitor Spy Trilogy #3)(112)

Jonna had lamented that she hadn’t found Lilia quickly enough. She told how a magician had stopped her, concerned that she looked upset. When she’d told him she was looking for Lilia, he’d directed her to the wrong classroom. It would have been an easy mistake for the magician to make. Lilia’s timetable had changed a lot recently. He had probably made a guess, hoping to be helpful.

Turning the handle, she opened the door and stepped inside. Seeing Lord Rothen standing there, she blinked away the threatening tears and swallowed hard.

“Lord Rothen,” she said, bowing. Gol was sitting in one of the chairs, Jonna standing behind him. She and Jonna had smuggled Cery’s bodyguard, disguised as a servant, up to Sonea’s rooms, the night after Skellin’s attack.

Jonna had persuaded Lilia to tell Rothen everything. “You need a magician ally,” Lilia recalled her saying. “Rothen can be trusted to keep a secret. He’s kept plenty for Sonea over the years.” To Lilia’s relief, Rothen had been as discreet and helpful as Jonna had promised. He’d wanted to tell Kallen, until Gol repeated Skellin’s claim of having sources in the Guild.

As Lilia closed the door, Rothen’s mouth thinned in a sympathetic smile. “Lady Lilia.” He looked at Jonna, then down at the table. Following his gaze, Lilia felt her heart lurch. A square of paper lay there, with her name scrawled on it.

“Is it …?”

“From Skellin?” Rothen grimaced. “Probably. We haven’t opened it. We guessed you’d want to read it first. Sit down before you do.”

She slid into a chair, Rothen and Jonna taking the other seats. With trembling hands, she picked up the message and turned it over. The seal, she noted, was a simple crown hovering over a knife. King of the Thieves. Disgust and anger steadied her. She broke the seal and unfolded the paper. Her eyes moved over the words. As their meaning became clear, she dropped it back on the table.

“It’s an address,” she told them. “It says ‘tomorrow’ and a time. And he says to tell no one and come alone.”

“No surprises there,” Gol muttered.

“Where is the address?” Jonna asked.

“In Northside.” Cery’s old territory. He’s rubbing it in. She looked at Rothen. “I have to go. I have to try to save Anyi.”

He nodded. His agreement sent a perverse anger through her.

“Shouldn’t you tell me I can’t?” she asked. “You know what he wants. It’s bad enough we have a rogue magician ruling the underworld. A rogue black magician will be so much worse.”

“It may not be what he wants. He may already have found a book on black magic and learned it for himself, though that is unlikely. If there are any more books out there, they’re well hidden.” Rothen sighed. “Even so, we Higher Magicians have considered what to do if he does learn black magic.” He smiled thinly. “It won’t mean we can’t catch and deal with him, it’ll just be a little more dramatic when we do.”

“But many more people will die before you do. And we don’t even know if Anyi is still alive.” She felt her throat close and fought back tears again.

“He won’t have killed her,” Gol assured her. “He knows you’ll ask to see her before you teach him anything.”

Lilia took a few breaths to steady herself. “Even if she is alive, how do I know he’ll let her go after I’ve taught him?”

“You have to make sure she can get away before you teach him anything,” Rothen said.

“It would be easier if I could take another magician.”

“He’ll never let you,” Jonna said. “You can’t even take a magician disguised as a servant. He said you must be alone.”

Rothen nodded. “If he has sources here, a disguise may not work anyway.” He sighed. “If it weren’t for these sources, I’d suggest we go to the Higher Magicians. They could have Kallen make a blood ring so we can track Lilia with it. If the exchange goes badly we’ll be close enough to help.”

Lilia looked up at him in surprise. A blood ring! Why hadn’t I thought of that? “I can make blood rings. Kallen taught me.”

His eyes widened. “You can? Well then …” He straightened and rubbed his hands together. “We could have the beginning of a plan.”

Gol looked away. “Don’t ask me to help. Last plan I made wasn’t very good.”

“You did what you could with the few resources you had,” Rothen told him. “It was impressively bold. I’d never heard of minefire before. Intriguing stuff. If your trap had worked, you’d have delivered Skellin right to our door, so to speak.” He smiled briefly. “I’d appreciate your advice, Gol. You know the underworld and the city better than we do.”

Gol frowned. “Well … this idea of using a blood gem, if I’m getting it right how they work, will only be any good to us if you can pick the places you’re seeing through it,” Gol pointed out. “What if you don’t know where they are? What if you’re blindfolded?”

“Both would be a problem.” Rothen drummed his fingers on the chair, his brows creased in thought.

“Does Skellin know what a blood ring is?” Jonna asked. “He might notice it and make her take it off.”