City of Towers_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [98]
“Very well.” The owl bobbed his head. “Perhaps we shall talk later, lady.”
Lailin took Lei’s arm and led her to a set of stairs. Pierce followed behind. “A fascinating fellow, Hu’ur’hnn, but he’s a hunter by nature. I didn’t think he’d latch onto your house so quickly.”
“So what do you know of my situation, Lailin? And who told you I was in Sharn to begin with.”
“Her name is Flamewind.”
“The sphinx?” Lei tried to imagine Lailin fighting a minotaur barehanded and failed completely.
“Yes, that’s her. She spends a certain amount of time at Morgrave University.”
This was what Lei had heard in the first stories of the sphinx. “Talking about Xen’drik?”
“Yes.”
Lei wondered why Flamewind maintained two homes. The temple in Malleon’s Gate was a fairly elaborate stage, if she could just be found in the Morgrave Library. But then again, many mystical powers were linked to specific locations. If Flamewind was a true oracle, perhaps she channeled some hidden power in the temple to obtain the knowledge of the future and the past.
“What did she tell you?”
“That you were in Sharn, no longer part of House Cannith, and that you would be visiting in the future. She’s never spoken to me before. I’ve seen her certainly, but we’ve never spoken. I’ve heard she eats people who ask her stupid questions, and I’ve never felt like taking that chance.”
“Food for thought.”
“Well, exactly.”
They descended a large, spiral staircase into an elaborate ballroom. Both the staircase and the room below were massive in scale, and Lei imagined that they had been designed to accommodate large guests like Hu’ur’hnn or an ogre servant. The ceilings were at least twenty feet high, and Lei wondered if the chamber was making use of two decks. Light fell from glittering chandeliers, each crystal shard enchanted with its own spell of light. Lei was impressed. All magic had its price, and clearly expense was not a concern for the heirs of Lyrandar.
“Thank you for not mentioning my disgrace to the owl,” Lei said. She saw a long table filled with food and started toward it.
“Well, if it’s what I think, I know you’re not allowed to lie about it. But if you’d like … well, a friend who simply hasn’t heard the news and mistakenly misreports things, that’s no crime. If you’d like to be a lady for the night, I’d be happy to assist.”
She smiled. “You’re kind, Lailin. But you know … I’m ready. Perhaps I’m curious to see what will happen. Just let me get some food before you start making introductions. If I’m going to be thrown off the ship, I’d rather it was on a full stomach.”
“A woman after my own heart,” Lailin said, taking a plate. “The blackspiced dragonhawk is excellent, but you simply must try the fish; You’ll never get fish as fresh as at a Lyrandar feast. I think the deepscale trout were brought in from the Thunder Sea mere hours ago.” He helped himself to a generous portion of the trout, along with a salad made from watercress and other Marcher staples.
After Lei had filled her plate, Lailin led her over to another table where a few others were already seated. “Lord Alais, do you mind if we join you?”
“Not at all.” The speaker was in his middle years, but lean and handsome. He rose and pulled out a chair for Lei. “And who is your charming companion, Lailin?”
“My name is Lei, my lord,” she replied. “Former heir of the House of Making, now finding my own way in the world.”
It was interesting to watch the man’s reaction. There were dozens of physical traits that distinguished the dragonmarked bloodlines—a certain shade of hair or eye, curve of cheek, slant of nose. Each house had thousands of members, and these traits were many and varied. But Lei had paid close attention to the subject in her schooling, and she was fairly certain this man wasn’t an heir himself. This was why she’d chosen him as her test subject. For an instant, his eyes widened in surprise, then they narrowed, and she could see his interest growing. He took her proffered hand, brushing her fingers with dry lips as he gazed into her eyes.