Elantris - Brandon Sanderson [186]
The grounds surrounding the home, however, were extensive—a luxury Roial admitted was a bit extravagant. The duke was a lover of gardens, and he spent more time outside wandering his grounds than he did in his house.
Fortunately, the weather had decided to comply with the duke’s plans, providing a warm breeze from the south and a completely cloudless sky. Stars splattered the sky like specks of paint on a black canvas, and Sarene found her eyes tracing the constellations of the major Aons. Rao shone directly overhead, a large square with four circles at its sides and a dot in the center. Her own Aon, Ene, crouched barely visible on the horizon. The full moon rose ponderously toward its zenith. In just a few hours it would vanish completely—or, at least, that was what the astronomers claimed.
“So,” Roial said, walking at her side, their arms linked, “are you going to tell me what this is all about?”
“What what’s all about?”
“The ball,” Roial said. “You can’t claim that you had me organize it on a whim. You were much too specific about the date and location. What are you planning?”
Sarene smiled, rekindling the night’s schemes. She had nearly forgotten about the party, but the more she considered it, the more excited she became. Before this night was over, she hoped to find the answer to a problem that had been bothering her almost since she’d arrived in Arelon.
“Let’s just say I wanted to view the eclipse with company,” she said with a sly smile.
“Ah, Sarene, ever dramatic. You’ve missed your calling in life, my dear—you should have been an actress.”
“As a matter of fact, I considered it once,” Sarene said reminiscently. “Of course, I was eleven years old at the time. A troop of players came through Teoin. After watching them, I informed my parents that I had decided not to grow up to be a princess, but an actress instead.”
Roial laughed. “I would like to have seen old Eventeo’s face when his prize daughter told him she wanted to become a traveling performer.”
“You know my father?”
“Really, Sarene,” Roial said with indignation, “I haven’t been old and senile all my life. There was a time when I traveled, and every good merchant has a few contacts in Teod. I’ve had two audiences with your father, and both times he mocked my wardrobe.”
Sarene chuckled. “He’s merciless with visiting merchants.”
Roial’s grounds centered around a large courtyardlike patch of grass overlaid by a wooden dancing pavilion. Hedge-walled pathways led away from the pavilion, toward newly blooming flower beds, bridge-covered ponds, and sculpture displays. Torches lined the pavilion, providing full illumination. These would, of course, be doused prior to the eclipse. However, if things went as Sarene planned, she wouldn’t be there to see it.
“The king!” Sarene exclaimed. “Is he here?”
“Of course,” Roial said, pointing toward an enclosed sculpture garden to one side of the pavilion. Sarene could barely make out the form of Iadon inside, Eshen at his side.
Sarene relaxed. Iadon was the whole point of the night’s activities. Of course, the king’s pride wouldn’t let him miss a ball thrown by one of his dukes. If he had attended Telrii’s party, he would certainly make it to Roial’s.
“What could the king have to do with little Sarene’s schemes?” Roial mused to himself. “Maybe she sent someone to peruse his chambers while he’s away. Her Seon, perhaps?”
However, at that moment Ashe floated into view a short distance away. Sarene shot Roial a sly look.
“All right, perhaps it wasn’t the Seon,” Roial said. “That would be too obvious anyway.”
“My lady,” Ashe said, bobbing in greeting as he approached.
“What did you find out?” Sarene asked.
“The cook did indeed lose a serving woman this afternoon, my lady. They claim she ran off to be with her brother, who was recently moved to one of the king’s provincial mansions. The man, however, swears he hasn’t seen anything of her.”
Sarene frowned. Perhaps she had been