Page 56 of Ties of Frost

Sajen nodded to his right. “I’m in the room next door. Was sleeping lightly and heard someone come in and smelled shifter and elf, so I listened in long enough to determine it was you two.” He crossed his arms and donned the stern expression of a suspicious instructor. “I have questions about what I overheard.”

Kyrundar turned pink to the tips of his pointed ears, and my face felt like I’d sat far too close to a bonfire.

“We haven’t broken our vows,” I said in a rush at the same time as Kyrundar protested, “There’s no rules against flirting!”

Sajen’s eyebrows climbed, and his mouth pulled to theside in a poorly disguised smile. “Mmmhmmm.”

“Why are you here?” I asked, desperate to change the subject.

“Why are you both blushing like newlyweds?”

“We only kissed, all right?” Kyrundar exclaimed. “That’s not against our vows.”

“Once,” I added, as if that somehow made it better. There may have been more than one kiss, but it was only one instance.

Kyrundar eyed me like he was worried that was a declaration I wouldn’t kiss him again. Perhaps I shouldn’t.

Sajen’s too-intelligent eyes moved slowly between us. “Interesting,” he murmured. Then he lightly shook his head. “I arrived the night before last and have been waiting for you. You said in your letter you were headed north to charter a ship along the Glacorian coast, so I hoped I could catch you in Gamnica.”

Jealousy that Sajen had made the journey so quickly stirred up my dragon fire, but I quenched it. My inability to shift wasn’t Sajen’s fault, and he hadn’t meant any unkindness by his comment. Besides, we’d have been faster if we hadn’t gone to Ravensburgh first and hadn’t been dealing with assassins.

“You found something, then?” I asked.

Sajen’s mouth thinned with displeasure. “Yes. Potentially bad news. The description of your original attackers eventually led me to an inn, but I lost their trail for a couple of days—until a servant boy recounted a conversation he’d overheard.”

Nervous energy built in my stomach. Could this be the lead I’d been looking for?

“I noticed the lad watching and following me, and I finally caught him. The boy was terrified—and with what he heard, who wouldn’t be?” Sajen shook his head, his expression heavy. “His conscience drove him to tell a rengir, but it still took a lot of coaxing to convince him it was safe to tell me. He’d seen a couple of your attackers meeting with a cloaked woman, all armed to the teeth. The woman said their orders were to kill Eilmaris, and Ilifir if he got in the way, but she would go ask their archon what to do about Rouven and the risk to the league if a rengir found him before they did.”

I gaped at the gryphoni. No wonder the poor boy had been frightened after encountering such brazen violence and disregard for all things holy. That wasn’t what truly mattered, though. “You’re saying Gautindar Rouven is also an enemy of the league?”

Kyrundar made a disgruntled sound. “Or a former member. How do we know we can trust him? If he realizes killing you might place him back in the league’s good graces—”

“We don’t know that.” My fingers twitched at my sides. “And we don’t have another option for removing the curse.”

“For all we know, Rouven designed this ice curse,” Kyrundar muttered.

“We also don’t have any evidence he did,” I said firmly. “Assuming we can find him, we won’t mention the league until after the curse is destroyed. He won’t know they’re after me until I’m back at full strength.”

Kyrundar’s jaw tightened, but he nodded.

“That’s why I had to try to catch you before you boarded a ship and it became harder to find you, despite the precious little information I found,” Sajen said. “Whether Rouven has always been the league’s enemy or is a deserter, it’s best to be on guard. That’s the reason I came in person instead of sending a message. I’m going with you. You’ve been attacked twice—”

“Three times,” Kyrundar said. “A night elf tried to smother her the night before last.”

Sajen swore under his breath. “Even the Order has only three night elves out of three hundred members. I’m definitely accompanying you.”

I pursed my lips. “We’ve handled it so far, and I don’t want to make you a target as well—”

“To the contrary. They could be targeting you because you’re the only threat to their existence. If more people know what you know, the number of targets becomes unmanageable and more likely to draw attention they clearly wish to avoid.” He glanced between us meaningfully. “Unless there’s any reason you wouldn’t want me along…?”

My blush returned, but I shook my head. “No, I see your point.”

“You’re welcome to join us,” Kyrundar added.

“Good.” Sajen grinned. “What’s your plan for finding Rouven?”

“Asking around to find deliveries of Nyksian mead to a Glacorian inlet.”

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