The Tomb. Everything that had happened—Kit having a code-key to an intact tunnel, the stone-armored guardian—pointed to her telling the truth about having been there. How else could she know everything she does? And if she had found it—

He gave a slow nod. “I’m staying.”

“Fine.” Ibb swept his coat from the back of the chair. “It’s been a pleasure working with you. Come and find me when you come to your senses.”

“Ibb—” Yora began.

But he was already stalking from the room. Kit watched him go, then turned back to the others and smiled brightly.

“Fair enough,” she said. “Let’s see about this plan, shall we?”

Chapter 9

The villagers of Litnin assembled to see them off, offering Tanax stiff, formal bows when he told them to expect a further inquiry from Republic authorities. Maya suspected the villagers knew very well that this was an empty threat, as neither Council nor Republic was likely to spare much effort chasing down a few potential conspirators now that the smugglers had been destroyed. She herself got smiles and nods as she walked past, especially from the children. She saw Streza, waving goodbye with one hand and hugging her brother tight with the other.

Varo, morosely apologetic that he hadn’t arrived in time for the fight, seemed determined to make up for it by setting a quick pace on the return journey to the Gate. Maya’s legs soon ached, and the straps of her pack chafed, but she had the satisfaction of seeing Tanax no better off. He did his best not to show it, however, possibly because their new companion, the messenger girl whose name turned out to be Dhira, loped along behind the scout without the slightest sign of being winded.

And Beq—Maya didn’t know what to think about Beq. They’d had a moment of connection, alone in the night, and she’d worried at the time that it would make things awkward between them. Beq’s attitude the next morning had been relentlessly normal—normal for Beq, anyway—and only occasionally did Maya catch the girl watching her, when she thought no one was looking. She did her best to force herself not to read too much into it. For all I know, she’s embarrassed she ever talked to me.

Maya talked to Dhira instead, at least for as long as she could keep up. Messengers were a unique and well-respected group among the Forge servants, because the nature of their assignments could bring them into considerable danger and strand them with no way to return. It took a centarch to open a Gate, so while it was always possible to travel from the Forge, for a messenger the return was never certain. A messenger sent to find a centarch who’d been killed—or even left their post unexpectedly—could find themselves stranded weeks or months from home.