She caught Isla just parting from Hakkon, and ducked out of the way so she could watch them without being seen. She had not suspected either her sister or the Seneschal of being such good actors! They parted with lingering hand touches and longing looks; Hakkon headed for parts unknown, Isla for her quarters. Delia decided to play her part in this deception as well. She hurried to catch up with her sister.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she hissed, doing her best to feign outrage.

Isla started, and furrowed her brow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, ice in her voice.

“I saw you and Hakkon!” Delia choked out. “Don’t try to deny it! I saw you two together!”

Isla had to work to suppress a twinkle in her eyes as she caught on to Delia’s act. “That’s none of your affair,” she said, still with ice in her voice. “You should mind your own business. I will tend to my own.”

“Funny business, that is!” Delia squeaked. “I should find a way to tell Kordas!”

Isla seized her by the arm and shook her. “You will keep your mouth shut and your thoughts to yourself,” she spat. “Or this is what is going to happen to you!”

And she bent and whispered in Delia’s ear. “Well played, love. Meet me in the cellars after dinner. Now run up to your room and pretend to cry.”

Delia ripped herself away from her sister’s grasp and hid her face in her arm as she raced to her rooms, where she flung herself on her bed and shook with what should look like sobs.

But they weren’t sobs, of course. She was laughing herself sick.

17

Well, if the reason the Emperor brought me here was to keep the Court amused, I am certainly doing that, thought Kordas, as he moped in the rear of the afternoon Court in the Great Hall. Muted chatter swirled around him, like the perfumes that covered up the ever-present faint chemical taint in the air.

When he had been presented with the accusation that Isla was having an affair with Hakkon, he had decided to stretch his reactions out as long as he could. So he started with angry denials. He didn’t go so far as to challenge the person who had told him this over dinner to a duel—he really didn’t want to complicate the Plan still further with the repercussions of killing Prince Morthas of Halengard—but he flew into a rage and stormed out of dinner and tried to get an audience with the Emperor to demand he be sent home.