I was too preoccupied with the approaching riders to pay much heed to what they were saying. ‘If this does come to a fight, there must be no killing. Our position in the Land is not so secure, even now, that killing unTalents will be a small matter, even if they are soldierguards and renegade rebels. Besides, they will be more useful to us alive if they do have a stash of black powder or demon bands, for we can use them to recover it.’

‘I dinna think ye need to worry yerself over the sensitivities of ordinary Landfolk. They are as afeared of these gangs as our people,’ Ceirwan said. ‘Ye mun rather ask yerself why a gang of ruffians would come here afore ye worry about their welfare. Th’ answer is that Obernewtyn would make the perfect stronghold for a band of robbers and renegades.’

I stared at him, startled by the idea that the riders might have come to stage a coup.

‘Do not fear,’ Linnet said grimly. ‘If it transpires that they did come with Beforetime weapons capable of doing substantial harm, I have instructed two of my knights to get you away up to the wintergarden. I have assigned similar escorts to the other guildmasters. It will not be a pleasant journey in this weather but if it must be done, it will be done.’

I wanted to object, but the escape plan had been devised by guildmerge and approved by Rushton, on the assumption that the master of Obernewtyn and the guild heads would be of more use plotting in exile than being held captive.

‘Ye gods this rain!’ said Gevan, towelling his hair vigorously as he strode into the entrance hall and came to join us. ‘Do not look so worried, Guildmistress. I think we can route twenty or so brigands, even if Radost is leading them.’

‘Radost?’ I echoed, astonished. ‘How should he be leading them when he and his son were killed escaping from the Councilfarm?’

Linnet shot me a startled look. ‘Guildmistress, do you not know that the body thought to be Radost’s was later discovered to be that of another escapee? They could not find Moss’s body either. It is now thought that the escape was only a decoy which Radost set up to ensure the armsmen on duty had their hands full while he and Moss made their escape.’

‘I thought I had told ye that,’ Ceirwan murmured, frowning. ‘Though now that I think on it, the news came up after ye left for Sutrium wi’ Dragon an’ th’ others.’

I thought of Analivia, Radost’s yellow-haired daughter. I had spoken to her of the deaths of her brother and father the previous spring, and she had said enigmatically that hate did not die so easily. Had she guessed her brother and father had not been killed trying to escape their Councilfarm sentence? Or was it more than a guess? There were plenty with a touch of Talent who did not acknowledge it and Analivia possessed an uncanny ability to hide herself from Talent, which had always struck me as being suspiciously like another sort of Talent. Of course I had not mentioned it, for even in this time, one would not readily and openly suggest someone was a Misfit if they had not acknowledged it.