“I’m not hiding.” It was mostly true, though I was eager for some time alone after last night’s alarming strategy session. “I’m designing a more efficient way to pass the sun’s energy through a wire coil to light a luminary crystal.”

My mother did not appear impressed. She glanced at a letter in her hand, then at me. “Can you dance a minuet?”

I groaned. “You’re going to make me go to some awful party with detestable people again, aren’t you?”

“Not I.” She tossed the invitation onto my desk, on top of my drying design. The winged horse of Raverra reared up at me in the seal. “The doge requests your presence at a reception for the new diplomatic contingent from Ardence.”

“Not another tedious—” I stopped. “Wait. From Ardence?”

“Yes.”

“The doge requests my presence, specifically?”

“Requires might be a more accurate word,” La Contessa said. “You and your Falcon both.”

“He wants Zaira there?” The pen fell from my hand as I sagged in my chair. “He is trying to start a fight, isn’t he?”

“No, but someone else may be.” My mother settled down on the stool of my little-used vanity to look me in the eyes. “The doge is raising the stakes to flush out the troublemakers, and see how deep this goes. Do you understand?”

I understood the cold fear in my gut. “No. I don’t see what Raverra could possibly gain by flouting a fire warlock in Ardence’s face at a time like this.”

“The most obvious reason for Ardence to defy Raverra is a simple testing of boundaries, to see if the Serene City has grown weak enough to relax its hold on the Empire. This is common with ambitious young rulers, and nothing to worry about.” She made a brushing movement, as if Duke Astor Bergandon were an annoying insect. “If that is the case, a warm welcome of the new Ardentine ambassador makes it clear we are still willing to embrace Ardence, while having a fire warlock in pointed attendance sends a message about the potential consequences of rejecting the Serene Accords.”

“And you think the duke will back down.”

She shrugged. “If he’s not a fool, he will. But if this is more than a mere testing of limits, we can learn a great deal from the duke’s response—and that of others who may be influencing him.”

“You mean Vaskandar.”

“Perhaps. That’s the most obvious possibility. They’d stand a better chance of seizing territory in Loreice if the Empire were distracted with another war. But it’s too early to make assumptions.”

I stared in disbelief. “Who else could it be? The Empire is at peace. How many enemies do you think we have?”

La Contessa regarded me through narrowed eyes. “Power always has enemies.”

I stared at the scar on the back of my wrist. “I suppose it does.”