The theurgist and interlocutor Luviara observed these exchanges with fearless interest, like a raven watching to see if treasure would be revealed by the spades of enthusiastic ditchdiggers. At last, having not spoken before this, she raised her hands in the manner of a beggar pleading for lordly generosity. “Your Highness, with your permission, I would venture an observation. A question, really.”

The prince glanced at her, surprised to hear her speak. He did not seem to have the same intimacy with her as he had with his wardens, his concubines, and his menials. After a pause, and with a graciously haughty inclination of his head, he indicated she could proceed.

“If the road is blocked, how can the wardens not know? Would a blocked road not also block the means by which the Vigil wardens communicate rapidly, across great distances, with the central Warden Hall? It is said that witchery is bound into the bones of the roads, and that only wardens ken this secret.”

“Even if a road has been buried under an avalanche, that doesn’t mean its bones have been severed,” he said testily. “We wardens can communicate with our Vigils as long as the bones of the roads remain intact. That’s true whether the pavement lies atop the ground or becomes buried beneath a fall of rock. And that, Luviara, is the most any warden will ever tell you.”

“I wished merely to confirm how it seemed, to me, that as far as the wardens knew, the road remained intact.”

“Must I state it again?” he snapped. “I was misled into believing there was no obstacle to my travel.”

“So once the road is cleared, it will be usable again, just as it was before, with no loss of protection against the Pall.”

“If the engineers can clear it. I begin to doubt their capacity, since it seems almost two years have passed, and they have found no solution to clearing the road. No wonder my sister seeks to hamper me. She fears any success on my part will enhance my status at court, while hers has suffered because her engineers have failed to clear a crucial imperial road.”

Everyone but the prince—and Elen—looked to the ground, as if fearing to be struck by lightning. The inner struggles of the palace were meant to take place far away from the doings of ordinary life, both exalted and concealed by the favor of the High Heavens upon the imperial lineage. Anyway, it was always perilous to hear the whispers of the powerful, since they would as soon kill you as let you walk away if they thought you knew a single one of their secrets. But she had to stay vigilant, to figure out how to free Kem.