“I don’t think Katu makes things up or drops appointments,” he said. “And I don’t think Saf would repeat Katu’s suspicions if he didn’t trust Katu.”

“That’s what I think too,” said Bitterblue.

“If there’s something suspicious about that ship going down,” said Giddon, “then I’m more curious than ever about what Mikka wanted to tell you about zilfium.”

“Yes,” said Bitterblue. “And I’m worried about Katu. He hasn’t written in forever.”

“Balls to Katu,” said Skye contemptuously. “What about Saf? What does he mean, he’s looking into it?”

“Skye,” said Bitterblue gently. Reaching out, she touched her cousin’s dark hair, touched his worried face. The Lienid wore gold in their ears and on their fingers. Skye was a handsome man, glowing with gold, his eyes gray and his skin sun-brown. Bitterblue, who was half-Lienid, shared his coloring and wore Lienid rings. The two of them gleamed together.

“There’s no cause for you to fret,” Bitterblue told him. “You know how Saf is.”

“That’s exactly why I’m fretting!” said Skye. “What’s he doing? Diving into the Brumal Sea in random locations, drowning himself?”

“I think Saf is undrownable,” said Bitterblue, returning to her pie.

“And where’s my letter?” said Skye. “And why is he endangering himself searching for one of your boyfriends?”

“Skye,” said Bitterblue, whose fork was now frozen in the air between her plate and her mouth. “What’s this about?”

“He promised me,” said Skye, suddenly standing, so fast that his chair tipped over. “He swore to me that if he went to Winterkeep without me, he wouldn’t do anything dangerous!”

“Skye!” said Bitterblue, who was now staring at her cousin in amazement. “Are you in love with Saf?”

Abruptly, Giddon stood. “Hava,” he said, his mouth full of pie. “Let’s go for a walk.”

“I don’t want to go for a walk,” Hava said. Then, at Giddon’s severe look, she added, “Fine. But bring pie.”

After slapping more pie onto his plate, Giddon strode to the big doors and waited. With a great, impatient sigh, Hava grabbed a fork from the table and followed him. Giddon wanted to stay, so he could know how Bitterblue felt about her cousin being in love with Saf. But he would give them their privacy. It was what someone with more noble instincts than his would do.

Chapter Three

“Saw that coming,” Hava said as they walked away from the queen’s rooms.

“You did?” said Giddon, truly surprised. “How? Have you been spying on Skye?”

“Of course not,” she said scornfully. “How would that look?”