Cast in Wisdom (Chronicles of Elantra #15) - Michelle Sagara Page 0,113

first taken shelter in Helen. The history of the two races, their wars and their immortal memories made peaceful coexistence difficult on a gut level.

Sedarias had a reason to fear Dragons. All of her known history was pushing her away from Bellusdeo. But Sedarias was pragmatic at heart. When she’d spent enough time with the gold Dragon, Kaylin was certain she’d arrive in roughly the same place Mandoran now occupied. Nothing Kaylin said was going to change that; nothing was going to make it happen faster.

She didn’t try. “I want to know how Candallar knew to look for this place. I can’t imagine that he stumbled across it by accident.”

“Why not? We did.”

“Because I don’t think Killian gouged out his eye on his own, and I think the location of that portal eye isn’t coincidental. Also: Arcanists. And human lords. And Candallar’s possible involvement in the breach of Ravellon’s border. He said he wants to be reinstated. He wants to return to the High Halls. It’s something that even Sedarias believed. The Barrani of the High Court would believe it. Those who never took the Test of Name would believe it.”

“And you would not?”

“I hate the High Halls, and I hate the High Court. I could believe that someone else wouldn’t hate them—but I could also believe that someone else wouldn’t care. Nightshade doesn’t care.” Before the fieflord could interrupt her on the inside of her head, she added, “I don’t think he’d say no if somehow he was reinstated, don’t get me wrong.

“But I don’t think he’d go out of his way to be reinstated. He’s a fieflord. Even as an outcaste it’s always been clear that the Consort likes him. The death that awaits outcastes is purely theoretical; they won’t kill him while he’s a fieflord because they understand that the Towers are necessary. So, hmmm, maybe we’re looking at this the wrong way.”

“We?” the Arkon said.

“If you have something constructive to add,” Kaylin began.

“I do not fault your provisional conclusions, but neither Bellusdeo nor I are members of the High Court. I understand that motive is frequently necessary when determining murderers. But murders without motives that you would understand also exist. It is the murder, not the motive, that is of interest now. Figuratively speaking. You have asked one good question: How did he find Killian? I invite you to consider the possibilities.”

“You know, you could help out here. You know more about sentient buildings than either of the two of us. Sure, Bellusdeo understands Shadow better than anyone else in the Empire, but I don’t think this is about Shadow.”

“He allowed someone to retrieve a Shadow from Ravellon,” Bellusdeo pointed out.

“Yes, but I think that was about tools, not about Shadow domination. He let it happen because he believed that it would help his cause.”

“Which we are not discussing, according to Lannagaros.”

“I did not say we are not discussing it,” the older Dragon replied. “Merely that it is separate from action. Our understanding of what was done, of how it was done, would suffice here.”

“But we don’t know what was done.”

“Indeed.”

“I don’t think the outcomes in the High Halls were either planned or intended,” Kaylin continued. “And I’m not sure they’re even stable. Spike is there, along with the will and intent of the building itself—but if the Shadow it once caged decides to leave, we’re all in big trouble.”

“But you didn’t counsel that it be destroyed?” This was not the first time Bellusdeo had asked.

“Let’s focus on the fact that we’re walking down an endless hall in a damaged building.” She exhaled, still thinking. “Do you understand how the outlands function?”

Bellusdeo immediately punted the question toward the Arkon’s back.

“No.”

Not promising, not really. “When we first decided to use the portal paths, the Hallionne set us down in a forest. I believe we were meant to follow the forest path to the next Hallionne. That’s not what happened—but that was what was intended. There were more dangers in that forest than we’d face in the forest above. And fewer bugs.

“The Hallionne could shape a form out of the outlands by desire or will or command or even instinct. They didn’t maintain control over what was shaped. So the outlands responded to their request because no other request overrode it. The Hallionne weren’t the only people who could influence the shape the outlands took.” She stopped walking.

“You lost the shape of that path.”

“Pretty damn quickly, yes. But there were no Hallionne fighting for control of it. There