The Emperor's Wolves (Wolves of Elantra #1) - Michelle Sagara Page 0,46
his arms and gaining a few inches of height as he straightened the line of his shoulders.
Elluvian appeared to find the question boring, but the Barrani Wolf appeared to find everything boring. His eyes were blue, but the shade didn’t darken. He didn’t, however, look away from the old man.
Severn accepted that this was some kind of test. “We don’t know.”
“And you think I will?”
“I don’t,” Severn said, almost apologetically. “Will you?”
The old man’s eyes narrowed into slits. He couldn’t physically look down at Severn, but nonetheless managed to suggest that he was. “Elluvian, perhaps you would care to enlighten me? It appears clear that the boy feels there are some things he can’t discuss.”
“You’re not a Wolf,” Elluvian replied. “But truthfully, we do not know.”
“And you’ve money in your coffers to bribe me?”
“To pay for services rendered, yes, if it comes to that. You may mirror Lord Marlin if you doubt me, but you would do that only if you wished to waste my time.”
“You think nothing of wasting mine,” Evanton snapped. He looked at Severn again.
“I am not wasting your time. For reasons I do not wish to discuss in the open, I believe you will find this particular hunt of great value to your garden.”
Evanton stilled. It was an odd way to describe the lack of motion, as the old man hadn’t been particularly active to begin with. He seemed to gain the entire weight of his age as he examined Elluvian. To Severn’s surprise, it was not to Elluvian he spoke. “You might take a look around my store. Pardon the dust; I’m not as young as I once was, and to those who know what they seek, a little bit of dust is not an impediment. Elluvian and I must discuss something of a sensitive nature, and I would spare you that discussion.”
“I would not,” Elluvian began.
“Then the discussion will not occur. You are not in your domain now, but mine, and you will obey my rules, or you will leave.” There was no doubt in the old man’s voice.
Severn wondered if he was bluffing, and decided—uneasily—against. He knew little about the Halls of Law—this was his third day on the job—but bullying harmless old men didn’t seem to be any part of his stated duties.
“I offer you the opportunity to be of aid to the Halls of Law.”
Evanton clearly didn’t think much of the opportunity. Severn moved away from the two men—the two old men—and began to examine the store itself. Evanton’s “bit” of dust seemed mountainous; Severn was certain that whatever lay beneath it hadn’t been moved in decades. Or ever.
He leaped to the side, rolled into cobwebs, gained his feet, and touched the hilt of his long knife as the store itself was illuminated in a harsh blue light. Thunder temporarily deafened him, but he rose slowly. He could see the old man’s back; he could see Elluvian; it was the Wolf that was surrounded by a crackling glow of light.
This was magic. It was not the first time Severn had encountered magic, but magic was never safe for the merely mortal. He wasn’t certain if he was meant to come to Elluvian’s aid; the Barrani Wolf didn’t draw his weapon. Elluvian didn’t seem to be injured, and this was the old man’s space. He didn’t imagine that Lord Marlin had intended that he somehow assassinate an old man.
Severn cleared his throat. “When you say a bit of dust, you didn’t mean this room, right?”
The crackle of blue light faded. Evanton didn’t turn, but said, “Of course I meant this room. If you’ve the cheek to criticize, do something useful about it instead.” He gestured, and a bucket appeared in the corner of the room. Given its age, it hadn’t been created by magic. Given the room, it might never have been used.
“You should find a different partner,” Evanton said. “Or a different vocation.”
“You should leave the testing of Wolves to the Wolves,” Elluvian told the old man. His eyes were a much darker shade of blue.
“I find your tests to be suboptimal, given how often Wolves go rogue.”
“And when we desire optimal testing, we’ll come to you and request it.”
“Ah? I am not afraid of the Tha’alaan or the Tha’alani. You are. Were you more courageous, you would not be here at all.”
“I’m not afraid of the Tha’alani,” Severn said quietly.
This time, the old man turned to face him. “I can almost believe that, when you say it. And that is