She glared at him as she weighed his words. The thought of being held in place by magic sent chills of fear down her back. No, she couldn’t let that happen. She’d break down in front of them and they’d seen enough of her fear and emotion. That wasn’t happening this time. Especially since they’d forced this situation on her. She might not be able to get out of this, but she could control the way she handled it.
Baring her fangs at them in a low hiss, she turned and sank down onto the pillows with her back against the padded legs of the two chairs. A wicked idea for revenge floated through her mind. They were making her stay here and they’d pay for that demand. They deserved it.
Colm gave her an assessing look as if he suspected she was up to something. She didn’t bother to hide her anticipatory expression. There wasn’t anything they could do about it as long as they insisted she stay in the room with them. He walked over and claimed the right chair while Linc went to the door and opened it.
Someone was obviously waiting out in the hallway because he said a few words and then walked over to take the chair on the left. Cami didn’t do anything yet. She didn’t want to give them any warning. It would be so much better if it was done when there were other people around and they had to keep their focus on the proceedings.
In spite of the mockery Laed and Kynar had made of it, she knew there was supposed to be some ceremony to it. That would offer her the chance to pay them back for doing this. Not that she thought it would teach them anything other than that she wouldn’t let them force her to do this without making them pay.
She had no idea what they had to do today. She didn’t think it was the men who’d gotten into Thent. She’d heard they were assassins and knew that letting the surviving hired killer leave would be a mistake. He’d come back and try to get to his target again.That man probably wouldn’t be dealt with in this way. Was it simply time for them to handle grievances or something such as that? Had someone come to try to negotiate with them?
Leaning back against the chairs as she was, she was in perfect position for her plan. Their legs brushed against her shoulders. She kept her smile subdued as a group of men filed into the room. A man at the back of the group shut the doors behind them. These were all Santir men. They looked sober. One of them seemed even more so than the others. One of the men near the back made his way around the others and stood to the side. Cami watched with interest as he took a deep breath.
The man at the side of the room called out at least eight names and instructed them to step forward. He waited until the men had walked forward leaving one man waiting near the doors. “You’ve been called in to account the details of the night when two humans managed to get over the wall and explain how there came to be a gap in the defenses.”
She saw the men shift nervously from foot to foot. One man’s hands clasped in front of him tensely. She’d guess that he wanted to rub his hands up and down his pants, but didn’t want to reveal his anxiety that clearly. Considering the trouble he might be in, he had reason to be nervous.
She straightened as she realized she was getting too caught up in what was happening around her and needed to focus on her plan. Waiting until they began to speak probably wouldn’t be a bad idea. Colm and Linc would be less likely to interrupt if they were paying attention to the men’s story.
“Ardin, if I may speak,” one of the older men said as he stepped forward from the group.
“You may speak.” Colm’s voice sounded deeper and slower than normal.
The man began talking about the routine of the guard house. She knew he was trying to explain how they hadn’t noticed that someone wasn’t where they were supposed to be for a significant amount of time. After a little while, she tuned his voice out. It was time to give those two men something to think about the next time they wanted