said, his gaze level and not quite hostile. He nodded to Lara, who returned the gesture precisely. “I fear we have little to say to one another, Lady Lara.”
“That depends on what is said, sir,” Lara replied. “And when two potential foes meet, the presence of a trusted mutual ally can do much to allay suspicion and fear.” She turned to bow her head to Cristos. “Sir, your reputation for skill in such matters is well-known. I am certain you are aware of the tensions between our realms at this delicate time. Perhaps the wider reconciliation we are all hoping for can begin here, between King Etri’s people and my father’s Court.”
“Ridiculous,” Evanna said, her voice brittle.
Etri gave his sister a weary look and held up his hand again. “Lady Lara, I see little hope for resolution of any kind in this matter but what is prescribed in the Accords.”
Cristos’s eyebrows beetled, and he folded his hands thoughtfully. “And yet, if you see little hope, then a little must be there. Perhaps a little hope is a good place to begin. Surely, Etri, there is no harm in speaking while we are all under the protection of guest-right.”
The svartalf rubbed a few fingers wearily at his forehead, clearly irritated, and glanced up at me. “Harry Dresden,” he said. “You have been a guest and friend to my people. You were friends with Austri. Can this person be trusted?”
I eyed Lara and then turned back to Etri. “If she gives you her word, she’ll keep it.”
Which … wasn’t exactly a lie. Lara was good to her word. So was Mab. So was Etri. And I didn’t particularly trust any of them, beyond that.
But then, when you get right down to it, what else is there? And what more can you really ask for?
Etri studied me for a moment and then nodded, and I got the impression that he had intuited my exact meaning. His mouth set in a line that said he clearly didn’t enjoy the prospect, but that he was also clearly resolved to treating his peers with courtesy. “Very well. Lady Lara, if you would please join us. May I send for a drink?”
Lara smiled warmly at me and settled down in a chair one of Etri’s people carried over for her, to leave her, Etri, and Cristos seated at the points of a triangle. “Thank you, Warden Dresden, for the introduction.”
“Sure,” I said.
“Please,” Cristos said, his voice mellow, his gaze annoyed, “do not let us keep you from your duties any longer, Warden.”
“Yep,” I said to Cristos, in a voice that was louder and more nasal than it had to be. “Okay. Bye-bye.”
I shot Yoshimo with my forefinger and strode away. There was a buffet over in one corner of the hall. My nose caught a whiff of something delicious and reported to my stomach, which instantly started growling. I realized I had been too distracted to have a meal today, which really seemed like something I should grow out of at some point.
Well. There was no sense in going hungry if I didn’t have to, and I suspected that the more time I spent with my mouth full of food, the less time I would have to screw up at this stupid party. I went for the food.
The room was getting even fuller. Under a sickly green banner of cloth sat the LaChaise clan’s representatives, centered on a ruddy-faced, burly man with big old muttonchops who looked like he enjoyed a lot of meat and potatoes. Carter LaChaise, leader of a large family of ghouls who ran a lot of supernatural business in Cajun country. They’d been seated at a table and were dining ravenously on steak tartare, I hoped, and looked weirdly like the painting of the Last Supper.
I considered setting them all on fire for a while, until I started getting looks from the table. It was only then that I noticed how widely I was smiling and moved along.
A black banner with black gemstones draped down into a semi-alcove shape, surrounding a single enormous chair in shadow. A very tall, very large man, apparently in his fifties, sat lazily in the chair, silently regarding the gathering. He held a pipe negligently in one hand, apparently unlit, but smoke trailed sinuously down from his nostrils with each breath, and his eyes reflected the light of the room like a cat’s. Ferrovax, the dragon, disguised in human form. The last time we’d met had been at