own good. Depending on how she stretches things, she could almost justify trying to kill you herself, or setting you up for any number of near-fatal challenges. One part of her is bound to offer you advice, while the other is actively hoping it can find something that will put you out of her misery.”
Thinking back on Tailtiu’s frequently murderous attempts to teach him to expect surprise attacks, he could see how Aislinn’s methods might be similar on an entirely different and more terrifying scale. “Are you suggesting she engineered this vampire problem?”
Arrogan was silent for a moment. “I don’t know. I can’t say for certain either way, but there’s a possibility of that and you should be aware of it.”
“But if that’s true—” Will stopped; his brain couldn’t complete the thought. Finally, he burst out, “Tailtiu is her daughter!”
“Maybe that was accidental. Then again, maybe she felt Tailtiu was helping you too much. Either way, I can assure you she won’t feel a thing no matter what happens to her daughter.”
The sky was growing steadily darker, prompting Will to hurry. “So what do you think I should focus on right now?”
“First, you guarded that bastard Nerrow’s house last night. There was an attack, but what about elsewhere? Was there a slaughter like I predicted? Were there a few attacks or many? You need to keep your eye on the bigger picture. Laina Nerrow may just be a small part of the story.”
Will hadn’t inquired about any of that. But I should have. There were simply too many things that needed to be done, and he was only one person. “I’ll find out what I can in the morning.” Then he released the limnthal, dismissed the force-dome, and headed back to the house. Tiny was waiting for him.
Chapter 20
That night passed uneventfully. Will was glad to see that Darla had resumed her watch across the street, but she didn’t come over to speak to them, and they returned the favor. While he hadn’t really wanted anything to happen, as the sun began to brighten the horizon, he felt as though he’d wasted the night. He could have slept, or prepared, or done something useful.
When they got home, they found Blake waiting for them, along with Janice, who apparently had some news. Blake spoke first, though. “I made more porridge,” he announced.
Tiny was starving, as usual, and he grinned at the information. “Thanks!”
Will knew him for a fool, though, and when they began to eat, he was vindicated in his belief. The porridge was bad, but not lethal. Blake watched intently as they ate, while Janice looked on with pity, for she had already had a portion before their arrival.
“How is it?” asked the manservant anxiously.
“Not bad,” said Tiny graciously.
Everyone held their breath as all eyes turned to Will. After a moment he responded, “Well, if I had to eat this every day I wouldn’t starve to death, but I would probably wish that I could. It’s better than what you tried to poison Tiny with yesterday, though, so that’s something.”
“It’s not that bad, is it?” asked Blake.
“You do realize that salt pork is salty, right? You don’t have to add additional salt if you use that with it. Also, you burned the onions.”
“I did?”
“That’s where the bitterness came from,” explained Will. Just out of Blake’s line of sight, he could see Janice nodding in silent agreement, though she was too tactful to say anything out loud.
Despite Will’s complaints, the porridge was still edible, and he was tired and hungry, so he ate. Janice waited, clearly anxious to share her news, and Will obliged by forcing the porridge down as quickly as he could manage. The upside was that he didn’t have to taste it as much that way. “All right,” he said at last. “It’s obvious you’re excited. What did you discover? Is it something about the relic?”
She shook her head. “No, something completely unexpected. I went to arrange for the alchemy supplies, and when I asked about the white phosphorous, Professor Karlovic told me that it had all been bought up.”
That caught his attention. “Could it