“Before I go…” Eonaî looked around the room and then stepped close to me. She tugged at the lacing along the back of her dress.
“Help me!” she hissed, and I pushed at her shoulder until she turned, my fingers tugging at the knots until they loosened enough for her to reach down her bodice. She reached into her undergarments and drew out a small satchel that she handed to me and a circular object wrapped in a fur pouch.
I took the purse first, opening it to see imperial coins. Mother had given me a similar gift before I left. Better to buy off servants with their own coins.
Tucking it into my waistband, I took the other object, carefully unwrapping it. It revealed an egg, covered in frozen veins that looked like the fractals of ice when frost first came in at the start of winter.
“What is this?” I whispered.
“You know exactly what it is,” Eonaî said. “Don’t say it aloud. Hide it. Never let them see. Hold in your heart the same hope that I did: that it will hatch when the time is right.”
Before anyone could come into the room and see the egg, I tucked it into a pocket. I’d need to find somewhere for it. Somewhere safe, somewhere protected.
“Father found it out on the ice years ago. Mother gave it to me,” Eonaî whispered. “With hope. And I now pass it to you.”
“Why not take it home?” I asked, my voice just as soft.
Eonaî shook her head, trying to tug on her lacing. I took the ends of the cord from her and pulled them tight, tying them and tucking the ends in. We both stilled for a moment, and I couldn’t resist wrapping my arms around her, pulling her tight against me.
She pulled away just enough to turn, hugging tight. It was her grip that made it hard to breathe, that was all.
“You know what will happen if it hatches,” she whispered into my ear. “Either it can help you cause physical damage or…”
Or it could further destabilize the emperor’s rule. What would happen if a dragon appeared and chose someone else, someonenotEmperor Tallu, as the true ruler? Even the implication of it could threaten his reign.
I nodded, unsure what else to say. Killing the emperor was one thing, but owning adragon egg… The Imperium had razed the entire elven nation of Tavornai to kill off the water dragons. They had killed our ice dragons off fifty years earlier. A dragon hadn’t been seen anywhere on the continent in nearly thirty years.
“I’m going,” Eonaî said. “I love you, Airón.”
“I love you.” I touched our foreheads together. Who would I be without her? I had trained for so long to be invisible, to be nothing so that I could hide in her shadow, strike because she was taking all the attention.
Eonaî drew back first, walking to the door and raising her chin at the tilt of Sagam’s head in an unvoiced question.
“I’m leaving now. It is too painful to prolong the goodbye. Lord Fuyii and I will stay on the ship until it leaves.” She kept her voice so level that even I couldn’t hear the sadness in it.
“As you desire,” Sagam said. He bowed to her and me, lower than he had at first, and led her down a hall. I couldn’t watch her go.
Instead, I went back into the rooms, exploring them fully. They were all on the second floor of Turtle House, only the receiving room opening to the large porch that overlooked the courtyard. The small, enclosed garden had a pond in the center, a tree growing next to it and dropping yellow petals down onto the water.
There were three rooms off of the main receiving room. One was the bedroom Nohe had shown us; a second was a small office with a writing desk and shelves of books and scrolls. The third room at first seemed to have no function. Its blank walls were marked only by pegs to hang things, and the floor was a soft mat that gave slightly as I walked across it.
A meditation room? One for prayer? Or for practicing martial arts? I had heard that the Ristorium air mages needed daily meditation and practice to maintain their abilities. If only my own meager powers could be so easily maintained.
A knock at the door made me turn. For a second, I hoped Eonaî had reconsidered and was going to stay with me until Sagam had to pull her away with the same force he’d removed Lord Fuyii.
On the other side of the door was a man wearing a jacket thick with embroidery. I read the symbols quickly. The Minister of Peace, patriarch of Sotonam House.
He bowed in greeting but not low enough to be a sign of respect. “Prince Airón, greetings. I am Lord Sotonam, here at the request of Emperor Tallu to help ready you for your new position.”
I knew his voice. It was good to put a face to the man who’d tried to get information on me and Eonaî from Lord Fuyii. Smiling, I bowed even less than him, and when I straightened, I saw the expression on his face turn furious.
“Lord Sotonam, a pleasure. What did you have in mind?”
“I’m sure after your long journey, you must be ready for a bath.” Sotonam’s face stretched into a smile. His skin was golden, but he’d powdered it with silver, creating an iridescent effect. “If you’ll come this way, I can lead you to the bathhouse. I’ve arranged for the emperor’s seamstress to meet us there.”
“Thank you for your thoughtfulness.” Thoughtfulness or obsequiousness. Lord Fuyii hadn’t trusted this man, and I didn’t either.
I needed to find a safe spot for my belongings—the cash, the egg and the weapons on my body were too precious to let anyone see, but if I told Sotonam to wait, he would know I had somethingtohide and would probably send someone to search my rooms.
