He hadn’t been hiding, merely standing in the shadow of the pillar and waiting.
Rylana didn’t know what to make of his behavior. Would thepeacekeepers figure out he was up to something and arrest him? She wished she’d gotten an opportunity to question him before they’d shown up. Not that his responses had been that enlightening thelasttime she’d questioned him.
“Who are you?” the gnome asked.
“Lord Vernest Vormalt,” he said, bowing toward the group.
“What are you doing out here at night?” The lieutenant looked around, as if expecting to find more people with Vormalt.
Rylana eased behind a tree again, though she believed the shadows hid her and Jildarin. They weren’t close enough for the lantern light to reach them.
“Waiting for someone,” Vormalt said.
“There are dragons flying around.”
“I did notice that, yes. I was afraid to abandon my meeting and travel back across the boardwalk lest one think me enticing prey.”
“Wise,” another gnome muttered.
“Who are you waiting for?” the leader asked.
“Lieutenant Wogmork,” a new male voice came from the road. Its owner also sounded gnomish but older. “You and your patrol have done a good job securing the area. Please turn off the pillar, and head back to town.”
“Er, Mayor Sedgewick?” the lieutenant asked.
“Yes, High Priest Miknog and I have a meeting on Lucky Island tonight.” The speaker stepped off the road and into view, a comrade—the priest?—with him. He waved toward the pillar and Vormalt. “After you’ve ensured there are no dragons on the island, please return to the city. I don’t expect further trouble out here tonight.”
Rylana did. She was beginning to guess what Vormalt was up to.
Jildarin tapped her on the shoulder and gestured for her to follow him farther back into the trees. She went with him, and they crouched down to watch and listen.
The head of one of the golems swiveled in their direction, and Rylana froze. As magical beings, they might be able to detect other magical beings, such as a dragon, but she thought they simply obeyed orders and wouldn’t have the wherewithal to alert the gnomes to eavesdroppers. Shethoughtthat but wasn’t positive.
“Are you sure you don’t want me or some of my troops to stay, Mayor? High Priest?” the lieutenant asked as his troops searched the area. He was walking around the pillar, using his lantern to light others mounted near the observatory.
Fortunately, their illumination only brightened the structures, not the trees. Rylana didn’t know what she would say if the peacekeepers stumbled upon her and Jildarin. That they’d been frolicking in the ferns, she supposed, not that such activities would explain her soggy clothing. The dew wasn’tthatdense.
Sedgewick looked at Vormalt. “Leave two golems at the boardwalk. We’ll call if we need them.”
“Yes, sir.”
Vormalt spread his arms, as if to say that was fine with him. Despite his height, he was more awkward than agile and hadn’t, as far as Rylana knew, ever trained as a fighter. He didn’t appear to be armed in any way—except with knowledge. That was what the mayor needed to worry about.
Before departing, the peacekeeper lieutenant walked up to the pillar, opened an access panel, and did something inside to turn off the alarm.
“Thank the new god,” the high priest murmured.
Sedgewick nodded. “I’m glad that one wasableto be turned off. Not all of them have been working as designed.” He looked toward Vormalt. “I trust you know something about that.”
“I may.” Vormalt watched the peacekeepers, probably waiting for them to leave before he spoke. The troops were still searching the area, with a couple wandering around in the observatory andanother pair checking the beach for who knew what. One paused and pointed toward the starry sky.
Jildarin shifted and looked up. Between the tree branches, one of the black dragons was visible flying past the island.
“Is that your aunt or your mother?” Rylana whispered.
“My aunt. My mother is busy communicating with the other dragons she brought along.”
“There aremoredragons?” Rylana forced herself to keep her voice down—with the pillar no longer gonging, the night had grown quiet, and she could hear the waves lapping at a beach below the observatory.
