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“My traitorous colleague Skleros was responsible for their accommodations,” the Dexion said. “One can’t expect much better from a Gift Collector.”
Mak hauled the fire mage into a chair. “Don’t pretend you weren’t complicit—and ready to immolate our people.”
“Is revenge the reason you’re here?” Chrysanthos arched a well-groomed brow. “How banal. I expected more sophisticated intrigue from you.”
“No,” Lio said. “You should be grateful we’re above revenge.”
“Excellent,” the mage replied. “Torture and death are admittedly not how I would prefer for you to alleviate my boredom. I’ve been wondering when the Hesperine delegation would deign to seek out my company. You took long enough.”
Cassia stood over the Dexion at her liegehound’s flank. “As hard as it is for you to imagine, Florian,” said Cassia, using his birth name, “we had more important matters to attend to than the all-mighty Dexion of the Aithourian circle.”
“Oh, it’s abundantly clear what has occupied you, ‘Ambassador’ Cassia. Could you at least have the decency to hide it? The amount of Deukalion’s magic I can sense dripping off of you is nauseating.”
Cassia bared her teeth, although she called Knight off. “Count yourself lucky I don’t have my fangs yet.”
“Which brings us to an interesting question. Why don’t you? And what are all of you doing here, after you initially declined the Allied Lords’ invitation to attend the Council?”
“We aren’t here to indulge your curiosity.” Lio began gathering up the papers on the desk.
“You won’t find anything of interest in there,” Chrysanthos said over his shoulder. “All I know about Skleros these days is what Lord Flavian has told me. I hear the Gift Collector is lurking, as his sort tend to do, but I know nothing of his plans.”
“He is also not the reason we’re here,” Lio said. “You are.”
The mage sat back in his chair, and Mak tightened his grip on the man’s shoulder, making him wince. “Easy there. I’m not going anywhere.” He stuck out his fine leather shoe to display the iron manacle around his ankle.
“You can throw fire spells from right here,” Lyros said. “I advise against it.”
“My fire traps were merely an obligatory friendly greeting between enemies. I also have no intention of torturing or murdering you, as tempting as it is. It seems we are all agreed that we are more advantageous to each other alive for the time being.”
His words rang true. He hadn’t put up as much of a fight as he might have. Lio tucked his nephew’s letters into a satchel. “Hoping to keep us alive to stay in Flavian’s good graces?”
“Naturally,” the Dexion answered. “Killing my host’s other guests would not encourage him to accept my bargain and release me.”
“He won’t be in a position to release you after tonight.” Cassia dumped his Kings and Mages set into his clothing trunk.
It appeared to dawn on the Dexion that they were not ransacking his possessions. They were packing them.
“Gods,” he said. “You can’t be serious.”
“We are taking you into our custody tonight,” Lyros informed him. “You can make it easy on yourself, or more difficult.”
Lio swung the pack full of scrolls onto the trunk, then helped Cassia search for any hidden compartments that might contain something informative or valuable.
The Dexion’s gaze followed them, his eyes widening. “It is in your best interests to let Flavian take my bargain.”
Cassia huffed. “You expect us to believe you will keep your promises to him? You and your Order have invested too much in Lucis to abandon him now.”
“Lucis was always a means to an end. The harder he becomes for us to control, the less appealing he is as an ally. We can be persuaded to support Flavian—but not if he barters me to Orthros. What is the meaning of this?”
Lio yanked the blankets off the bed and ripped a seam on the mattress. How enjoyable it was to see the Magelands’ foremost politician clueless about their plan.
“You are diplomats,” Chrysanthos protested, “trying to prevent a war between my Order and your kind. I know you don’t want to antagonize Cordium. It would be better for Orthros if Flavian remains on good terms with both of us.”
Finding nothing of interest in the stuffing, Lio levitated the ruined mattress back onto the bed.
“Ready to go?” Mak asked.
“Yes, there’s nothing else here.” Cassia let a tapestry fall back over the wall.
