Page 99 of With Wing And Claw

After her uncle’s almost-accusations of that same morning? After … good gods, after every furious glare Inga had levelled at the Lord Protector over the course of their meetings?

Ridiculous, and yet the two of them were sitting at the worktable in Nicanor’s living room-turned-laboratory as if they felt perfectly at home between the bubbling fluids and ominously coloured vials – sipping glasses of cold white wine as if the room wasn’t stocked to the ceiling with every poison known to history and then some. Silas’s arms rested loosely on the wooden tabletop, his wings relaxed. Inga, more bewilderingly, wasn’t even glowering at anyone, her timid half-grin and fidgety hands suggesting she was no longer quite sure what to do with herself when she wasn’t hiding behind the shield of her fury.

What in the world was going on?

What had changed so abruptly?Hadanything even changed abruptly? Had the three of them been cosily getting along behind her back all this time, and had she fallen for some crafty performance for her eyes only, for—

‘Oh!’ Naxi exclaimed beside her, rushing into the room. ‘So many friends!’

Friends.

Was that a hint? A subtle signal that this wasn’t some malicious conspiracy coming together? Not that she shouldneedany subtle signals, of course, because Nicanor’s bargain was still in place and Silas must have spoken the truth when he said he didn’t want to hurt her … Besides, what did they have to gain by getting rid of her? Truly, she—

‘Thysandra?’ Nicanor dryly interrupted her thoughts, gesturing at the table with an elegant flourish. ‘Were you planning on coming in?’

Right.

‘Yes,’ she said, forcing something akin to a smile as she followed Naxi inside. ‘Yes, of course. Thank you.’

Inga was already helping Naxi climb up onto the high stools; Naxi was all fluttering gratitude and hiccups of laughter, her most disarming act. Silas turned towards Thysandra – and no matter how leisurely his faint smile, no matter how casually he’d rolled up his sleeves over his bargain-covered arms, something subdued in his golden eyes told her that carefree relaxation was the last thing on his mind.

Not cosily getting along, then.

Which made everything even odder.

‘Afternoon, Thys,’ he said, sending her a quick nod. She couldn’t tell if it was intended to be a reassurance. ‘Just catching up on a few centuries of courtly matters. If there’s anything you and Nicanor need to discuss in private, we can get out of here, of course.’

We.

He was speaking for Inga, then? What for the gods’ sakes had he told the girl during that mysterious conversation of theirs – how had he persuaded her to suddenly startsmiling?

It would be wise to make them leave, presumably. The letter burned in her pocket, making her all jittery with an odd mixture of nervousness and determination; every extra pair of eyes on it only increased the chance of trouble. On the other hand …

Sooner or later, the news would reach them anyway. Silas knew the court. Inga knew the court’s opponents. They might be able to assist her in dealing with the backlash; if they were sitting here anyway, perhaps it wasn’t too bad an idea to hear their thoughts before things came to pass.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ she said, and Nicanor quietly shut the door behind her. ‘Might be good to discuss this together.’

‘Excellent.’ Her uncle reached for the bottle of wine on the table. ‘A glass, then, if I’m allowed to hand out Nicanor’s supply on his behalf?’

She grimaced. ‘I take it you’ve been drinking it without side effects?’

‘As a matter of fact,’ Nicanor said, feigning indignation, ‘I have already been asked on a bargain of truth whether there is anything harmful in that bottle. Which there isn’t. Nothing but the usual sort of harm a bottle of wine can do, that is, but I take it you’re not planning to guzzle down a gallon of it?’

She did admittedly feel tempted but said, ‘A glass should do, thank you.’

Silas poured two glasses. Around them, poison ingredients soaked, simmered, and steamed on the shelves; a faint smell of sulphur lingered in the room, although the sweeter, fresher scent of lily perfume was far more prominent.

The windows were closed, Thysandra noted. No chance of accidental eavesdroppers here, then.

‘Alright,’ Nicanor said, easily taking a seat at Silas’s side. He picked up his own glass without taking his gaze off the company, swirling the crystal back and forth in his long fingers. ‘Let us get down to business, then. To what do we owe this pleasant surprise, Your Majesty?’

She braced herself.

Do better.

‘I’ve been corresponding with the Alliance,’ she said. ‘About the possibility of setting up new tradeagreements.’

Had she pulled a maimed corpse from beneath the table, she could not have ruined the amiable atmosphere more thoroughly.