Shadowcaster Read online

  “I think we’re all here,” Finn said, looking around the room.

  “It’s not my birthday,” Lyss said. “So what’s going on?”

  “We want to plan a wake for Staunton and Carew,” Sasha said.

  “Oh!” Lyss said, thinking that hardly required an emergency meeting. “That’s a great idea. Just let me know when it is, and if you’re taking up a collection, I’ll—”

  “We need your help,” Hadley said. “We’re hoping you can find us the right place, and help us get the supplies we need—”

  “—because you have so much experience at planning this kind of event,” Sasha said.

  Lyss was lost. “You know I’m glad to help you out in any way I can, but when it comes to parties, I—”

  “We’re having this party south of the border,” Shadow said, with no trace of humor at all. “We want to bring the war to Arden, and we think you know how.”

  Lyss looked from person to person. Their smiles had dropped away, leaving them looking fierce, determined, and absolutely serious. Lyss cleared her throat and blotted at her eyes. “I appreciate the gesture,” she said. “I really do. It means a lot, coming from all of you.”

  “This is not a gesture,” Littlefield said. “This is real. And if we die in the attempt—” He shrugged his shoulders.

  “That’s just it,” Lyss said. “I don’t want you to die in the attempt. If I ever make it to the throne, I want you all at my side. Anyway, there’s a limit to what ten people can do.”

  Someone pounded on the door. Littlefield pulled it open, looked outside, and then swung it wide, motioning to Lyss. “There are some people outside who want to come to the party, too.”

  Outside, it appeared that Lyss’s entire salvo was assembled. As one, they drew their swords, went down on one knee, and set their weapons down in the snow in front of them. “For the Gray Wolf!” they roared. “You have our swords!” And then they howled. It was like a scene from a play or a pageant.

  Lyss stood there, speechless, for a long moment. Then brought her fist to her chest in a salute. “Thank you!” she shouted, unsure what else to say. “Now . . . dismissed. The drill is cancelled.”

  Lyss shut the door and turned to face the co-conspirators. “What did you say to them, anyway, to get them all ginned up?”

  Mason shrugged. “It didn’t take much, to tell you the truth. Quite a few of them were at the temple concert, and they heard what happened after. We told our squadrons we were planning something difficult and dangerous and highly secret in the fallow season to get back at those who murdered Staunton and Carew and tried to murder Captain Gray. After that, each and every one of the soldiers you saw out there came to us to ask how they could get in on it.” She smiled faintly. “I didn’t want anybody to feel pressured into joining in. And I didn’t want word to get out about what we were doing.”

  “Staunton was in the field with us all summer,” Littlefield said. “Nearly everyone in the Highlanders knew him, and many of us fought alongside his mother, Nance. It’d have been bad enough to lose him on the battlefield, in a fair fight. But to see him ambushed like that—it’s just wrong. I’m not the only one that thinks so.”

  Mason and Farrow nodded agreement.

  Lyss turned to Ty. “I don’t mean to imply you’re not welcome, but why are you here? I know you worked on Cam at Southbridge Temple, but why is a healer planning a military raid?”

  “I’ve been working the battlefields for three years now,” Ty said. “I don’t know how much longer I can continue to patch soldiers up so they can go back out and fight again, over and over, until they go down for good. I’m more than ready to try something different. As for my role in any . . . undertaking . . . I am a wizard. Though I prefer to assist in my capacity as healer, I’ll use my gift for whatever purpose supports the cause.”

  “Julianna? How do you see yourself contributing to this adventure?” Lyss tried not to sound condescending.

  She flushed. “I know that I haven’t . . . the kind of experience and skills that most of the rest of you have. I’ve not been tried on a battlefield, and I’m not sure I’m cut out for it. But I am knowledgeable about the south, and I have connections and agents all over the Seven Realms. I’m hoping I can be of help in other ways.”

  “What about you, Hadley?” Lyss said. “You haven’t had much to say.”

  “How come we keep talking about the war?” Hadley said, eyes wide and innocent. “I mean, I thought we were here to plan a party.”

  This was the most motley group of would-be warriors that Lyss had ever seen. “All right, we’ll talk,” she said. She drew a mug of cider from the keg, clunked it down on the table, and sat. “But, first, the ground rules.”

  The others ranged themselves around the table and waited, wary and expectant, both.

  “This can’t be about getting revenge,” Lyss said. “I’m not going to squander soldiers’ lives to make a point. This has to be a play that changes the game.”

  “I’m not out for revenge,” Julianna said. “For me, it’s a matter of policy. I’m in this because I think you’re right—we do need a change in strategy. I meant what I said in the small council meeting.” She took Finn’s hand. “I’m doing this for our children. I don’t want them to have to grow up as stepchildren to a war.”

  “If we take territory, we need to be able to keep it,” Lyss went on, ticking her points off on her fingers. “This can’t be a skirmish or a hit-and-run. It has to be a target with real strategic value.”

  “Something the Thane Council can’t ignore,” Julianna said.

  “Can we do all that with a salvo?” Greenholt said.

  “It’s that or we stay home.” Lyss paused. “Since this is your party, do you have any suggestions as to targets?”

  “What about Baston Bay?” Hadley said. “That’s close to their capital, and it’s their most important port. We wouldn’t have to march across the flatlands because we could come in by ship.”

  No, Lyss thought, shuddering. No ships.

  “That’s pretty far south,” Farrow said. “Even if we manage to take it, Arden could come at us from land and sea and we’d be trapped.”

  “Spiritgate?” Hadley said. “That would have a certain justice to it, since they landed their brigade there when they attacked Queen Court and Fortress Rocks.”

  “I know that area well,” Shadow said. “I’ve been traveling up and down the coast for the past two years. And it’s not out in the middle of the flatlands.”

  “But it’s right on the border, so we’d barely stick a toe into Arden,” Lyss said. “That would feel like more of a hit-and-run. And it’s not one of their major ports.”

  “You just don’t want to set foot on a ship,” Sasha said.

  Lyss shrugged. She wasn’t going to deny it. “What about a winter attack? That might take them by surprise.”

  Mason nodded. “It would be unexpected,” she said. “But even if we crossed the mountains, we couldn’t expect to penetrate very far before having to face their army in the flatlands, where we are at a disadvantage. Arden’s cities are mostly far to the south, where it’s warm year-round. The farther south we go, the more conditions favor them.”

  “So we need a target that is important strategically, but close at hand,” Julianna said. “And it would have to be something we could reasonably expect to hold.” She looked at Lyss. “I know you’ve been plotting out military campaigns the way anyone else would be planning their dream wedding. Is there anything you know of that would fit those rules?”

  Lyss stood, and walked around the table to take a close look at the map on the wall. “What about Delphi?” she said, stabbing her finger into the map. “I’ve had that on my wish list of targets for a while. It’s just on the other side of the mountains.” Delphi showed on the map as a dark spot pressed against the mountains to the north.

  The others crowded in to see.

  “Remind me—what’s in Delphi?” Finn said. “Anything we want
?”

  “Coal mines,” Julianna said. “And ironworks and smithies. As far as I know, they’re the only ones in the conquered lands. That’s why Arden took Delphi over, so they could build the munitions industry close to the source of supply. And so, close to us.”

  “I’ve been there,” Shadow said, grimacing. “It’s always been a gritty industrial center, but now it’s become a real hellhole. There’s considerable unrest, because of the way they have treated the people there. So Arden maintains a large army presence.”

  “So not exactly a soft target,” Finn murmured.

  “More flatlanders to kill,” Shadow said, darting a look at Lyss.

  “We have eyes and ears in Delphi,” Julianna said. “There’s an underground resistance movement that might collaborate with us. That would make our small numbers go further.”

  “How do we get there from here?” Farrow said. “Or can we, in this season?”

  Littlefield traced a route on the map with his forefinger. “We could drive straight south through Marisa Pines Pass, but that border crossing is heavily guarded, even in winter.” Then he pointed to a spot in the mountains northeast of Delphi and south of Hunter’s Camp. “This is Ana Maria Pass. It’s a high pass, and already filled with snow this time of year. It wouldn’t be easy, but it might be the way to go if we want to surprise them.”

  “We couldn’t bring anything heavy through there,” Lyss said. “No catapults or cannons.”

  “But horses could get through,” Shadow said. “And soldiers on foot.”

  “We’re used to traveling light,” Littlefield said. “Since we’ve never invaded the south, we’re not really prepared for siege warfare.”

  “That wouldn’t work for us, anyway,” Lyss said. “With only a salvo, the key is the element of surprise. We’d have to take the city quickly. If we sit outside the walls waiting for surrender, it gives Arden time to muster a massive response.”

  “Won’t they do that eventually, though, even if we take the city?” Hadley said. “How can we hope to hold it for the long term?”

  “Based on what I know about Delphi, it might be difficult to retake from the south, especially if the city could be resupplied through Marisa Pines,” Shadow said. “They could never hope to surround us and put us under siege.”

  “If we can’t hold the city, we might have to destroy the mines and munitions factories, cut our losses, and leave,” Lyss said.

  “It sounds like a lot will depend on how much support we can get from the residents, and if we can pull this off without word leaking out,” Julianna said. “Once I reach out to my contacts in Delphi, the sooner we go, the better.”

  Lyss looked around the table, seeing nothing but excited faces.

  “I have something to do first,” Lyss said. “The most difficult job of all.”

  “Which is?” Finn asked.

  “I have to speak with the queen,” Lyss said.

  Excitement turned to confusion and dismay.

  Julianna leaned forward. “You mean that you have to come up with a plausible story that explains our absence while we—”

  “I mean that we cannot go without my mother’s blessing.”

  That was met with shocked silence. They all looked at one another. Hadley cleared her throat. “Do you really think Queen Raisa will ever agree to this? We might spend a lot of time making a plan, only to have it shot down right away.”

  “That’s possible,” Lyss said. “But we still have to ask.”

  “Have you heard that saying ‘Better to ask forgiveness than ask permission’?” Sasha said. “If you ask permission and she says no, then we absolutely can’t go.”

  “You’re right, then we absolutely can’t go,” Lyss said.

  Everybody began talking at once, arguing the point, until Lyss slammed her mug down on the table. “Look, nobody is more frustrated about this than me, but my mother is the queen of the realm. If we launch an unauthorized attack across the border, some would call that treason. How could she let that go unpunished?”

  “Do you really think she would bring you up on charges?” Mason asked.

  “General Dunedain might court-martial the lot of you, for not following the chain of command,” Lyss said. Gaaah, she thought, I’ve been in the army too long.

  “If we take the city, though,” Finn argued, “if we win a huge victory, don’t you think she’ll forgive us?”

  “What if we don’t?” Lyss said. “What if it’s a disaster, and we’re all captured, or slaughtered? What if we all disappear, never to be heard from again? What if I’m killed, and you all have to answer for it?”

  Sasha turned pale. “I’d execute myself, and save Her Majesty the trouble.”

  “You see? The risk you are taking is far greater than mine.” Lyss sighed. “Truth be told, my biggest reason for not proceeding without permission is that I cannot do that to my mother. I’m the only family she has left, except for Aunt Mellony and you, Julianna. If I were to be taken prisoner by Gerard Montaigne, her position would be untenable. It would destroy her and the future of the Line. She might have to step down, or name a new heir.”

  Now they all looked a little sheepish.

  “Bones, Lyss, you sound like the only grown-up in the room,” Hadley said.

  Lyss laughed sourly. “For once.”

  “Everything you’ve said suggests that we shouldn’t go ahead with this,” Ty said. “Or that, if we do, you should stay at home.”

  “That’s not what I meant,” Lyss said. “I absolutely think we should go ahead with this, and it would break my heart to stay behind. I’ve been dreaming of taking the war to Arden since my father and brother died. But I think my mother deserves the right to say no.”

  “Do you think she’ll want to take it to the small council?” Julianna said. “They won’t meet until after the holiday, and we both know what kind of reception you got the last time.”

  Lyss shook her head. “I don’t want to take it to small council. I want my mother to make the decision. I think the fewer people that know about this, the better.” She didn’t want to say aloud what she suspected—that someone in the city was passing information to Arden.

  “All right,” Finn said, rubbing the back of his neck. “What do we do now? Just wait until we hear back from you?”

  “I intend to speak with her right away,” Lyss said. “Meanwhile, we’ll need some information from our allies in Delphi, to assess whether this whole thing is feasible.” She paused. “Solstice is three weeks away. Do you think we could be ready by then?”

  “You’re thinking of attacking Delphi on Solstice?” Sasha stared at Lyss.

  “I’d like to ruin King Gerard’s holiday,” Lyss said. “I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the return of the light.”

  19

  IN THE GARDEN OF QUEENS

  The queen wasn’t in any of her usual haunts when Lyss went looking for her the next day—not in her small parlor, or her large parlor, or her library, or her audience chamber. Her pony was in the barn, so she hadn’t ridden out into the town. General Dunedain hadn’t seen her, and she wasn’t practicing her sticking on the parade grounds. Her appointment secretary said there was nothing on the books. When Lyss went to her mother’s bedchamber, the doors stood open, and the Wolves outside said they hadn’t seen her.

  And then it came to her—where her mother might be. One of her favorite retreats was the rooftop glass garden where she could visit summer whenever she liked. These days, it was mostly given over to growing fresh fruits and vegetables for the palace and the Briar Rose Ministry.

  “I think I know where she is,” Lyss told the bluejacket on duty. “I’ll just cut through here.”

  Lyss walked through the sitting room into her mother’s bedchamber. She went straight to the closet against the back wall, pushed clothing and shoes aside, and slipped through the secret door in the back panel—a door built by her ancestor, Queen Hanalea, so she could meet her lover, Alger Waterlow, on the sly. Beyo
nd the door lay a small round chamber centered on an iron spiral staircase that led to the roof. When they were little, Lyss, Adrian, and Sasha had used the stairs as a playground, sneaking in and out, playing hare and hounds, and, later, pretending to be soldiers creeping up on Ardenscourt Castle.

  They’d quit playing war games when they went to war for real.

  Lyss began to climb. It was definitely closer quarters for her now, with her long legs, than it had been when she was little. There was lots of dust, and spiderwebs, as if her mother hadn’t been using it much, either. All the way up, Lyss practiced what she would say, the arguments she would make.

  What does my mother want?

  To keep the queendom safe.

  She just had to convince the queen that this was the way to do it.

  The staircase led to a hatch in the floor of a small chapel in the garden. Lyss pushed it up and out of the way, then pulled herself up and over, onto the marble floor. That was easier, now that she was taller.

  She stood, dusting cobwebs and dirt off her clothes. She could hear voices out in the garden. Her mother and Captain Byrne. When she peeked through the chapel window, she saw that they were seated on a bench by the lily pond.

  “Who will you send?” her mother was asking Byrne.

  “I’ll send my best. All people you know. Garret and Talia—they speak the language and know their way around.”

  “They did, twenty-five years ago,” Raisa said. “You should send someone who’s been there more recently.”

  “Not many younglings go there anymore,” Byrne said. “It’s a dangerous trip, and most parents don’t feel comfortable sending their children.”

  “It’s a shame,” her mother said. “I only attended Wien House for a year, but it was still valuable. I think Alyssa would have loved it.”

  “She’s getting considerable practical experience,” Byrne said.

  “In waging war, anyway.”

  They’re talking about Oden’s Ford, Lyss thought. But why would they be sending members of the Queen’s Guard down there? The academy had always been ferociously neutral when it came to the war.