Law of the Broken Earth(37)

Mienthe had been frightened from the moment she’d realized that Tan was missing and that, with Bertaud gone, she was the only one who could possibly order a raid to get him back. But she had not been utterly terrified until she realized she had actually managed to persuade Geroen not only to obey that command, but to take her with him.

Then, once they were committed, Mienthe had been terrified she’d lose her sense of Tan’s position and that she wouldn’t be able to find him after all. She was terrified they’d run into a Linularinan patrol and have to either run or fight, neither option at all desirable. She was terrified they’d find Tan and be unable to get him back, or find he’d already been killed. Right at the end, before they’d found the barn, she’d even thought that she might just be wrong about what she thought she knew. The conviction that she knew Tan’s position was very strong, but once that doubt had occurred to her, it had crept persistently about in the back of her mind no matter how she tried to ignore it.

But then they had found Tan after all, and there hadn’t been a lot of Linularinan soldiers, and Tan had still been alive—though what had been done to him was brutal, and getting away again was a nightmare.

Then Mienthe had been terrified they’d be caught by Linularinan troops after all, or guardsmen, or spies, or whoever had been in that barn with Tan. But then they’d found the boats, and Tan had fainted, which made getting him across the river much less awful, even though by that time the mist had changed to a cold and very unpleasant drizzle.

And no one had tried to stop them, which amazed Mienthe. She suspected Geroen was also astonished at how lucky they’d been, though he was so gruff it was hard to tell. She was still amazed she’d managed to persuade him that yes, really, she did know where Tan was, but no, she couldn’t explain it to anybody else. But when she’d insisted, instead of ignoring her, Geroen had said, in an extremely neutral tone, “Well, lady, I hadn’t heard you’d gone for a mage, but it could be useful now and no mistake.”

Mienthe couldn’t believe she really might be developing mage power and she was a little ashamed of letting Geroen think she was. But she certainly hadn’t tried to stop his arranging the raid. And she’d agreed with him about informing the queen—or at least, she’d agreed with him that the queen shouldn’t be informed. Mienthe hadn’t wanted to argue with Niethe or her royal guardsmen, and neither, apparently, had Geroen. Instead, they’d agreed that they should move fast. And they had, so fast they’d very nearly got to Tan before his Linularinan enemies had got him across the river. But not quite.

But to Mienthe’s intense gratitude, the captain hadn’t quit even then, but had instead pulled success right out of the teeth of looming defeat.

Now they were back in Feierabiand and it wasn’t even dawn yet, which seemed incredible. She supposed Bertaud and the king must be most of the way to Sihannas by now, and knew nothing at all about what had happened to Tan or what she had done, which seemed in a way even more incredible.

Tan was more or less conscious again, which was unfortunate. Mienthe, riding in the cart next to him, flinched every time the cart jarred across an uneven cobblestone. Tan himself seemed beyond flinching for anything so minor. It had nearly stopped raining, but it was still impossible to tell whether the moisture beading on his face was rain or tears. Mienthe thought Tan was definitely due his share of tears, all things considered.

But there was the great house at last. Unfortunately, the house wasn’t waiting for them quietly, as Mienthe had expected and hoped. The lanterns, set high on their tall poles, blazed through the gardens and before every door. Lamps glowed in every window, and the main doors stood wide open to the chill darkness of the streets, and there were Delta guardsmen and royal soldiers everywhere.

Captain Geroen set his jaw, not quite looking at Mienthe where she sat in the cart. “Her Majesty got it out of my officers where we’d gone, I suppose.”

Biting her lip, Mienthe nodded. Geroen was right. Queen Niethe must have found out where they’d gone, and even if she approved the result of what they’d done, she might be really angry at their lack of… finesse. Even if she wasn’t, she would certainly tell King Iaor all about it. Possibly worse, either Niethe or the king would unquestionably tell Bertaud.

But she said optimistically, trying to sound firm and decisive, “This is the Delta, and her Majesty isn’t the Lady of the Delta. With Bertaud gone, I am. He said so.” She hesitated. That had sounded firm, hadn’t it? She wished she felt the truth of the statement with half that firmness. But she continued, “So if I approved our, um, raid, then even the queen hasn’t anything to say about it. Or not much.” But she couldn’t help but add, “I think.”