The Threshold Child (45 page)

Adesina smiled sheepishly and helped her brother back onto his
feet. “You could have told me that before I threw you across the ring.”

Her brother dusted himself off ruefully. “Perhaps I should have.
It would have saved me some pain and humiliation.”

They were about to begin again when a messenger came running up to
them. He gave a short, respectful bow to each of them before speaking.

“Captain Protector E’nes and Lady Adesina: His Majesty, King L’unn
requests your presence immediately.”

E’nes was immediately all business. “Where will we find His
Majesty?”

“In the Council Room,” replied the messenger.

He thanked the boy and sent him on his way. Adesina thought
briefly that it was fortunate that it was just the two of them that morning.
She didn’t like dismissing class or anything else that made the situation seem
more official than what made her comfortable.

The brother and sister left the Protector training facility and
walked the short distance to the palace. No’am was waiting for them on the
steps leading up to the entrance and escorted them directly to the Council Room
that Adesina had seen on her second day in Yavar.

The table was headed by the king, just as it had been then. His
two sons sat on either side of him, and Ravi was seated not far away. They were
also joined by various military leaders and head counselors, and there were a
few white-robed religious leaders with their large books of scripture in front
of them. Everyone looked up at the entrance of E’nes and Adesina.

King L’unn gestured for them to sit down, returning to the
discussion that had been taking place when they had walked into the room.

“Given what we know about Shimat tactics of ‘scientific inquiry,’
we are left with few options.”

Adesina felt her stomach clench when she realized what they were
talking about and why she had been called into their presence.

E’nes saw her gripping the armrest of her chair and shifted in his
seat so as to be nearer to her. Ravi made his way over to her side and also sat
close by.

King L’unn’s eyes fixed on her intently. “Adesina, is your father
alive?”

She felt her words stick in her throat and forced them out with
difficulty. “I do not know, your Majesty.”

His stare was unrelenting. “Of all the beings in Pevothem, you
know the Shimat best. I am in need of that insight, whatever it may be.”

Adesina’s expression became unusually helpless. “I only know what
they wanted me to know. I only perceived what they wanted me to perceive.” She
shook her head, “I do not believe that you will find much aid in insight
tainted by their own manipulation.”

The king leaned back, folding his hands in front of him. “The
persecution suffered by the L’avan has always been fueled by the Shimat. They despise
us for the gifts we have that they do not share, and their inability to
influence us as a people. In fact, they have been attempting to recruit members
of our race for many generations.”

Adesina shifted in her chair uncomfortably. She was beginning to
realize why she had always been treated differently from the other Shimat
students, and why she had been raised by the Sharifal personally.

King L’unn went on, “Over the past several years, there have been
disturbing rumors of experiments involving captured L’avan. I have been trying
to discover more about it, but it is one the Shimat’s most closely guarded
secrets.” He leaned forward again. “Your father is not the first to be taken,
and, had you not chosen to come to Pevothem, there would have been little we
could have done to help him and the others.”

She studied the king warily. “Why is that, your Majesty?”

He spread his hands in a gesture of explanation. “Because we know
nothing about them. Our people disappear without a trace, never to be seen or
heard of again. We have never had anyone we could ask for help.”

After much thought, Adesina nodded slowly, still filled with
apprehension. “I will help in any way I can, your Majesty, but I do not know
how useful I can be. I may have been Shimat, but my knowledge was still very
limited.”

The king nodded gratefully, then repeated his earlier question.
“Based on what you know of the Shimat, do you think your father is still
alive?”

This time, Adesina answered without hesitation. “Yes. The Shimat
never waste an opportunity, no matter in what form it comes. If there is
something to be gained from a prisoner such as my father, they will go to great
lengths to keep him alive.”

A thoughtful silence followed her words. After a few moments, the
king posed another question with less certainty than before. “Would it be
possible to rescue him and the others taken prisoner?”

Her initial reaction was to laugh at such a suggestion. There was
no way to outthink the entire Shimat organization and take them by surprise. In
spite of this, Adesina paused to consider possibilities, no matter how
unlikely.

She had never heard of a traitor to the order in the whole of
Shimat history. She was certain that such an action would be treated harshly,
and that the perpetrator would be made into a public example. Therefore, being
she had never heard of one, she was fairly certain that there had never been a
traitor to the Shimat.

Before herself, that is.

Even though she had not planned to betray the Shimat, she knew she
must now be considered one. She had broken her oath of loyalty, and she had no
intention of renewing it.

It stood to reason that if the Shimat order had never had a
traitor, they would not expect one now. And if that were the case, Adesina
could probably help the L’avan to retrieve their captured people.

She voiced her musings cautiously. “There is a possibility, but it
is slight at best. I do not believe that they currently view me as a traitor,
but they are suspicious by nature and would regard any deviant action on my
part as proof of disloyalty.”

L’iam straightened instantly. “We are not suggesting that you go
and retrieve them for us.”

She gave a half laugh. “What are you suggesting, then? Nothing
else would work.”

He gestured around the table. “There are many skilled warriors
among the L’avan. You could show us how to enter the fortress and where to find
the prisoners.”

Adesina immediately shook her head. “What if something were to go
wrong? How could you possibly adapt when your knowledge of the fortress and the
Shimat is so limited?”

The silence that followed was heavy with doubt. King L’unn’s voice
was resigned, but firm. “She is right.”

“Father!” L’iam protested.

The king held up a hand, silencing his son. “There are too many
variations in the situation to afford sending in a force of L’avan without the
aid and experience of Adesina.”

She was immediately shaking her head. “You cannot take the Shimat
fortress by force.”

“Then how?” asked L’on, speaking to Adesina for the first time.

She rested her gaze on the crown prince, measuring him
deliberately. “Stealth is the only sensible option.”

He frowned. “What do you have in mind?”

Her thoughts immediately turned to Kendan. “I know someone who
would be willing to help us. Someone who knows more about the workings of the
order than I do.”

A feeling of warmth came over her as she pictured his handsome
face. Everything that she knew about him told her that when he discovered the
truth about the Shimat order he would do all that he could to help them.

L’on turned to his father with a doubtful expression on his face.
“I do not like the idea of bringing in outsiders to help us. Especially those
who are overly familiar with the Shimat.”

E’nes looked at the crown prince in surprise. “I think we can
trust Adesina’s judgment, your Highness.”

The king seemed to be of the same opinion as his eldest son. “Who
is this person you wish to ask for help?”

She felt strangely reluctant to reveal Kendan’s identity too soon.

“A friend,” she replied shortly.

King L’unn didn’t appreciate her avoidance of his question. He
fixed a stern glance on the young woman across the table from him. “What is
your plan, that this
friend
is so indispensable?”

Adesina lifted her chin proudly to hide her discomfort. “A set
plan is useless at this point.”

They looked at her in shock.

“Do you mean you do not have a plan at all?” asked one of the aged
counselors.

Her voice became defensive. “I do not have all of the necessary
information to form an effective plan. My contact will supply us with that
information.”

A wave of murmurs passed through the room, which quickly turned
into a heated debate.

Every counselor seemed to have something to say, and not all of
them were willing to wait their turn.

The king’s eyes were set on Adesina, but his thoughts had taken
him far away. He ignored the noise around him and carefully considered the
risks of the mission. When he came to a decision, he raised a hand for silence.

Everyone looked at him expectantly as he spoke. “How many men
would you need for this operation?”

Adesina was startled by the question. “I intended to go by
myself.”

Several protests were voiced at once.

“Absolutely not!” exclaimed E’nes.

“That is out of the question,” insisted L’iam.

“Impossible,” said King L’unn.

Her eyes strayed to Ravi, who merely smiled. “You know you cannot
prevent me from following you.”

She turned back to the king. “The larger the group, the harder it
will be to remain undetected.”

He nodded in understanding. “Even so, you cannot go alone.”

“I am going with you,” stated E’nes. He glared at her, daring her
to argue.

“As am I,” said L’iam.

Adesina expected the king to dispute his son’s decision, but after
a few slow moments he nodded solemnly. “I wish for Sa’jan to go with you as
well.”

Sa’jan nodded readily. “Of course, your Majesty.”

King L’unn looked at Adesina with a question in his eyes. “Do you
approve of this party?”

She glanced at each of the men assigned to go with her: E’nes,
L’iam, Sa’jan and Ravi. She felt strangely comforted know that they would be
going with her back into the heart of the Shimat world. When she spoke, she
struggled to contain the relief she felt.

“Yes.”

With this decided, the king got to his feet. “A plan will need to
be devised, obviously, but you should prepare to leave as soon as possible. Our
people have waited for our help long enough.”

“Sire,” protested one of the military leaders, “these men need
further training before setting off to fight our greatest enemies!”

King L’unn shook his head. “They can train along the way, but no
more time must be lost.”

There were several more objections, but the king silenced them
with a glance.

“I have made my decision,” he said in a determined tone of voice,
and walked out of the room without a backward glance.

The council also got to their feet and slowly began to disperse.
When the door was opened, L’era could be seen speaking to No’am in a low voice.
She spotted L’iam and waited for him to finish his quiet conversation with
their father. As soon as he stepped out of the room, she pulled him off to the
side. Adesina, who was waiting for E’nes, could hear her hushed words.

“You are going with them.” It was more of a statement than a
question.

Her brother feigned looking puzzled. “With whom?”

L’era gestured impatiently. “Whomever Father has chosen to go.”

He sighed in loving irritation. “L’era, you have a knack for
prying into things you should not. If Father wants you to know about our
meeting, he will tell you himself.”

She grabbed his wrist with both hands, refusing to let him walk
away. “I am going with you!”

All pretenses dropped. “Do not be ridiculous, L’era!”

She smiled triumphantly, knowing now what she had only guessed
before. “I told you that I would not let you leave without me again.”

L’iam’s expression was rigid. “That was when we were talking about
trading or research. This is completely different!”

E’nes took hold of Adesina’s elbow and gently led her past the
quarreling siblings. As they walked through the halls, Adesina could not help
but think about all the things that could go wrong with a mission like this.

She hated starting without a definite plan in mind, but nothing
could be done about that right now. She needed to contact Kendan and together
they would find a way to save her father.

Apprehension weighed down on her heart as she silently
acknowledged that she was heading into a darkness more deep than anything she
had ever known before.