Tehol rose from the throne, the Akrynnai gift in his hands. He held it out to one side and a servant hurried forward to take it. ‘I do not believe my brother is as unaware of such dangers as you think, Bugg. His sojourn in the realm of the dead-or wherever it was-has changed him. Not surprising, I suppose. In any case, I don’t think he returned to the realm of the living just to keep me company.’
‘I suspect you are right,’ said Bugg. ‘But I can tell you nothing of the path he has taken. In a sense, he stands outside of… well, everything. As a force, one might view him as unaligned, and therefore unpredictable.’
‘Which is why the Errant sought to kill him,’ said Janath.
‘Yes,’ replied Bugg. ‘One thing I can say: while in close company with the Malazans, Brys is perhaps safer from the Errant than he would be anywhere else.’
‘And on the return journey?’ Tehol asked.
‘I expect the Errant to be rather preoccupied by then, sire.’
‘Why is that?’
Bugg was long in replying, and on his blunt face could be seen a reluctant weighing of risks, ending in a grimace and then a sigh. ‘He compels me. In my most ancient capacity, he compels me. Sire, by the time Brys begins his return to the kingdom, the Errant will be busy… contending with me.’
The iron beneath Bugg’s words silenced the two others in the throne room, for a time.
Tehol then spoke, looking at neither his wife nor his closest friend. ‘I will take a walk in the garden.’
They watched him leave.
Janath said, ‘Brys is his brother, after all. And to have lost him once…’
Bugg nodded.
‘Is there anything more you can do?’ she asked him. ‘To protect him?’
‘Who, Brys or Tehol?’
‘In this matter, I think, they are one and the same.’
‘Some possibilities exist,’ Bugg allowed. ‘Unfortunately, in such circumstances as these, often the gesture proves deadlier than the original threat.’ He held up a hand to forestall her. ‘Of course I will do what I can.’
She looked away. ‘I know you will. So, friend, you are compelled-when will you leave us?’
‘Soon. Some things cannot be resisted for long-I am making him sweat.’ He then grunted and added, ‘and that’s making me sweat.’
‘Is this a “binding of blood”?’ she asked.
He started, eyed her curiously. ‘I keep forgetting you are a scholar, my Queen. That ancient phrase holds many layers of meaning, and almost as many secrets. Every family begins with a birth, but there can never be just one, can there?’
‘Solitude is simple. Society isn’t.’
‘Just so, Janath.’ He studied her for a moment. She sat on the throne, leaning to one side, head resting on one hand. ‘Did you know you are with child?’
‘Of course.’
‘Does Tehol?’
‘Probably not. It’s early yet-Bugg, I suffered greatly in the hands of the Patriotists, didn’t I? I see scars on my body but have no memory of how they came to be there. I feel pains inside and so I believe there are scars within, as well. I suspect your hand in my strange ignorance-you have scoured away the worst of what I experienced. I don’t know if I should thank you or curse you.’
‘An even measure of both, I should think.’
She regarded him levelly. ‘Yes, you understand the necessity of balance, don’t you? Well, I think I will give it a few more weeks before I terrify my husband.’
‘The child is healthy, Janath, and I sense no risks-those pains are phantom ones-I was thorough in my healing.’
‘That’s a relief.’ She rose. ‘Tell me, was it simply a question of my twisted imagination, or did that Akrynnai artist have something disreputable in mind?’
‘My Queen, neither mortal nor immortal can fathom the mind of an artist. But as a general rule, between two possible answers, choose the more sordid one.’
‘Of course. How silly of me.’
‘Draconus is lost within Dragnipur. Nightchill’s soul is scattered to the winds. Grizzin Farl vanished millennia ago. And Edgewalker might well deny any compulsion out of sheer obstinacy or, possibly, a righteous claim to disassociation.’ Knuckles managed a twisted smile, and then shrugged. ‘If there is one presence I would find unwelcome above all others, Errastas, it is Olar Ethil.’
‘She is dead-’
‘And supremely indifferent to that condition-she embraced the Ritual of Tellann without hesitation, the opportunistic bitch-’