Bite Back 05 - Angel Stakes (8 page)

Karamazin stirred, but did not reply. Louis, Compte de Fontaines d’Argonne, stared straight ahead, his face expressionless.

Ibarre returned slowly to the center, his feet soundless on the floor. “And yet, as I say, here we are, enemies sitting together, oath-bound, feuds unforgotten, but peaceful and secure in the laws of the Assembly. Laws that govern because we
agree
that they to do so. Because
we allow it
.”

He was making a good case for Assembly laws, without any reference to me.

“By Agiagraphos laws, I am accused of being a traitor to Altau, under terms of an oath I did not speak. Under Assembly laws, those same laws which protect all of you in this room today, I am a sovereign House with an undisputed domain and entirely justified in seeking to elect a different leader to the Panethus association.”

“He’s made his opening case well. He should sit down now,” Elizabetta muttered.

“I’m here,” a voice called out from behind us, “because Altau offered a Blood oath to protect this conference from Basilikos in exchange for my oath to keep the peace.”

Another: “Altau keep their oaths. Does Ibarre?”

I didn’t know the speakers, but clearly they were Skylur’s supporters. Predictably, Hidden Path party voices were raised, most claiming the Basilikos threats were a trick invented by Skylur, or a wild exaggeration.

“House Ibarre has the floor.” Skylur’s voice carried and the shouting subsided.

“Though he seems to have reached a conclusion…” Eugenie suggested, raising her eyebrows.

“Nearly, House Passau.” Ibarre gave her a half bow and waved off the interruptions. “My point was not to do with external threats. Nor am I suggesting an abandonment of laws. Quite the opposite. I support the Agiagraphos, but in the place of the physical confrontation against a claim on my domain that is suggested in the Hidden Path, and which might contravene the most important law of remaining hidden from humanity, I am conducting the fighting using the laws of the Assembly, which we must all agree are still operating in spirit for us to be here. As for external protection, House Altau has merely stepped in to replace the Warders he himself unilaterally disbanded.”

Then he turned again to the audience, and for the final time, his eyes found me.

Here it comes.

“I support the Agiagraphos. I support the laws of the Assembly. I call Convocation on Altau’s leadership of Panethus because he supports neither. His actions are outside the remit of the leader of Panethus, outside the authority of the president of the Assembly, and worse, entirely against the Agiagraphos in his elevation of an
unstable hybrid
to the position of House.”

In case anyone misunderstood, his arm snapped out to point at me.

The shocked silence was broken by a stir all the way in the back. I recognized Correia’s voice. “Seconded. At the last Assembly, Altau contrived to have the evaluation of the hybrid done by an Adept who immediately afterwards became part of his House, and whose assessment is therefore suspect. Now, while our attention is elsewhere, I see on the Tartarus website that Altau has surreptitiously appointed her to be syndesmon between the Assembly and the Were, thus ensuring his own personal control of Athanate-Were relations.”

She ignored shouts for her to sit, and her voice rose clearly. “Enough! We are being lied to. This abomination that Altau calls a House cannot have achieved the things in New Mexico that Altau rumors claim. Lies upon lies to cover up what really happened. Enough, I say. I second House Ibarre and modify the challenge. The Hidden Path demands an immediate annulment of her House status and an independent evaluation of her, including an examination before witnesses of everything that happened in New Mexico.”

Skylur was not presiding over the nomicane, but he was convening and he used that to silence the turmoil with a half-hour break to cool tempers.

Mine included.

But anger is good.

I was pumped enough that I was making Yelena nervous, but if Ibarre or Correia had the idea they would make me do something stupid, it had backfired. My anger blocked out everything else, but I was
used
to dealing with anger.

Dealing with any mental frailty from my therapy, now,
that
would have been difficult.

Altau gathered in a tight knot at one end of the exhibition area, where Skylur and Tarez were having a rapid conversation in Athanate about the implications and political options.

As we walked up to them, Skylur glanced at me and nodded approvingly before turning his attention away.

I took that as a good sign. He didn’t need to waste time making sure I wasn’t going to go rogue in the convention center. And he wasn’t making plans with Tarez to sacrifice me for the sake of Panethus unity.

I hope.

His task today was harder than mine.

Not only had the Eastern Seaboard derailed the nomicane, displayed the split in Panethus ranks and focused attention on the tricky legal questions, they’d also turned the spotlight back on me. Through me, they attacked Skylur’s position—if I wasn’t fit to be an Athanate House, then his authority was called into question. He couldn’t remain as president of the Assembly if that happened, regardless of the other challenges.

If I wasn’t accepted as Athanate, then there was no way I could be syndesmon for Were and Athanate. And an investigation into what happened in New Mexico would show I’d gone rogue. By Agiagraphos law, there was no concept of ‘cured’ rogues.

I wasn’t even sure that my becoming a sacrifice would prevent the damage to Skylur’s position. And if his position was damaged, so was Emergence.

Shit.

To make it all better, Prowser was heading this way, with her security. I felt Yelena tense up beside me.

“House Prowser,” Skylur said as she arrived, keeping the polite formalities to the minimum allowable.

“House Altau. House Tarez. House Farrell,” she replied, in English. She was so angry she could barely speak, and her face had gone pale. “My apologies. To you all. I’ve been used as a fool by Ibarre.”

Skylur raised an eyebrow in query, his face betraying no emotion.

“I agreed to make a defense for the Eastern Seaboard, and argue for a retraction of your claim to their domains. I agreed to propose the theory that a legal battle would suffice to fulfill the requirements of the Agiagraphos. I did
not
agree to attacks on your leadership, your House or your associates.” She glanced briefly at me before looking Skylur in the eyes again. “I did
not
agree to making common cause with Correia. I was not party to their plans. On my Blood, I so swear.”

“Thank you for that. I’m sure Ibarre would have found another way.” Skylur shrugged, radiating a look that suggested he was completely unconcerned. “His ploy of making you seem the leader of an association all committed against me at different levels is a clever little grandstanding maneuver, but in itself, it’s not going to swing the main argument one way or another.”

“Perhaps. You know very well I didn’t come to this country to indulge in this kind of political mess,” Prowser said, her voice sharper. “I came to get away from it. However, I believe what I said in opposition to the changes you’re proposing. We have to live by Athanate law and custom.”

Skylur snorted. “You and I, Amelie, could find a compromise. Unfortunately, House Ibarre would not.”

It looked as if the tone of his comment got through to her and she looked sharply at him. “A compromise? Are you trying to recruit me to Emergence?”

“I’d
like
to say I’m trying to keep you out of the Hidden Path.” Skylur sighed and his face went hard. “However, there is no leeway for such delicacy. You will formally give me your oath, and honor it, or leave North America. As will the rest of the Eastern Seaboard association, if justice does not claim them first.”

I could see Prowser’s spine stiffen, but Skylur hadn’t finished. “I’m well aware you came to find a place in a new land where you could be undisturbed by the politics of the old Midnight Empire. Personally, I’m sorry that you’ve lost that isolation, but the world does not stop turning for any of us. Give me your oath and I promise you’ll have your peace again.” Skylur smiled. “I might even open my library to you, the very one you were always petitioning me about, so long ago now.”

I almost laughed at Prowser’s shocked expression.

“You’ve managed to bring the Dark Library to America?” she said. “And the Lyssae. Gods, Altau, what else have you got hidden in Haven?”

Then she shook herself. “Stop distracting me. I came to tell you I’ve resigned from the Eastern Seaboard association, and to apologize, not to stop arguing that you have no right to claim my domain.”

“Heads up,” I interrupted. “It looks like your former colleagues and their new friends want to debate outside of the auditorium.”

Across the exhibition hall, Ibarre and the other Eastern Seaboard Houses in favor of the Convocation had been talking with Correia. They seemed to have reached some kind of agreement and were heading this way. Their ranks bristled with security.

Altau security stirred in response.

A threat of violence? Surely not here?

Bian was on one side of me, Yelena the other. I couldn’t have chosen better if it came to that.

Skylur didn’t like the appearance of being backed into a corner, and decided to move to the center of the hall, leaving Tarez hanging back, hand pressed to the side of his head, listening to an update on his comm system.

I’d learned some of the more useful words in Athanate, so I understood perfectly when he responded to what he was hearing.

“Shit,” he said.

Now what?

Skylur and Ibarre approached each other at the head of their delegations.

“Strange friends you keep, Ibarre,” Skylur said. “I don’t think allying yourself with the Hidden Path party is helping your argument.”

Ibarre’s response was in Athanate and I couldn’t make it out.

“Getting House Prowser to argue your case was clever. Tricking her in front of all these witnesses was not,” Skylur went on. “I wonder why you wanted her to start the proceedings? Could it be because you couldn’t stand there and claim you knew nothing about what Amaral was really doing? That we might see your lies for what they are?”

Ibarre was clever enough to keep his face blank, but other Panethus Houses could see the effect Skylur’s words had.

At that point, I found out what had rattled Tarez.

A huge commotion turned all the attention to the main entrance. Athanate there swirled around a new group that had just come in. A buzz of astonishment passed through the crowd like a storm wind through the corn.

I craned my neck and immediately knew exactly why Tarez had sworn.

Across the sea of heads, I caught a glimpse of a man I’d only ever seen before in a video conference call.

Diakon Xun Huang.

The Empire of Heaven had arrived.

Everyone met in the middle of the exhibition hall.

Terse instructions from Tarez had Altau security flanking us. Other Panethus Houses joined us in support.

Huang was accompanied not by Athanate, but by Adepts. They were all dressed as he was, in plain office clothes—trousers with slim belts, buttoned shirts in pale colors, thick outdoor jackets. At a glance they might have been a group of accountants out looking for a restaurant.

But to my senses, they were giving off a subliminal hum I could feel in my bones. These were seriously powerful Adepts, and more of a threat than if they’d been carrying guns.

Have they given up looking for Tullah and Kaothos?

Is it my turn now?

“Ykos Altau.” Diakon Huang bowed.

“Diakon Huang,” Skylur replied in Athanate. Elizabetta whispered translation in my ear. “Welcome to our conference, though I must admit, you have caught us with other matters under discussion today.”

“So I understand. I have been listening to your encrypted broadcasts on the net. Fascinating.” He turned and made another little bow. “House Correia. House Ibarre. Greetings, friends.”

Friends? Well, we hadn’t killed each other yet.

The greeting he’d used,
garheem,
was informal, as if we had just accidentally met. There was nothing accidental about his appearance or timing.

“If you’ve been listening, Diakon, perhaps you have an opinion on the legal standing of the Assembly?” Ibarre had made a fool of her, but Prowser certainly wasn’t stupid. And she was quick to gauge how she might use his appearance.

Huang smiled. “I have an opinion, of course, and I will be most honored to address the conference concerning legal matters in the appropriate session.”

I bit my lip as Elizabetta translated.

“But the topic of the day,” Huang said. “Misunderstandings and rumors from New Mexico. Surely all questions raised would be most simply dealt with if Diana Ionache were to speak?”

Eyes turned to Skylur.

“She’s not available,” he said.

“Oh.”

From being amused by his easy handling of Prowser, I now felt a prickle of concern. If he’d been listening to the broadcasts, Huang had to know Diana wasn’t here at the conference center. Raising her name was just a lead-in.

I was right.

Huang switched to English.

“In that case, I understand you must want to clear the obstacles in today’s discussion. A request has been made for an independent assessment of the state of a member of your extended House. I offer myself as assessor. I speak with all humility, but surely I must qualify as the most independent expert currently available to examine Amber Farrell.” Huang smiled blandly at Ibarre and Correia. “I can handle the exposition of what happened in New Mexico from House Farrell’s point of view at the same time.”

Oh, God, I did
not
want Huang inside my head.

But can Skylur refuse it?

“Without doubt, you would be,” Skylur said. “Should the case for requiring that ever be made to my satisfaction. In the meantime, your arrival is far too important for us to continue with today’s agenda. As convener, I will reschedule.”

Correia and Ibarre were furious, pressing forward and arguing. But they’d lost their initiative. The Athanate around us agreed with Skylur. The Empire of Heaven potentially joining the Assembly?
That
was the issue today.

“Come.” Skylur stepped forward and neatly separated Correia and Huang from the group around Ibarre. “Let’s adjourn to a meeting room and talk about the implications of your welcome presence at the conference.” He gestured to one other to go with them. “Diakon, allow me to introduce you to House Stanbrigge of the Midnight Empire.”

Moving off, Huang paused and looked back toward me.

My imagination or paranoia told me some of his group were casually drifting toward me.

Then I was surrounded by Altau guards. Tarez gripped my arm and hissed in my ear. “Go with security. Now.”