Romilly wondered what trouble lay on Janni, and the woman smiled and reached for her hand. She said, “Young Carolin is in my care, and honor bids that I be the one to convey him to his father. Yet I thought perhaps I would send you to deliver the lad within the walls of Hali city to the hands of the Hastur-lord.”
Romilly’s first thought was that she would have a chance to see within the walls of the great lowland city; her next, that she would be very sorry to part with Caryl. Only after that did she realize that she would also have to meet with that great rogue Lyondri Hastur.
“Why me, Janni?”
Jandria’s heavy sigh was audible. “Something you know of courtly ways and the manners of a Great House,” she said. “I feel traitor to the Sisterhood to say as much, having sworn to leave rank behind me forever. Mhari, Reba, Shaya – all of them are good women, but they know no more than the clumsy manners of their fathers’ crofts, and I cannot send
them on such a mission of diplomacy. More than this, for the safety of all of us.” Her strained smile was faint, hardly a grimace. “Whatever I said to Orain, Lyondri Hastur would know me if I wore banshee-feathers and did the dance of a Yaman in a Ghost Wind! I have no wish to hang from a traitor’s gallows. Carolin, and Orain too, were among those Lyondri loved best, and those whom he pursues with the greater fury now. Carolin, Orain, Lyondri and I – we four were fostered together.” She hesitated, sighed again and at last said, “Orain does not know this; he never wished to see what befell between man and maiden, and he did not know – hell’s fire,” she burst out, “Why does it shame me to say that Lyondri and I lay together more than once, before I was even fully a woman. Now I have turned from him to my own kindred, I think it would give him pleasure to hang me, if my death would give pain to Carolin or to Carolin’s sworn man! Nor can I bear to meet him – Avarra comfort me, I cannot but love him still, almost as much as I hate!” She swallowed and looked at the ground, holding tight to Romilly’s hand. “So now you know why I am too cowardly to meet with him, however sworn he may be with his flag of truce – he might spare me for our old love, I do not know.”
“It is not needful, Janni,” said Romilly gently, feeling the woman’s pain, “I will gladly go. You must not risk yourself.”
“Seeing you – do you understand this, Romilly? – Lyondri and Rakhal see only a stranger, and more than that, one Caryl loves well, someone who has been kind to his son; and they know only that you are an envoy of the Sisterhood, not a rebel or one sworn to Carolin. Be clear, Romilly, I send you into danger – it may be that Lyondri will not honor his pledged word of safety for the courier who brings his son; but you may risk nothing worse than imprisonment. Lyondri may kill you; he would certainly lose no chance for revenge against me.”
Danger for her, against certain death for herself? Romilly hesitated just a moment, and Janni said wearily, “I cannot command you to this risk, Romilly. I can only beg it of you. For I cannot send Caryl alone into the city; I pledged he should be safely delivered into his father’s very hands.”
“I thought he had sworn safe-conduct.”
“Oh, and so he has,” said Janni, “But I trust that no further than Lyondri sees his advantage, which he saw ever. . . .” and she covered her face with her hands. Romilly felt weak and frightened. But the Sisterhood had taken her in when she was alone, sheltered and fed her, welcomed her with friendliness. She owed them this. And she was a sworn Swordswoman. She said, tightening her hand on Janni’s, “I will go, my sister. Trust me.”
Before they rode into the city, Caryl washed himself carefully at a stream, begged a comb from one of the women and carefully combed his hair and trimmed his nails. He dug from his saddlebags his somewhat shabby clothes – for the last few days he had been wearing bits and pieces, castoff trousers and tunic of one of the women, so that he could wash his own in one of the streams and have them clean for his return to court, though nothing could make them look like proper attire for a prince.