Kadakithis and Shupansea hidden away in their palace, and she thought of Zip and
Downwind. She thought of the betrayal she planned.
She knew, then, the cause of her dark mood.
But it must be done, she swore. Sooner or later, it would be done.
Chenaya extended her arm; the metal rings of her manica shone richly under
Sabellia’s glory. She pursed her lips, gave a thin, piercing whistle.
It was impossible in the darkness to see Reyk; she didn’t even hear the beat of his pinions, leading her to guess he had been circling overhead and had simply plummeted in response to her call. She felt only a sudden rush of air on her cheek and then his weight and the tension of his talons on her forearm.
She stroked the falcon very lightly down the back of his head and between his wings. “Hello, my pet. Did you feast?” She had expected to find traces of beyarl plumage between his talons. Several of the sacred birds had skimmed the water earlier. But Reyk’s claws were clean. She took a jess from her belt and slipped it around his leg.
Together, they sat quietly and watched the goddess’s argent chariot sail over the ocean. Chenaya didn’t even mind that the moon seemed to watch her, too. The light seemed to ease her troubled spirit, and eye to eye, she thanked Sabellia for that small relief.
Reyk stretched suddenly to full wing-span. Talons tightened on her arm; he emitted a single, sharp note.
The falcon’s keen eyes had spotted Dismas before Chenaya had heard his footsteps on the wharf. Reyk calmed immediately, recognizing the gladiator as he padded with a burglar’s swift stealth toward his mistress. “Now, lady,” Dismas whispered urgently. “It’s the perfect time and place. We may not get a better chance.”