capital. Zanderei-as cunning an assassin as they could find. I know how much
money you got from Kilite. Don’t look so surprised. I was raised in the Imperial
Household-I wouldn’t be alive at all if I didn’t have some reliable friends. The
chief viper in my brother’s nest is always asking for you. He seems to think
you’ve discovered Enlibar steel; I assure him that you haven’t, though I know
you have. I know how much he said he’d pay you for the secret; so I know you’re
not in Sanctuary looking for a better price. But then, I also know what
Balustrus said about your progress with the steel. Does any of this surprise
you?”
Walegrin said nothing. He was not truly surprised, though he hadn’t expected
this. Nothing was truly surprising today.
The prince misunderstood his silence. “All right, Walegrin. Kilite’s faction
found you, paid you, pardoned your absence and then tried to have you killed.
I’ve run afoul of Kilite a few times and I can promise you you’ll never outsmart
him on your own. You need protection, Walegrin, and you need protection from a
special sort of person-the sort of person who needs you as much as you need him.
In short, Walegrin, you need me.”
Walegrin remembered thinking the same thing once, though he’d envisioned this
interview under different circumstances. “You have the Hounds, Tempus and the
Sacred Bands,” he remarked sullenly.
“Actually, they have me. Face it, Walegrin: you and I are not well-equipped.
Alone with only my birth or your steel, we’re nothing but pawns. But, put my