"Then get lost; some of us are busy."

Kaylin cleared her throat and lifted her chin. Marcus gouged a deeper runnel into the surface of his desk. Red was right-he was in bad need of a new one; it was a wonder the claws hadn't gone through the desktop by now. Kaylin mentally added buying another inexpensive desk to the list of things she had to do Right Now.

"Private."

"Sir."

"Why are you still here?"

She thought about retreating without mentioning Nightshade at all. It seemed the least career-limiting option. But if what Nightshade had implied was true, he had information about the Exchequer-or at least involving the Exchequer-and the Halls were in desperate want of solid, useful information. If there was a decent chance Nightshade was right, they needed it.

"Don't move your lips when you're adding things up in your head," the Sergeant growled. "It's a terrible habit. What do you need to speak with me about so urgently?"

"Lord Nightshade."

"Is he in his own fief?"

"Yes, sir."

"Has he stayed there?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do you have any reason to suspect that he intends to engage in illegal activities in Elantra?"

"Nothing illegal short of breathing, sir."

"Then I don't need to hear it right now."

"He says he has information that you might be interested in, and he's willing to discuss it with you in person."

"I see. And you think this is information we need?"

"He mentioned the Imperial Exchequer, sir."

Marcus's eyes went copper; Kaylin's chin went higher. Wood shavings appeared beneath his extended claws. "He's willing to discuss it out of the goodness of his heart?"

"...No, sir."

"How much does he want?"

For the first time, she glanced at Severn.

Marcus turned to Severn. "Corporal?"

"He's requested a leave of absence-for Private Neya."

"I'm not interested." Marcus made a show of turning back to his paperwork, which didn't involve much actual movement, given there was so much of it.

Not for the first time, Kaylin hated her lack of involvement in what had become the department's most important investigation to date. Had she been, she could have agreed and negotiated in Nightshade. As it was, she knew about as much as Nightshade did-or demonstrably less-and it galled her.

"Sergeant."

Marcus's facial fur was now standing on end, as were the tufts of his ears.

"Nightshade didn't tell me either the information or its source. But I think you should at least listen to what he has to say. If you don't want to negotiate with him directly, let the Hawklord do it."

"I'm not interested, Private."

That might have been the end of it, given the color of Marcus's eyes, but Teela-and a slightly more cautious Tain-sauntered over to his desk. Like Marcus, they'd probably heard everything. Unlike Marcus, they were pragmatic. Braving a face full of angry Leontine, Teela spoke first.

"Sergeant."

Marcus didn't bother with orders; he growled. It wasn't a quiet growl, and the background noise in the office took a nosedive in its wake.

Teela was unfazed. Her eyes, however, were distinctly blue. "At this point, we can't afford to turn away any possible leads."

"What leads can a fieflord give us?"

"We won't know until we hear him out. He's not asking for money."

"If it were money, I'd listen."

"He's not asking you to fire her."

"What the h.e.l.ls is he asking then?"

They both turned to look at Kaylin. Blue and orange weren't colors that went well together, especially not given the expressions that surrounded the eyes. "He wants me to go to the West March with him."

Teela's thin brows rose. When they fell again, her eyes had narrowed. "Why?"

"I don't know."

Teela slid into High Barrani. Mostly. "Kitling, Lord Nightshade has oft played dangerous games. The reservations of the Sergeant-"

"Those aren't reservations; they're an outright refusal."

"The reservations of the Sergeant are not unfounded. When did Lord Nightshade ask for your company?"

"He hasn't given a date."

"I have some suspicion of the dates. It is not, however, a short leave of absence, and if I'm not mistaken, you have very little experience traveling." She frowned. "Very well, Sergeant. I offer this. If, as I suspect, Lord Nightshade intends to travel for the gathering, I will also be in attendance."

"He said only me," Kaylin began.

"Indeed. And only you would be required to take a leave of absence. The Barrani Hawks, however-"

Tain cleared his throat; Teela glared at him. "The Barrani Lords, however, are given a leave of absence for important cultural events. I am a Barrani Lord. I had not intended to attend the gathering, although I have, of course, been invited. I will change my plans," she told Marcus. "If Nightshade's information warrants it. Technically, you would not be in violation of his request, if you agree to fulfill it."

"I'm not sure she's any safer with you around," the Sergeant growled. But his eyes were less lividly orange. "No drinking."

"Can we compromise and say no brawls?"

"I'll leave that to the Hawklord."

Teela lifted one delicate brow and dropped back into Elantran. "I'd prefer that his information be entirely laughable."

"Oh?"

"I dislike travel. The West March is interesting if you're inclined to revere plant and insect life."

Marcus rose. "Caitlin," he shouted. "Mirror Grammayre and tell him we're on our way up."

"Yes, Marcus."

"And you two," he added, glaring at Kaylin and Severn. "Get back to work if you don't want your pay docked. Did Nightshade happen to say when he'd be dropping by?"

"No, sir."

"Fine. Get lost. I mean it this time."

He'd meant it the first time, as well. Kaylin hesitated.

Severn bent and whispered, "It's not our case, Private. We've got a lot of ground to cover today. Let's go."

Kaylin took one deep breath, expelled it, and shook herself. She headed toward the door and Severn fell in to her side. "It's not that I don't want to leave," she said, lying, "but we're supposed to head back to the Arkon before we do anything else."

"Given his mood, obedience is probably the only option. Cheer up; he's unlikely to eat us."

Tara answered the door when they arrived.

"Where's Morse?" Kaylin asked.

"Morse is delivering a message," was the noncommittal reply.

"Do you still have a room full of Dragons?"

Tara frowned.

"Sorry," Kaylin said, because she really didn't want to explain the nature of metaphors for the hundredth time. "What I meant was, are the Arkon and Sanabalis still here, and still in the morgue?"

Tara nodded thoughtfully. "Your question was shorter the first time, but inaccurate. Is it really true that Morse or Tiamaris would have understood what you meant?"

"Yes," Kaylin replied. She continued the explanation that Tara wanted as they made their way down the hall, promising herself to be literal when speaking to Tara, at least for the rest of the day. Sadly, she'd probably forget, because it was too easy to forget. If Tara didn't exactly look normal, she didn't radiate that aura of power that would have otherwise forced Kaylin to be careful with her words. This unspoken observation branched into an entirely different explanation.

Severn was silently laughing by the time they reached the morgue-which was good, as nothing in the morgue was liable to be cause for mirth.

Case in point: the Arkon met them as the doors rolled open. Kaylin didn't remember the morgue having double doors, but this was an ancient magical building, and things like that changed without warning or notice. The Arkon didn't appear to care one way or the other.

Lord Sanabalis and Lord Tiamaris were standing as far away from the Arkon as the room allowed, attempting to look busy. Kaylin thought this both cowardly and unfair-although it was probably, given the color of the older Dragon's eyes, also wise. She bowed; so did Severn. The Arkon's smoke wafted over their heads.

"I see you've deigned to return," he said. His voice had dipped into Dragon scale; it was low and very loud. He was not, however, roaring.

"Yes, Arkon," Kaylin said in the tone of voice she generally reserved for Marcus in a foul mood.

"Good. You are to continue your investigation, but you will be accompanied by the Tower's Avatar for the duration."

Kaylin rose and glanced at Tara, who seemed entirely undisturbed.

"There is a reasonable chance that we are missing two bodies," he continued, ignoring the question in the glance. "If possible-if at all possible-you are to find witnesses who heard anything that the woman said before she collapsed."

"She wasn't speaking a language they recognized-"

"That," was the autocratic reply, "is what we have the Tha'alani for."

Kaylin thought about her career, and the application in particular for her promotion, and winced. Opening her mouth was not a good idea.

"Yes, Private?"

Then again, having facial expressions also apparently sucked. "If it's true that the deceased arrived because of small, localized Shadowstorm, it's unlikely that we're going to find many more of her. The borders have been effectively closed. Tara-the Avatar," she said, quickly correcting herself, given the ripple of lines in the Arkon's brow, "says the Shadow is once again entirely contained."

"Yes. There's been some discussion about that."

Kaylin looked past the Arkon to Tiamaris. Whatever the discussion had been, the youngest of the Dragons didn't like it.

"You will go now. I have taken a very small leave of absence from my library while I oversee this investigation; you will report to me at the end of the day."

"Yes, Arkon."

Tara took very little time to prepare, which in this case meant changing into her gardening clothing. Kaylin and Severn took less. They exited the morgue as quickly as they could; neither Tiamaris nor Sanabalis had uttered as much as a squeak.

"That's not true," Tara said as she closed the Tower doors behind them and stepped onto the garden path. "They spoke quite a lot before you arrived."

"In Elantran?"

"In Dragon."

"What were they discussing?"

"The possibility of lowering the barrier for a few days." Tara's eyes were ebony as she said this.

"Did you join in the discussion at all?"

"My Lord felt it unwise. But he did speak on my behalf."

"Can you join the discussion?" Kaylin didn't ask what Tiamaris had said on Tara's behalf; she knew what the answer would be. She was surprised that Tara seemed so calm about the request.

"Oh, yes. Dragon is not difficult to speak; it requires a shift of vocal cords, but that's relatively minor." She began to follow as Kaylin took the lead. "Where are we going first?"