The Banian salon was spread through a suite of connected rooms, so it took several minutes before Naya finally caught a glimpse of Ambassador Bargal’s distinctive copper hair. She squeezed past a knot of delegates who were listening while Grand Marshal Palrak, the head of the Talmiran delegation, and his husband discussed the expansion of the rail lines into eastern Talmir. On the other side of the group, Naya found the Endran ambassadors talking quietly together next to one of the food tables. Ambassador Bargal noticed her and his face broke into a warm smile. “Ah, Miss Garth. And this must be Lord Francisco, and…forgive me, I don’t know your other companion.”

“Lucia Laroke.” Lucia’s eyes were bright with curiosity as she looked at the two ambassadors.

“A pleasure to meet you,” Francisco said with a bow.

“And you. My companion is Ambassador Noreth,” Bargal said, waving at the short-haired woman who stood beside him. “We were just talking about how we hoped to find you here. Isn’t that right, Ambassador Noreth?”

“Yes. Great hopes we had,” Noreth said. Her accent was far thicker than Bargal’s, and her cool expression seemed to contradict her words.

“You got my invitation then?” Naya asked.

“Invitation?” Bargal glanced at his companion with a raised eyebrow. She said something to him in a language Naya didn’t recognize, and he answered in the same before turning back to Naya. “Forgive me, the servants had not notified me yet. We have been so very busy these past days. But this only makes it doubly good fortune to have found you here.”

“Naya told me you were interested in necromancy?” Francisco asked.

“She is correct,” Bargal said. “Our queen has great respect for the old powers. And I myself would very much like to know what it is like to travel back from the darkness of the other side.”

Naya glanced around, trying to judge if anyone had overheard that. Even in Ceramor people were cautious in the way they spoke about necromancy. What one saw on the other side of death was considered deeply personal, and few undead spoke about the experience.

If Francisco was perturbed by the ambassador’s curiosity, it didn’t show on his face. “We’re happy to answer questions. Madame Laroke is a necromancer, so she can provide more details than we can.”

“A necromancer?” Bargal’s eyes lit up. He turned to Lucia and bowed more deeply. “Forgive me, my lady, I did not realize. I have heard your kind call the dead with the strength of your voice and will alone. Such power is to be honored.”

Lucia blinked, obviously startled by Bargal’s reaction. “Well, it’s more complicated than that, but the song is an important part of our rituals.”

“Of course, all magic has its complexities,” Bargal said. “If you ever wish to travel east, please know you would be warmly welcomed. My queen’s scholars would be eager to exchange knowledge with you.”

Naya felt a shiver of unease and turned her attention to the aether, trying to read the ambassador. His enthusiasm for necromancy seemed out of place compared to the way he’d acted around Queen Lial. What game was he playing? As she focused on him, she noticed the strange pattern in his aether. Energy concentrated around his wrists rather than drifting to mingle with the already-thick aether of the room.

“I’m sure if you wished it, my father could also arrange for you to visit Ceramor,” Francisco said to Bargal, his eager tone drawing Naya’s attention back to the physical world.

Bargal smiled. “We do hope to see all your fine western kingdoms soon.” He turned his attention to Naya. “Tell me, Miss Garth. Did your meeting with the queen go well? We have been told that your lands are in conflict, but perhaps we misunderstood if she is inviting you to tea.”

“Things between Talmir and Ceramor are complicated,” Naya said cautiously. The last thing she wanted was to try and explain the tensions between the two countries. “But there’s been peace for thirty years now.”

“Ah, I understand,” Bargal said. “Old feuds are many in our homeland, but all that is behind us now that Her Great Majesty Queen Alethen the first has united us.”

“So all the city-states now follow one ruler?” Francisco asked.

“We do. Her Majesty is not one to be denied. What else could we do but bow to her will and set aside our differences?”

Naya exchanged a glance with Francisco. She wasn’t sure how many city-states populated the Endran plains. But everything she’d heard made it seem unlikely they would unite so suddenly.

Someone bumped into Naya hard enough to make her stumble. Behind her a woman cried out. Naya turned to see Lady Elv, the woman she’d met at the ball, staring back at her in horror and clutching her arm. “Did you see that?” Lady Elv asked, her voice wavering. “That thing assaulted me!”

“What? I didn’t do anything,” Naya said. People all around them were turning to stare.

“It shoved me!”

“What are you talking about? You ran into me.” Naya’s anger flared. This was absurd. Surely Lady Elv couldn’t think anyone would believe such an obvious lie. And yet Naya could feel something sharp building in the aether. People were murmuring behind their hands and while some looked amused, many others seemed angry.

Lady Elv flinched away from Naya. “Look at its eyes. Oh, please, keep it away from me.”

“I didn’t do anything.” Naya threw up her hands in exasperation, and a few onlookers gasped and took a step back. Naya glared at them. What were they, a flock of frightened chickens?

Grand Marshal Palrak stepped out of the crowd, frowning. “Perhaps,” he said softly, “you should apologize to the lady.”

Before Naya could say anything, Francisco stepped up next to her. “We apologize,” he said, his voice cold.

Palrak nodded curtly. “Your companions look tired, Lord Francisco. I think you should return to your rooms for the night.”

Naya stared between Palrak and Lady Elv. “She’s the one who should—”

Francisco grabbed her arm. “We were just leaving,” he said.

Naya turned to protest, then paused when she saw the dark anger in Francisco’s eyes.

“Perhaps we can continue this another time? I’d like to learn more about Endran magic,” Lucia said to the Endrans.

Bargal nodded, his pale eyes fixed on Naya. “Yes, I would like that very much.”

Naya let Francisco pull her toward the doors. The crowd parted around them as though they carried some foul plague. “Why did you let them push us out like that?” Naya asked Francisco once they were back in the hallway.

Francisco cast a wary glance at the soldiers by the door. “Because it only would have gotten worse if we’d stayed.”

“And this is better? Now that we’re gone, Lady Elv is free to say whatever she wants about us,” Naya said.

“Francisco is right not to beg for more trouble,” Lucia cut in. “At least we were able to speak to the Endrans. They do seem unusually interested in necromancy, more so than most Ceramorans even.”

“I guess,” Naya said.

Lucia smiled. “I admire your determination, but you have to realize that people won’t change overnight. Many in that room have been fighting these battles since before you were born.”

Naya knew that. Just like she knew she’d be better off not drawing attention to herself while she searched for Lucia’s journals. But the more she saw of Talmir, the more she wanted to change things. Even if this country never felt like home again, she had to believe her people could be better than they were. She thought back over the encounter with Lady Elv and her brow furrowed. “Do you think they pushed us out because we were talking to the Endrans?” she asked.

“Why do you say that?” Francisco asked.

“I know Lady Elv has a reputation as a drunk, but don’t you think the timing of her running into me was a little too convenient?”

Francisco gave her a sharp look.

“What?” Naya asked.

After a moment Francisco shook his head. “Nothing. You might be right.”

They returned to the delegation’s hall in silence, followed by a pair of Talmiran soldiers. Lucia bid them good night and returned to her rooms. Naya would have liked to follow her and tell her what she’d seen in the Endran ambassador’s aether. Before she could, Francisco touched her arm. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” he asked.

“Sure,” Naya said.

Francisco motioned for her to follow him to one of the now-empty sitting rooms near the end of the hall. “Have you found anything else in the logbook?” he asked. Now that they were in private, he let his shoulders droop. There were shadows under his eyes that Naya hadn’t noticed before. Underneath the mask of confidence, he looked every bit as frustrated and unsure as she felt.

Naya hesitated. She’d meant to lie. But the note of desperation in his voice reminded her that, despite the secrets between them, they were on the same side. “Does the name Resurgence mean anything to you?” she asked.

“No. What is it?”

“I don’t know. My father didn’t either, from what I can tell. But he thought that name was tied to whoever was helping fund Valn’s operations.”

Francisco looked thoughtful. “I’ll see what I can find out. I’ll need more than just a name before I bring this to my father.”

“Be careful,” Naya said. “Whoever or whatever Resurgence is, they could have a presence at the palace. They’ll be easier to catch if they think their identities are still hidden.”

“I know.” After a pause Francisco added, “You should be careful too. I know my father wanted us to draw attention here, but I’m starting to worry that he underestimated how the Talmirans would respond.”

“You’re thinking about the attack at the gates?” Naya asked.

Francisco nodded. “I get the feeling whoever staged that won’t stop because of one failure.”