Traitor's Moon

them.”
    Nyal stroked her face until she opened her eyes again. “I won’t hurt you, Beka Cavish, or cause you any distraction if it’s in my power to avoid it. What we do—” He grinned, waving a hand around at the disordered room. “We are two friends sharing a gift of Aura. There’s no pain from that. Whether you’re here or in Skala, we are friends.”
    â€œFriends,” Beka agreed, even as the little voice from her heart taunted,
Too late, too late!
    â€œIt’s early yet,” she said, rising. “Show me more of your city. Seems I have an unquenchable appetite for wonders today.”
    Nyal sprawled limply and let out a comic groan. “Warrior women!”
    They were nearly dressed when something he’d said earlier suddenly struck her. Turning to Nyal, she raised an eyebrow and demanded, “When exactly did you and my ‘almost-brother’ discuss what to do with me?”
    Beka’s sudden appearance in the doorway of one of the ruined houses startled Kheeta as much as it did Alec.
    â€œAura’s Fingers!” the Bôkthersan laughed, reining in. “That’s the first red-haired Bash’wai I’ve ever seen.”
    Beka froze for a moment, face reddening behind her freckles. An instant later Nyal stepped from the shadows behind her.
    â€œWell, well, Captain,” Alec said in Skalan, grinning mercilessly as he took in their disheveled hair and dust-streaked clothing. “Out reconnoitering?”
    â€œI’m off duty,” she retorted, and something in the look she gave him warned against further teasing.
    â€œHave you shown her the House of Pillars yet?” Kheeta asked, apparently oblivious to the situation, or why his innocent question should draw such a loud and poorly suppressed snort of laughter from Alec.
    â€œWe were just heading there,” Nyal replied, fighting to keep a straight face. “Why don’t you come along with us?”
    â€œYes,
do
come!” Beka said, walking up to Alec and grasping his stirrup. In a low voice, she added, “You can keep a closer eye on me that way, Almost-Brother.”
    Alec winced.
Damn you, Nyal!
    The house in question lay several streets away. Thunder crackedagain, much closer now, and a sudden gust of wind blew their hair into their eyes.
    â€œThere it is,” Kheeta said, pointing out a sprawling, open-sided structure through the gloom. Just then the skies opened up in earnest. Lightning bleached the air white for an instant, then darkness closed down around them with a deafening roll of thunder. Gripping the reins of their nervous mounts, Alec and Kheeta dashed toward shelter through the pelting rain with Beka and Nyal close behind.
    The House of Pillars was a pavillion with a flat, tiled roof set on ranks of tall, evenly spaced black columns. Shreds of faded cloth hung here and there, suggesting that walls of a sort had been created by hanging tapestries between the columns.
    â€œLooks like we’ll be here awhile,” said Beka, raising her voice to be heard over the downpour.
    A damp wind swept through the outer columns, and they retreated farther to avoid the soaking rain that blew in with it. Alec reached inside his coat for the lightstone in his tool roll, then remembered he’d left both back at his room. Kheeta and Nyal flicked their fingers, and small globes of light snapped into being at their tips.
    â€œWhat was this place?” asked Alec, speaking Skalan for Beka’s benefit.
    â€œA summer retreat,” said Nyal. “It gets terribly hot here in summer. The roof makes shade and there are bathing pools further in.”
    Occasional flashes from outside threw bars of light and shadow across their path as they walked deeper into the forest of pillars.
    Alec had assumed they had the place to themselves, but soon heard the sound of water splashing and the echo of voices from somewhere ahead of them.
    Emerging into a large chamber, they came to a large round bathing pool fed by underground springs. Channels fanned out from it to smaller pools and what appeared to have been water gardens or fish pools.
    A few dozen people were swimming naked in the large pool. Others sat nearby playing some kind of game by the light of hovering light orbs. Alec noted with a twinge of unease that most of those who were dressed wore the sen’gai of Haman or Lhapnos. Judging by their age and clothes, they were young retainers of