Sea of Death: Blade of the Flame - Book 3 by Tim Waggoner

in the Principalities—in some instances, before it occurred. “Then you also know that Diran stands a good chance of succeeding.”
    “You’re not eating,” Zivon said, the merest hint of disapproval in his voice. “Try the mussels. They’re delectable.”
    Yvka wasn’t especially hungry but tried a mussel for the sake of not offending her host.
    “Well?”
    Yvka chewed, swallowed. “It’s good.”
    “Good? I have some of the finest cooks in the Principalities working in my kitchen, and all you have to say in response to experiencing their art is ‘good’?”
    Yvka shrugged.
“Very
good.”
    Zivon shook his head and laughed. “Fortune save me from uneducated palates!” He took yet another sip of wine, set his mug down, then pushed his plate aside—an indication that he was ready to get down to business. “You truly believe the priest is capable of dispelling the Fury?”
    “His name is Diran, and I’ve seen him do remarkable things.”
    “Rumor has it that you’ve seen his partner do a few remarkable things as well.”
    Yvka felt her own rage take hold at Zivon’s remark—a rage that had nothing to do with the House of Kolbyr. But before she could say anything, Zivon held up his hands in a placating gesture.
    “You’ve managed to maintain our code admirably
—until
the night you met Diran Bastiaan and his companions in a seedy tavern in Port Verge. At first you joined them in order to discover the secret of the Black Fleet, for information is the Network’s lifeblood,is it not? But it didn’t take long for you to come to admire your new companions and, despite your many years of experience at maintaining professional distance from others, for the first time in a long time you found herself becoming close to others, didn’t you? Especially the half-orc.
    “Oh, you made excuses, told yourself that the best way to gain your new companions’ trust was to appear to become friends with them, and your association proved even more beneficial than you’d hoped when, after you’d defeated Erdis Cai, you informed us about the vampire’s hidden lair in Grimwall. We were quite pleased with the treasures we discovered in the ancient goblinoid city. And if you’d had a little fun with the half-… with
Ghaji
in the process of performing your duties, what was the harm? You received a new assignment not long after that, and when you were forced to say goodbye to Ghaji, you pretended that parting from him didn’t hurt. And you almost managed to make yourself believe it.
    “But a few months later you learned that Aldarik Cathmore, one of Bastiaan’s former teachers in the art of assassination, had come to the Principalities, and you used that information as an excuse to rejoin your new friends once more … as an excuse to see Ghaji. Once again, your association with the others benefited you: you informed us of the existence of the creation forge within Mount Luster, and our artificers are even now investigating the facility to ferret out the delicious secrets it holds. You’ve done well, Yvka. Quite well, indeed.” Zivon paused a moment before adding, “All things considered.”
    Zivon’s tone remained pleasant enough, but his words sent a chill rippling down Yvka’s spine. “You’re speaking of the
Zephyr.”
    “A valuable asset. One that we are disappointed to have lost.”
    “Makala took it.” It was as much a question as a statement.
    “Yes. Though she wasn’t alone.”
    Yvka frowned. “Who else was with her?”
    “A lich and a barghest. The same barghest, we believe, who stole the wand of your artificer friend.”
    “A lich?” Could it be the same one that Diran, Ghaji, Tresslar, and Hinto had slain in the mountains outside Perhata? How could it be any other? The barghest had been her servant, after all. Buthow had the lich been resurrected, if that was the right term to apply to the reanimation of an already undead creature? Had the barghest somehow used Tresslar’s dragonwand to