Fires of the Desert (Children of the Desert Book 4) Read Online Free PDF

sea-eagle, a third a desert hawk. She couldn’t tell what the carvings on Oruen’s more elaborate chair showed, because he was sitting in it.
    Grey and blue tiles, interspersed with squares of that same strange yellow stone, had been laid underfoot. She couldn’t recall what the floor had looked like before she left for Scratha Fortress, but thought that here, again, the work seemed relatively new.
    The walls held more tapestries than she remembered, showing an array of animals: one displayed four different types of badgers, another twenty different snakes, a third a series of turtles. She ignored Oruen for another few moments as she turned in place to examine the new decorations; when she finally looked back to him, his expression was a mixture of bemusement and annoyance.
    “You’ve never paid so much attention to my casual room before,” he said.
    She sat down in the chair with the desert hawk carving as she said, “I’ve never paid attention to a lot of things before, Lord Oruen. You wanted to see me?”
    He regarded her with an unusually cool intensity. “Your mother has been to see me.”
    Alyea’s spine stiffened. His expression did not bode well for the result of that meeting. I should have gone to see her before this, she thought ruefully. I was too busy...enjoying myself to even think of her.
    “In...in Open Court?” Alyea guessed, dreading the answer.
    “No, thank the gods,” he said, and rubbed at his eyes with one hand. “She asked for a private audience.” He paused, then added, “She’s seriously upset with you.”
    “I know,” Alyea said, repressing a sigh. “What did she want?”
    “She believes that you’ve lost your mind.”
    Alyea sat up even straighter, shocked. “She said that? Literally? Good gods!”
    Oruen nodded, a tired smile quirking across his mouth. “She told me that you’d spun a bizarrely nonsensical story to account for your whereabouts and actions, then walked out and haven’t been seen since. She believes you’re off raving through the city somewhere. And as your tale was all obviously fantasy, she wants you found, restrained, and removed from official authority over Peysimun Family.”
    Alyea sat still, speechless.
    “I think she’s still a touch peeved over your interfering with my attendance at that party she threw for your return,” Oruen said dryly. “I believe she actually lost quite a bit of respect, promising that I’d be there and then having to endure the disappointment of some fairly influential people. This could be, in part, revenge for that.”
    “What did you say?”
    Oruen tugged at his lower lip and studied her face for a long, quiet moment before answering.
    “I told her,” he said finally, dropping his hand to the arm of his chair, “that the matter stood between the two of you, and that I had no authority over a full desert lord’s actions. I told her that I did not think you were insane, nor raving; I said I was fairly certain she could locate you in short order, simply by asking Lord Eredion. She declined.” His mouth quirked. “In rather strong terms. So I told her that I would find you, and call you in for a talk. I also told her that I believed you were quite probably telling the truth about your experiences.”
    “Thank you,” Alyea said, then drew a deep breath and asked, “How did she take that?”
    “She wasn’t quite upset enough to challenge my sanity,” Oruen said, “but you really do need to have another talk with her. Soon. And settle the question beyond a doubt.” His expression hardened. “I suggest not bringing Deiq to that conversation. She’s even more angry at him than at you, and I can’t say I blame her. He has a habit of bringing complications to every situation he involves himself in, and I’d like nothing better than to see him out of this city for good.”
    Alyea stood, her nerves snapping taut, and said coldly, “That matter is between the two of you, Lord Oruen. If there’s nothing else,