Temple of the Winds

"Thanks, general. Get everything needed together, and I'll meet you out at the stables shortly. I'd like to get up there, at least, before dark. Those passes are no place to be stumbling around in the dark, especially with wagons. The moon is near full, but even that won't help enough."

"We'll be ready before you can walk out there. Lord Rahl."

After a quick fist to his heart in salute, the general was gone. Richard flashed Nadine another of his empty smiles. "Thanks for the help."

And then he turned his full attention to the Mord-Sith clad in red leather.

CHAPTER 6

Richard gripped Cara's jaw and lifted her face. He turned her head so he could better see the oozing cut on her cheek.

"What's this?"

She glanced to Kahlan when he released his hold on her. "A man refused my advances."

"Is that so. Maybe he was put off by your choice of red leather."

Richard looked to Kahlan. "What's going on? We've got a palace full of guards so jumpy that they even challenged me when I came in. We've got squads of archers guarding stairwells, and I've not seen so much bared steel since the Blood of the Fold attacked the city."

His eyes had that raptor gaze again. "Who's down in the pit?"

"I told you," Cara whispered to Kahlan. "He always finds out."

Kahlan had told Cara not to mention Marlin because she feared he might somehow hurt Richard. But once Marlin had revealed that there was a second assassin, everything changed; she had to tell Richard that there was a Sister of the Dark wandering around loose.

"An assassin showed up to kill you." Kahlan gestured with a tilt of her head toward Cara. "Little Miss Magic, here, goaded him into using his gift on her so that she could capture him. We put him down in the pit for safekeeping."

Richard glanced at Cara before addressing Kahlan. 'Little Miss Magic, eh? Why did you let her do that?"

''He said he wanted to kill you. Cara decided to question him in her own fashion."

''Do you think that was necessary? ' he asked Cara. 'We have a whole army. One man couldn't get to me."

"He also said he intended to kill the Mother Confessor."

Richard's expression darkened. "Then I hope you didn't show him your gentle side."

Cara smiled. "No, Lord Rahl."

"Richard," Kahlan said, "it's worse than that. He was a wizard from the Palace of the Prophets. He said that he came with a Sister of the Dark. We haven't found her yet."

"A Sister of the Dark. Great. How did you manage to discover that this man was an assassin?"

"He announced himself, believe it or not. He claims that Jagang sent him to kill you, and me, and that his orders were to announce himself once inside the Confessors' Palace."

"Then Jagang's plan wasn't really for this man to kill us; Jagang isn't that stupid. What was this Sister of the Dark to do, here in Aydindril? Did he say that she was here to kill us, too, or that she was here for some other purpose?"

"Marlin didn't seem to know," Kahlan said. "After what Cara did to him, I believe him."

"Which Sister is it? What's her name?"

"Marlin didn't know her name."

Richard nodded. "That's possible. How long was he in the city before he announced himself?"

"I'm not sure, exactly. I assumed a few days."

"Then why didn't he come directly to the palace once he arrived?"

"I don't know," Kahlan said. "I didn't.. ask him that."

"How long was he with the Sister? What did they do while they were here?"

"I don't know." Kahlan hesitated. "I guess I didn't think to ask him."

"Well, if he was with her, she must have had something to say to him. She would have been the one in charge. What did she say to him?"

"I don't know."

"Did this Marlin see anyone else while he was in the city? Did he meet with anyone else? Where did he stay?"

It was the Seeker questioning her, not Richard. Even though he wasn't raising his voice, or using a threatening tone, Kahlan's ears burned. "I didn't.. think to ask."

"What did they do while they were together? Did she have anything with her? Did she buy anything, or pick up anything, or talk to anyone else who could end up being another part of a team? Was there anyone else they were ordered to kill?"

"I… didn't. ."

Richard combed his fingers through his hair. "One obviously doesn't send an assassin and have him announce himself to the guards at the intended victim's door. That will only get your assassin killed, instead. Maybe Jagang had this man do something before he came to the palace, and then once the task was done, he wanted Marlin to come here so we would kill him and eliminate any chance we would find out what's going on before this Sister carried out the true plot. Jagang certainly wouldn't care if we killed one of his pawns-he has plenty more, and he doesn't value human life."

Kahlan twisted her fingers together behind her back. She was feeling decidedly foolish. Richard's furrowed brow over his piercing, gray eyes wasn't helping.