Next to Elora was Camma, who led Kel’s Guild of Engineers. Tarquin hadn’t seen her in months, but she was a kintara and therefore hard to forget. Right now she towered over her side of the table, with her arms crossed and nostrils flared like she was contemplating charging right through it. Her official guild tunic was stone-colored, though both the cloth and her mark of office—an orange compass—had dark streaks on them, like Camma had just come from a forge. Her sand-colored tail flicked, showing her agitation. The constant, restless movement reminded Tarquin of Five.
Mundir was sitting next to the queen, and Tarquin’s heart sank when he saw him. He mentally prepared himself for the physician’s inevitable grousing.
The queen looked drawn and sad, the way she’d been since Aethelreda died
