I knew Neen to be Dashski’s daughter, and so I tasked Bruni with getting close to her. None of the maidens would speak much to me while they were veiled, but perhaps another woman might be allowed closer. When I tried to talk to Neen during her rare, unveiled appearances, she was entirely disinclined to speak to me. Most likely she did not appreciate my past work on Saffira, as the two had seemed rather close. Regrettable, but not impossible to overcome.
When Dashski was not asking me for advice on his courtly manners, my time was my own. One late afternoon I found myself at the same shaded garden pool I had seen before, when I inadvertently wandered onto Dashski’s grounds. Now that I knew the layout of his gardens, I was glad I had not sought him out that day. I would have had to pass th
