Lois had returned to Riverrun. She'd decided she was gonna let Jaime Lannister out whether Chris liked it or not. If she sent him back home, maybe the Lannisters would send Meg back too.
She entered his cell. Jaime was chained to the wall. He raised his hands to cover his face, the chains around his wrists clanking. "Lady Griffin," he said, in a voice hoarse with disuse. "I fear I am in no condition to receive you."
"Look at me, ser."
"The light hurts my eyes. A moment, if you would." Jaime had been allowed no razor since the night he was taken, in case he tried to use it to kill himself or attack a guard, and a shaggy beard covered his face, which had once been so like his sister's. Glinting gold in the lamplight, the whiskers made him look like some great yellow beast, magnificent even in chains. His unwashed hair fell to his shoulders in ropes and tangles, the clothes were rotting on his body, his face was pale and wasted… and even so, the power and the beauty of the man were still apparent. "I'd invite you to sit," he said, "but your son has neglected to provide me with a chair."
"I can stand well enough," said Lois.
"Can you? You look terrible, I must say. Though perhaps it's just the light in here. Are my bracelets heavy enough for you, or did you come to add a few more? I'll rattle them prettily if you like."
"Actually, I came to release you."
Jaime chuckled harshly. "Oho, there's a change of tune. Why this sudden display of kindness?"
"It's not kindness," Lois told him. "I'm only lettin' ya go so your family will let my daughter Meg go."
"Are they all still alive, then?" Jaime asked. He tried to sound nonchalant, but Lois saw the concerned look in his eyes. "Cersei… Tyrion… my father?"
"They live, all three. But not long, if the gods are good."
Jaime let out another nasty laugh. "If the gods are good, why is the world so full of pain and injustice?"
"Because of guys like you."
"There are no guys like me. There's only me. Tell me something, why are you performing this exchange of hostages now when you could have done it at any time?"
Lois sighed. "The Greyjoys have rebelled an' seized Winterfell. I just got word that Theon Greyjoy killed my son Stewie an' mounted his head above the castle wall. I just wanna do whatever I can to protect what's left of my family. That's why I'm doin' this now."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Jaime said. "Truly."
"That's funny, comin' from you. Didn't you try to kill Stewie twice yourself?"
A resentful expression appeared on Jaime's face. "Excuse me, I only tried to kill him once!"
"First ya threw him out a window, an' then ya sent an assassin to kill him in his bed. Why would ya do that to a child?"
"I will admit to pushing him out the window that day," said Jaime. "Let's just say he saw something he shouldn't have seen. But I had nothing to do with any assassin. I have never hired anyone to do my killing for me."
"Well, if you didn't send the killer, your sister did."
"If so, I'd know. Cersei keeps no secrets from me."
"Then it was the Imp."
"Tyrion is as innocent as your Stewie. He wasn't climbing around outside of anyone's window, spying."
"Then why did the assassin have his dagger?"
"What dagger was this?"
Lois described it. "It had a blade of Valyrian steel an' a dragon-bone hilt."
"Hmm. Now that you mention it, I recall seeing a dagger like that before… but it doesn't belong to my brother."
"Well, who did it belong to?" Lois demanded.
"I see no reason why I should tell you that. I don't have to tell you everything I know."
Lois took a step backward. "Hayley."
Hayley Smith pushed open the door and stepped inside the cell. "You called, my lady?"
"Give me your sword." Lois held out her hand.
For a second, Jaime thought Lois was going to kill him, but instead she brought the sword down on the chains that held him in place. She didn't cut the chain that bound his hands together though.
"This is Hayley Smith," Lois said. "She's goin' to escort you back home."
"A maid who thinks she's a knight," Jaime marveled. "Now I've seen everything. Pray tell, what's someone named Smith doing working for a Griffin? I thought your family was sworn to Storm's End."
"Renly Baratheon is dead," Hayley told him tersely. "My sword is sworn to Lady Lois now." Jaime could tell right away that she didn't like him.
Hayley and Jaime got into a boat and set off down the river to King's Landing, along with Jaime's cousin Alton Lannister, who had returned.
