Disclaimer: Tamora Pierce owns these characters; I do not.

"Rikash." It was his mother's voice, waking him.

He stared up at her, knowing that she was going to tell him that Sarralyn was dead. He didn't want to hear it. Sarralyn got enough attention alive – now her death was going to draw even more?

"I don't exactly know how to say this," she began. She stared at her son with a pleading look in her eyes.

"What is it?" he asked, pretending to be concerned.

"Your sister…" she didn't finish.

He feigned alarm. "What about Sarralyn? What happened to her?" He wasn't sure how false he sounded. He had never been good at telling lies, even if they were only in the tone of his voice.

"She's dead, Rikash." Tears Daine had been holding back flooded her face. Rikash watched with satisfaction.

"I don't know who killed her," Daine sobbed. "Numair is working on finding him, though." She smiled coldly. "The murderer is not going to escape unscathed."

Rikash stared at his mother, and felt tears come down his face. He wished that he could confess that he had killed his sister. He wished his mother would forgive him. He brushed the tears away. Whatever he might think, his true loyalties lay with Uusoae.

Daine wiped her face with her hand. "Numair and I are determined to find the killer," she told her son. "Would you like to help us? I'd understand if you don't want to. Sarralyn's death must be hard enough on you as it is."

He ignored the last part of what his mother said. "I'll help you," he told his mother, trying to keep his face sincere. He knew that if he refused, his parents would be suspicious.

Daine smiled at him. "I was thinking you could go to the university and ask around to see if Sarralyn had any rivals."

He shook his head, fury filling his body. "I won't go to the university," he said icily. He attempted to smile. "I want to help Father track down the killer."

Daine sighed, shaking her head. "You haven't been trained in that sort of work; I doubt he thinks you're ready." She began to leave, then stopped. "Rikash?"

"What?"

She smiled. "I'm glad you've decided to make peace with us."

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"We need a way to fight. We need a mage." The Queen of Chaos was on the verge of throwing things like a girl having a tantrum. "We cannot destroy Tortall alone."

Rikash shrugged - secretly he wanted to point out that he was an able mage, but something stopped him. Instead, he voiced something else. "Perhaps we could raise a mage from the dead." A moment later, he realized what he had suggested, and gasped. Uusoae would dismiss his idea as being foolish; he knew it.

She didn't. "Who?"

He bit his lip. "Roger of Conté. He tried to destroy the kingdom once; I'm sure he'd like to finish his work." He hoped Uusoae wouldn't scorn his idea, as it was the first one that came to him.

Uusoae nodded. "Who will raise him?"

Rikash smiled; he had an answer to this question. "The person who raised him before was named Thom," he informed Uusoae. "Thom of Trebond. His sister now has a son, Thom of Pirate's Swoop and Olau." He looked Uusoae in the eye. "Approach him in a dream."

He could tell she was weighing her options. Finally, she bowed her head. "Very well."

Author's Note: Again, I want to thank my reviewers. This chapter took a while, and I'm sorry about the wait. I hope the next chapter will be easier, though!