Page 78 of Dawn Caravan
“Half of what she told you is probably wrong.” He waved his hand. “We often seed stories among scholars to obscure the truth. We’re very private.”
“Are you the leader of the Poshani?”
“I am one of three.” Radu took a drink. “Remember that. We Poshani are highly suspicious of authority. No one person is given everything. The three terrin are chosen by the previous terrin, but if confidence is lost at any time, the mortal and immortal members of the Poshaniya will overthrow that member and choose another.”
“Okay.” Ben drank his wine. “So your leadership is in trouble somehow in a way that I can help. What valuable cultural treasure did you lose?”
Radu grinned. “See? I knew I chose the correct man.”
“I find things, Radu. The only reason you’d need my help is if you’d lost something that the terrin is supposed to guard and people would be majorly pissed about it. It’s not a hard guess.”
“You are correct of course, but I did not lose this particular artifact. It was stolen from me.”
“I’m going to guess that doesn’t help your position.” Ben set his glass down. “Lost it or let it get stolen. Either way, you didn’t guard it well enough.”
“You are correct. And this is where the kamvasa comes in.”
“The Dawn Caravan?” Ben had to admit he was intrigued.
“The Dawn Caravan was my idea. We were always so effective at staying hidden, I thought. If we could hide in plain sight, why not offer this service—a safe house—to others willing to pay?”
“Makes sense.”
“My sister and my brother—the other terrin—were not in favor of this. They eventually gave me their support because too many of our mortal families were struggling in the human world.”
“Among the Poshani, the mortal and immortal members are equally supported?”
“Of course.” Radu spread his hands. “We are helpless during the day without our darigan. And the mortals would be vulnerable to predators, both human and immortal, without the Hazar.”
“You only employ Poshani?”
“We are the only ones we truly trust,” Radu said. “Even about you, I have reservations.”
“I understand.”
“But your position makes you the most trustworthy outsider capable of this task. You represent two great houses, neither of which would own you if you were not a man of your word.”
“Thank you.” He examined Radu’s expression. “Why not find this yourself?”
“I have tried for many years. I have narrowed the search, but I am at an impasse and need an outside perspective.”
“I’m also guessing that you don’t want your brother and sister to know that you lost whatever it is that was stolen.”
Radu raised an eyebrow. “My sister knows something was stolen—she’s the one who helped me test you—but she does not know all the details. My brother knows nothing, and it must remain that way.”
Ben had a feeling there was no love lost between Radu and his brother. He poured another glass of wine from the bottle. “Okay, I’m intrigued. What is it you need to find?”
“It’s a goblet,” Radu said. “Carved in the ninth century from a single giant emerald.”
Ben set his glass down and sighed.
Dammit. An emerald goblet? There was no way he could fly away now. That was just too cool and unique.
“Okay. Tell me the rest.”
* * *
They hoveredover a picturesque clearing in the middle of a dense forest. The landscape was made of empty hills for as far as the human eye could see. Dirt roads snaked through the countryside along with the occasional mobile phone tower.
