Unexpected

Cloaked and hooded, Dallah carefully kept the hand bearing the Great Serpent Ring out of sight as she purposefully walked through the market thoroughfare along the evenly spaced streets of Tar Valon. In her other hand, she clutched a posy of morningdew blossoms, lanced with rose thorns. A sign of warning from her personal Eyes and Ears agent, Azbere. Daughter of a family of Helan spies, Azbere was a professional and would not have used this sign if she did not desperately need to meet with her mistress. Dallah could not think of anything that could have gone wrong since a week ago when she had met Azbere to receive her report about the Black Tower Embassy. What could have gone amiss?

It was nearing the hour of noon. The heat, dust and noise reigned supreme. Entering the inn called Kiss of the Unfaithful, she approached the sweating innkeeper.
"The rose room please," she commanded imperiously, her voice ice.
"Great Mistress, that way, along that way," the woman gestured before backing away nervously.
If Dallah was not so deep in worry, she would have noticed that the inn-keeper did not act as she usually did when she mentioned the "rose room". She would have noticed that she kept glancing, wild-eyed, around as if assassins hid in the shadows.

But not noticing, she progressed on her way into the lion's jaws. The hallway was dim, shafts of noonlight illuminated thick motes of dust suspended in the brooding air. Dallah opened the door of the designated room where she usually met Azbere. Letting her eyes adjust to the darkness, she heard the door quietly click shut behind her.
"Azbere?" she asked.
Before a tremendous blow on her head smashed her into oblivion.

Idenya burst into Michelle's rooms, confronting the startled sister with a glare before letting Air close the doors. As Michelle was about to speak, Idenya stalked over to her while warding the room against listeners, grasped Michelle's arm, and hurridly told her what she'd just witnessed: "...and I believe she's still there, at the 'Kiss of the Unfaithful'."

Michelle was obviously trying to take all this in, but it wasn't working, and she wanted to sit down. She asked Idenya, "Why did you find it necessary to follow her? What—"

Idenya burst in with frustration: "Sister, if we could leave it at simple curiosity on my part, especially given all the accusations thrown about in the last few days, the return of Daelin Sedai...." Taking a deep breath to recompose herself, she started again: "The point is that I felt strong weaves being woven, and Dallah never came out. I have reason to believe her bouquet was a signal, but how often do you see a message from The Network turn into a scene like I just described? I'm certain Dallah's in dire trouble. We can sit down and discuss my indiscretions for the remainder of the day, or we can return to the inn, hopefully with another sister in tow, and try to help Dallah. If you know of another sister we can trust—and I don't care about her Ajah—lets grab her and go. We have no more time for talk."

With that, Idenya dropped the listening wards and turned to leave. Michelle said, "Wait, Idenya... there's Daelin. If the power you felt was as strong as you said, then she would be our greatest asset. And I'm positive she means no harm to anybody at the Tower. She will help." Idenya nodded, and waited for Michelle to prepare for a trip into the city, and they left together, headed for the rooms of Daelin Sedai.

Apparently the news of her return had spread among the Red Sisters like wildfire. She studied the faces of the two Aes Sedai who had just burst into her room. She vaguely remembered them, but now was not the time to question identities. Their expressions spoke of a dire emergency.
"What is wrong?" Daelin demanded, rising from her seat.
They quickly explained to her the situation involving Dallah... how she had simply vanished. Daelin's lips tightened.
"Yes, I will go with you. Lead the way." Gathering her cloak, she wrapped it around her shoulders and followed the other women towards the stables.

Yavanne saw Idinya and Michelle coming down the Halls, and they seemed worried...When she asked them about it, they explained her their fears about Dallah. "I will go with you if you have nothing against it...I will only get my panther...as there is noone better to find any scents or tracks...and if your fears are right and someone messed with Dallah they will pay in blood for that..."

Idenya was heartened to find Daelin Sedai more than interested to help the new Red Ajah leader. She'd been skeptical when Michelle insisted that Daelin could be trusted, but then, Michelle was Dallah's shadow—she acted like her warder, at times!—so if she said Daelin could be trusted, than so be it.

However, Idenya shivered as they were leaving the Reds' quarters: few other Reds were to be found in the halls, and one just glared at them as they passed, not even bothering to ask where they were going with such purpose in their step. Idenya began to wonder if their own Sisters might be more than indirectly involved with Dallah's... trouble.

Finally, another Sister approached and startled Idenya out of her reverie: Yavanne Sedai was not only concerned, but demanding to help! Idenya was more than happy to hear this, as were the other Sisters. Particularly the former Red Head Daelin: one could tell she'd been disturbed with the factionism within her Ajah since her departure, but now she had a more fierce, even vicious, look about her. As if she were about to single-handedly lead this small calvary into battle.

Daelin and Yavanne were stalking ahead of Idenya and Michelle, speaking just loud enough for just the party of four to hear. While Idenya hadn't been sure about the bouquet being an Eyes & Ears signal—she wasn't even sure the bouquet was precisely as she described it, because she'd been following Dallah from a distance—Daelin surely was certain of it, especially after hearing the name of the Inn.

Daelin was asking the rest of the Sisters if they had any nodes in the Network which might be trustworthy in any circumstances. Yavanne kept starting a sentence, then letting her eyes go wide, then closing her mouth. Idenya didn't speak at all: she just racked her brain. She had two local Eyes and Ears in the network, but one was questionable in the best of times. The other... "I have one contact, she's actually rather close to the area where Dallas was... last seen. She is low-level, but she might have heard something useful."

By the time all four Red sisters got to the stables and mounted their horses, a few possible trustworthy E&Es had come up. Idenya and Michelle galloped out after first Daelin, then Yavanne. Idenya didn't know if Daelin was intending to go straight to the Inn, or to one of the Red spys that had been deemed possibly trustworthy, but she didn't really care as long as they could get to their Head and help her in time...

The four Sisters rode at a hurried pace towards the center of Tar Valon, with Daelin leading the way on her chestnut gelding. She wasn't sure if she had just taken the lead naturally, or if the others had expected her to, but everything had seemed to fall into place. Yavanne, a fairly young Red, followed close behind while Michelle and Idenya brought up the rear.
Her mind whirled. Dallah... disappeared? And right as the factions with the Ajah began to show animosity. Surely it couldn't be... no Sister would dare raise a hand against another. Punishment for such was hardly worth it. And Dallah? The disappearance of such a high ranking Sister would raise questions as surely as if the Amyrlin was kidnapped. No Aes Sedai could be so stupid.
Or so she thought. Perhaps the tensions really were strained to the breaking point.
The inn appeared before them and Daelin dismounted almost before the horse stopped moving. Striding inside, she ignored the looks of the other patrons and headed directly for the plump woman who clearly ran the place. Giving her a calculated look, Daelin walked into a private dining room without a word and sat down regally. The other Reds followed behind. Sure enough, the innkeeper had gotten the hint and scurried in, closing the doors behind them. Daelin promptly wove a ward against eavesdropping around the room and glared at the innkeeper. The woman's face had a sheen of perspiration to it and she wrung her apron nervously.
"What brings me the honor of your presence, Sisters?"
"We are looking," Daelin said deliberately. "For someone. Pray do tell us the happenings at your inn today."

Yavanne positioned herself near the windows, she was looking at innkeeper who was standing before Daelin Sedai and was speaking about tavern patrons...apparently she did not notice any woman looking like Dallah leaving the inn...and anyone taking Dallah ot of the inn must have passed the innkeeper...then some words strucked her ..."There only strange men I saw today was servants to the carpet maker, from the docks....they were here to get old carpets and give me new, but I did not order anything like this...they said it was a gift, but I...". ""Enough- stopped him Yavanne - Those men were propably waiting for Dallah, and then they carried her in one of the carpets - but how they could take her in the carpet...there are no traces of the battle - opposed Idinya. Then they heard a little scrubbing to the door. Yavanne opened it and it was her panther, Guenhvywar behaving as she would like to show something. Yavanne ollowed her pet to one of the rooms, and animal guided her to the broken chair...on one of the legs was a piece of hair and blood. Sisters looked in silence at the piece of wood...kidnapping an Ajah Head was bad enough...but this, this was an outrage. "Why anyone would like to act foolish like this - asked Daelin - they couldn't expect they will be left unjudged. Maybe someone tried to remove Dallah - replied Michele - only to continue messing among our ranks..and...and take control.
- First we have to find Dal - said Yavanne with angry voice - this will allow us to question her kidnappers and find the master of this plot - But if they won't like to talk - asked Idinya - They will sister, they will - smiled coldly Yavanne