‘And I went right along with you,’ Caalador added. ‘We both
walked right over the top of the simplest and most obvious
answer. How could we have missed it?’
‘if I wanted to be spiteful, I could say that it was because you’re
men, Master Caalador,’ Baroness Melidere smiled sweetly, ‘and
men just adore unnecessary complications. It’s not nice to be
spiteful, though, so I won’t say it.’ She gave the two thieves an
arch little look. “I may think it, but I won’t say it.” she added.
“it’s very easily explained, your Majesty,’ Teovin replied calmly
‘You’ve already touched on it yourself.’ Teovin, the Director of
the Secret Police at the Interior Ministry, was a dry, spare sort
of man with no really distinguishing features. He was so ordinary
-looking that Ehlana felt him to be an almost perfect secret
policeman.
‘And what is this brilliant explanation that I’ve already discovered
without even noticing it?’ Sarabian asked acidly.
Teovin held up the yellowed sheet the Emperor had just given
him. ‘As your Majesty pointed out, the ink on this document
has faded rather badly. The information in our files is vital to
the security of the Empire, so we can’t let time erase the documents.
The files are constantly reviewed, and any document
that shows signs of approaching illegibility is copied off to preserve
it.’
‘Why hasn’t that one in your hand been updated then,
Teovin?’ the Emperor asked. “it’s barely legible.’
Teovin coughed diffidently. ‘Ah – budgetary considerations,
your Majesty,’ he explained. ‘The Chancellery of the Exchequer
saw fit to cut our appropriation this year. They’re strange over
at Exchequer. They always act as if it were their own personal
money.’
‘They do rather, don’t they?’ Sarabian laughed. The Emperor,
Ehlana noted, was very fast on his feet, instantly adjusting to
surprises. ‘Chancellor Gashon’s hands start to shake every time
I start talking about replacing broken tiles in the throne-room.
I’m glad we had the chance to straighten this out, my friend. I
commend you for your devotion to your duty and your concern
for the documents which have been placed in your care.’
“I live but to serve, your Majesty.’ Teovin paused. “I wonder
might I have a word with Interior Minister Kolata? There are
some matters – strictly routine, of course – that should be
brought to his attention.’
Sarabian laughed. ‘Afraid not, old boy,’ he said easily. ‘You
wouldn’t be able to keep his attention for very long today.’
‘Oh?’
‘He got some tainted fish at supper last night, and he’s been
vomiting into a pail since just after midnight. We keep checking
the pail, but his toenails haven’t come out as yet. Poor Kolata.
I can’t remember when I’ve seen a man so sick.’
‘Do you think it’s serious, your Majesty?’ Teovin sounded
genuinely concerned.
‘Oh, probably not. We’ve all come in contact with bad food
before, so we know what to expect. He thinks he’s going to die,
though. I’d imagine that he rather wishes he could. We have a
physician in attendance. He’ll be all right tomorrow – thinner,
maybe, and a little shaky, but recovered enough to look after
business. Why don’t you come by in the morning? I’ll make sure
that you get in to see him.’
‘As your Majesty commands,’ Teovin said, dropping to the
floor to grovel formally before the Emperor. Then he rose to his
feet and left the audience chamber.
They waited.
‘He’s gone,’ Mirtai reported from the doorway. ‘He just went
out into the courtyard.’
‘Quick, isn’t he?’ Caalador noted. ‘He didn’t so much as turn
a hair when your Majesty handed him that document.’
‘He was ready for us,’ Stragen said. ‘He had his story prepared
well in advance.’
‘His explanation is plausible, Stragen,’ Sarabian pointed out.
‘Of course, your Majesty. Secret policemen are very creative.
We know that Interior Minister Kolata’s involved in treason. He
wouldn’t be much of a threat all by himself, so his entire agency’s
suspect. We almost have to assume that every department head
is involved. As Caalador so colorfully pointed out, anyone who
didn’t join in probably got himself defenestrated just as soon as
he objected.’
‘De-what?’ Melidere asked.
‘Defenestrated. It means getting thrown out of a window
a high one, usually. It doesn’t accomplish very much to push
somebody out of a ground-floor window.’
‘There isn’t really such a word, Stragen. You’re making it up.’
‘No, honestly, Baroness,’ he protested. “it’s a real word. It’s
a common solution to the problem of politically inconvenient
people.’
“I think we’re straying here,’ Ehlana told them. ‘Sarabian, why
did you make up that story about Kolata and the bad fish?’
‘We don’t want his underlings to find out that we’re keeping
him drugged into insensibility most of the time, do we, Ehlana?’
‘No, I suppose not. Are you really going to let Teovin in to
see him tomorrow?’
‘Maybe we should. We’ve been stalling Kolata’s underlings
for three days now, and I’m starting to run out of excuses. We’d
better let one of them see him, or they’ll start to get suspicious.’
‘i’m not sure it’s a good idea, but maybe you’re right. Alcan,
do be a dear and run down to the kitchen. Tell the cooks not to
drug Minister Kolata’s supper tonight.’
‘Yes, your Majesty,’ the girl replied.
‘You might want to tell them to give him an emetic instead,’
Stragen suggested.
‘Why would we want to do that?’ Melidere asked.
‘Emperor Sarabian just told the excellent Teovin that Kolata’s
been throwing up all day. We wouldn’t want people to start
accusing his Majesty of lying through his teeth, would we? Minister
Kolata should show some signs of illness when Teovin visits
him tomorrow. A good strong emetic should take care of that
Alcan giggled wickedly.
The Royal Princess Danae sat on a divan. She was carefully
dressing Mmrr in a new doll’s gown. Over the centuries,
Aphrael had noticed that little Elene girls did that quite frequently.
It didn’t really make any sense to the Child Goddess,
but since it was a long-established custom – ‘Oh, quit,’ she murmured
to her struggling cat. ‘i’m not hurting you.’
Mmrr objected loudly, giving vent to a plaintive yowl filled
to the brim with a heart-rending self-pity.
‘Teovin was right about one thing,’ Stragen was saying to the
rest of them. They had all gathered in the royal apartments
again, and the Thalesian thief was holding forth once more.
Danae liked Stragen, but the fact that he absolutely adored the
sound of his own voice made him a bit tedious at times. ‘The
Ministry of the Interior would die en masse before they’d destroy
a single scrap of paper. The documents they pulled out of those
files are somewhere in the building, and those documents would
tell us things we haven’t even guessed as yet about the conspiracy.
I’d give my teeth to get a look at them.’
‘And spoil your smile, Stragen?’ Melidere objected. ‘Bite your
tongue.’
“I was speaking figuratively, of course.’
‘He’s probably right, your Majesties,’ Caalador agreed, forgoing
the dialect. ‘Those original documents would be an absolute
gold-mine. I don’t know that I’d give my teeth, but I would
give a lot to browse through them.’
Danae rolled her eyes. ‘Elenes,’ she said under her breath. ‘if
it’s all that important to you, Caalador, ‘ she said, ‘go look at them. ‘
We don’t know whur it iz they got ’em hid, little dorlin.”
‘Look for them, Caalador,’ she said with exaggerated patience.
“you’ve got all night every night for the next month or two,
haven’t you? Talen told me once that he can get into any house
in the world in under a quarter of an hour. You two are more
experienced at it, so it probably wouldn’t take you nearly as
long. You’re not going to steal the papers, all you’re going to do
is read them. If you’re just a little careful to put them back where
you found them after you’re finished, nobody will even know
that you’ve seen them.’
Caalador and Stragen looked at each other sheepishly. ‘Why
didn’t we think of that?’ Stragen asked his friend.
“it seems to me I’ve already told you why once,’ Melidere
said. “Shall we go through it again? It’s really a very good idea,
Princess. These two might not be much good at thinking sometimes,
but they’re probably very good burglars. They both have
that shifty, unreliable look about them.’
‘They do just a bit, don’t they?’ Danae agreed. She set Mmrr
down on the floor. ‘There,’ she said, ‘isn’t she adorable?’
The angry lashing of Mmrr’s tail, however, totally spoiled the
effect.
‘The tail definitely detracts from the fashion statement,
Danae,’ Sarabian laughed indulgently.
‘Oh, I can fix that right up, Sarabian,’ she assured him. ‘i’ll
tell you what, Mmrr. How would you like to have me tie a big
pink velvet bow right on the end of your tail to sort of set things