“Why would you not?” His eyes blazed with anger at the idea. Roderigo had a great capacity for anger.
“Women do not take their husband’s names here, and from something the Obermun said, I question whether they take status, either.” Not that Roderigo’s status was higher than her own. If it came to bloodlines, perhaps—her own pedigree was a little better, not that she would ever mention it. “I’m not sure a diplomat’s wife is anybody.” Not that she had ever planned or wanted to be a diplomat’s wife. Not that Rigo had ever been a diplomat before! So many things were not, she reflected—Not the way she would have had them, if she’d had the choice, though there was still the chance this whole business might turn out to be significant and worthwhile.
He smiled humorlessly. “Mark down one more thing we weren’t informed of.”
“I’m not sure I’m right.”
“Your impressions are often the equal of others’ certainties, Marjorie,” he said in his gallant voice, the one he most often used with women, her no less than any other. “I’ll put Asmir Tanlig to checking it.”
“Asmir?”
“One of my Grassian men. I hired two this morning after I managed to shake off the Haunser.” He scraped an extended finger down his palm, flicking it, ridding himself of something sticky, in mime.
“Is the Tanlig man you hired abon?”
“Lord no. I shouldn’t think so. A bastard son of a bon two generations back, perhaps.”
“Lateral,” she exclaimed, pleased with herself for knowing. “The Tanlig must be what they call a lateral.”
“I hired a Mechanic, also.”
This puzzled her. “You hired a mechanic?”
“His name is Mechanic—Philological successor to the ancient Smiths or Wrights. His name is Sebastian Mechanic, and he holds no blood with the aristos, as he was at some pains to tell me.” He sank into a chair and rubbed the back of his neck. “Coldsleep makes me feel as though I’d been ill for weeks.”
“It makes me feel dreamy and remote.”
“My dear—“ he began in the gallant voice, with only an undertone of hostility.
“I know. You think I’m always remote.” She tried to laugh, tried not to show how that hurt. If Roderigo hadn’t thought his wife remote, he wouldn’t have needed Eugenie Le Fevre. If he hadn’t had Eugenie, Marjorie might not be remote. Circle, and around once more, like a horse quadrille, change reins, pirouette, and on to the next figure.
Rigo, point made, changed the subject. “Make note, my dear. Asmir Tanlig. Sebastian Mechanic.”
“What are they to be to you?” She inquired. “Representatives of the middle classes?”
“Little enough of that, except perhaps at Commoner Town. No, representatives of the peasantry, I’d say, who will circulate among the villagers and find out if anything is known. I may need others to find out about Commoner Town, though Tanlig would fit in well enough there, if he cared to. Mechanic, now, he’s peasant through and through, and resentfully prideful about it.”
“Hardly the type of servant to improve our reputation among thebon.”
“Thebonsaren’t to know anything about it. If we are to complete our mission here, we’ll need access to all levels of society. Sebastian is my link to the people of the soil. He knows enough not to call himself to the aristocrats’ attention. And if you want to know how I got on to the men without bon Haunser knowing, the Sanctity charge from Semling told me about them. I’ve already asked them the question.”
“Ah.” She waited, holding her breath.
“They say no.”
“Ah,” she said again, breathing. So there was hope. “No plague here.”
“There is no unexplained illness that they know of. As we agreed. I told them we’re making a survey.”
“They might not have heard….”
“Both of them have kin in Commoner Town. I think they would have heard of any strange sickness. But, it’s early days. The aristocrats have putative control of ninety-nine percent of the planet’s surface-There could be things going on here the commoners simply don’t know of.”
“It pounds as though you have things well in hand.” She sighed, her weariness and hunger suddenly heavier than she could gracefully bear. “Would you have any idea where Anthony might be?”