Strick smiled and squeezed his arm, while their exchanged look lengthened.
“Do… do I dare ask?” Fulcris asked nervously.
“Fulcris my friend, I will tell you. Not just now. I repeat, though: what are you going to do? Stay? Go? Find work here, or on the next caravan out?”
“I will tell you,” Fulcris said with dignity, “but not just now.” And he turned and walked away.
“That’s interesting,” Ahdio said. When Strick said nothing but only gave him a questioning look, he said, “He’s the fifth man. The one I told Cusharlain I couldn’t be sure about because he isn’t a Sanctuarite and I don’t know enough about him.”
Strick smiled and looked at the door that had closed on Fulcris. “I do,” he said, so quietly. “Proud fellow, isn’t he!”
“Um. That’s three of us. Strick-you said ‘you know’ when I asked what you are…”
Strick looked at him again, into the other big man’s eyes. “Aye. Three spells in your place, none dark-though I can’t be sure about the cat I’ve never seen. I doubted coincidence.”
“You can… see spells?!”
Strick nodded. “Usually. Often, anyhow. Not always. It’s an ability.”
“God-it’s a talent! A marvelous talent!”
“No, Ahdio. An ability. I paid. I paid for all of it.”
Ahdio met the gaze of those large blue eyes for quite some time before he said,
“I won’t ask, Strick.”
“Good. I won’t either. Tell Avenestra she has a room at the Lizard tonight and tomorrow night.”
“I’ll tell her. And I won’t ask, Strick.”
The man named Frax arrived clean and military-looking for his interview. He had been a palace guard. Then the Bey sins came. Now Beysibs guarded the palace.