“And I hadn’t been back in the palace for an hour when a delegation presented a petition for me to intercede with you on Hressos’ behalf,” said Mara. “The delegates also apprised me of the fact that barbarian kahtahfraktoee were riding through the streets and sabering every priest they saw—on your order.”
“You’ve never spoken of any of this before tonight, Mara. Why not?” asked Milo.
She matched his predatory grin, tooth for tooth. “I told you, you could roast them all without upsetting me. Besides, I knew you’d tell me all about it in your own time.” Her brow wrinkled. “But why that elaborate charade, darling, why didn’t you just have him tortured?”
“Torturing a man like that would have accomplished nothing, Mara. The man, for all his misdeeds, is a religious fanatic. He is dead certain that every evil he has wrought has been holy, in that his acts helped perpetuate and strengthen his Church. He would have bitten off his own tongue, ere he imparted to me the information I wanted!”
“So,” Mara inquired, “he unknowingly gave you the names of all the Ekpohteeseel”
He barked a short laugh. “Hardly! There were over three hundred of the ruffians. But he did think of the Grand Master, his illegitimate son, Marios. Him, I had the pleasure of introducing to the artful Master Fyuh-stohn, only a couple of hours later. Marios became a real fountain of information. It was all the scribes could do to keep up with him. Then I gave him a cell next door to his father.”
“It’s all up to you,” put in Mara. “But wouldn’t it be safer to kill them?”
“That precious pair,” snarled her husband, “is undeserving of a quick death. The only man who’s allowed to slop those swine is a deaf mute; the guards on the level above have orders to immediately slay anyone, even the prison-governor who tries to go below—I issued their orders, in person!”
“What,” she asked, “are you going to do with the rest of the Ehpohteesee?”
“When the Church has been weakened and discredited to the point that witnesses are no longer afraid to come forward, I’m going to try them for their crimes. Until then, I’ve a number of schemes to keep them busy. Shortly, they’ll start repairs on the east trade road. Next spring and summer will come the cleaning and repair of Goohm—at the end of the campaign, I mean Goohm to become Freefighter headquarters. Next winter, they can go back on the roads.”
“How in God’s name do you propose to finance road work and fortress repairs, Milo?” Mara demanded. “You had to take Lek … Lord Alexandras’ kind offer of a loan to finish paying off your Freefighters.”
“Since your so-called delegation told you so much, they couldn’t have failed” to mention my ‘desecration’ of the cathederal.” At her nod, he went on. “Inside and under the main altar, we found more than two hundred thousand ounces of gold, mostly in coins, as’ well as over a million ounces of silver! When we tore apart the Metropolitan’s quarters, we found even more gold and enough cut gemstones to cover the top of that table— mostly fine diamonds, with a few rubies and opals and one pouch of very nice emeralds.”
Stunned, she could only say, “But . . . but where? How . . . ?”
“Many ways, Mara. Perhaps a twentieth was out of free-will offerings and contributions. As for the~rest … well, The Holy and Apostolic Church of Kehnooryos Ehlahs owns farms, Socks, herds, ships, warehouses, orchards, vineyards, extensive properties in the various cities, at least two quarries … and more than half the brothels in the realm! They don’t own the brothels openly, of course, but through dummies—willing confederates amongst the laity.
“But there’s more. You wouldn’t believe the quantities of wine and brandies and cordials we found in Hreesos’ cellars, and never a single tax brand on any of them; so, he’s obviously been smuggling. But it’s his other little side line that really infuriates me.”
She had seen that look in his eyes before, but only in battle, and seeing it as they lazed before a fire in their own palace frightened her.