The others murmured among themselves, nibbling on little pastries rich with nuts and creamed bananas, sipping at their wine. And looking at me, Goddess be my shield.
“My lord honors me beyond my worth,” he said smoothly. I may not be a rhetorician, but I’ve been listening to Adrian all my life. “If my lord will open his mind to me, I will assuredly do my poor best to aid him.”
Redvers nodded. “As you may know,” he began, “I was recently cheated—foully cheated—of my legitimate election as Speaker of the Popular Assembly. By corruption! Unprecedented, extra-constitutional corruption! Interference from the Council!”
Esmond darted a quick look at Audsley. Audsley’s mentor Marcomann had been the one who ended the last round of civil wars, and he’d restored the powers of the Council and restricted those of the Popular Assemblies . . . Audsley smiled and nodded.
“To cleanse the State, a fire is needed. Drastic measures! Only thus can justice, peace and good order be restored!”
Grave nods, glittering eyes.
“My lord, may the gods themselves aid your enterprise.” Esmond shot to his feet, then went to one knee, drawing and offering his sword. “I see that a new age is about to dawn for the Confederacy!”
“Well, well, that’s very handsome of you, Esmondi,” Redvers said. “Each one of us has a part to play, you see. Councillor Audsley is collecting a sufficient force among Marcomann’s veterans—many of them living in poverty, despite their many services to the State.”
Having blown their loot and land grants on whores, dice and wine, Esmond thought. They’d come back from the Western provinces staggering under the gold . . . or rather the innumerable slaves they’d taken had staggered. Marcomann had used them to climb to the highest office. Usually the Confederacy had two Speakers, one for the Popular Assembly and one for the Council; Marcomann had been Sole Speaker from the day his troops marched in and the proscriptions began to the utterly unexpected day of his retirement. He’d died in bed, too, which was a strong argument for the belief that the gods did intervene in human affairs.
“These other gentlemen will rise in arms on the appointed day. Some will seize the public buildings; others will start fires and riots to distract the City Companies. And you, my dear Esmondi . . .” Redvers smiled. “It struck me just now . . . there are so many foreigners in Vanbert these days. Emeralds especially; why, there are twenty or thirty Emeralds in my household, aren’t there? And you’re what passes for a great and famous man among them, aren’t you?”
“I have some small influence, yes, my lord,” Esmond said. A Five Year victor did have a fair number who knew his name. That wasn’t exactly what Redvers was looking for, but Esmond had no intention of lessening his value. He’d already heard far too much to live if they suspected for an instant he wasn’t with them or wasn’t useful.
“And you’ll be rewarded for it,” Redvers nodded. “Why, even Confederate citizenship . . . perhaps the narrow stripe and a modest estate in the provinces.” He beamed, the furrows beside his fleshy beak nose deepening. “All you must do is call on the Emeralds and whatnot to rise and kill the leading corruptionists on the appointed day. Won’t that cause confusion!”
“My lord, it’s brilliant,” Esmond said, his voice hushed and sincere. “But please . . . pardon my ignorance . . . what will Councillor Ion Jeschonyk be doing? I’ve never seen the Speaker of the Council abroad in the streets without two dozen of his retainers, many of them army veterans or games fighters. And if any of the magistrates should escape and reach loyal garrisons . . . loyal to them, I mean . . .”
“Clever, these Emeralds,” one of the men drawled.
“Well, my boy, all these things have been considered,” Redvers said indulgently. “Indeed, mine is the hand—along with a few of my friends here—who will strike down the tyrant Jeschonyk. We’ll call on him at home, you see, in the third hour of the morning, before his clients arrive to pay their respects. We’ll stab him as he comes to greet us, and with him dead nobody will dare lift a hand against so many Fathers of the State. And Justiciar Demansk has twenty thousand men under arms not far from the capital, the levy for the coming Island campaign.”