Four and Twenty Blackbirds

'I have a pack-mule in your courtyard, and a riding-mule,' Tal said dazedly. 'I left them tied to the post there.'

'I'll see that they are taken care of.' She rose quickly to her feet, and looked briefly to Ardis for further instructions.

'You can come back for him here,' Ardis said. 'Oh—and draw out his first quarter's pay, would you?'

'Of course, High Bishop.' The young woman left in a swirl of rust-colored robes and anticipation.

Ardis settled back in her chair, secretly a little pleased to have so startled the stone-faced constable. 'There are times when it is very useful to have no one to answer to but one's own self. So, Guard Rufen, you are now a Special Inquisitor. That means that no one can hinder you in whatever you wish to ask or wherever you wish to go. That which is told to you is under the same veil of secrecy as the Confessional; you may tell it to no one except your direct superior, which is myself, since you are the only Inquisitor the Kingsford Abbey now boasts. Within reason, and Kayne will tell you when you have transgressed those bounds, you may requisition anything you need from the Abbey resources. That includes bribe-money—'

She laughed at his shocked expression. 'Oh, come now, Inquisitor Rufen—do you take me for a cloistered unworldly? You will have to bribe people; often only money will loosen the tongue when not even threat of eternal damnation will have an effect. Simply tell Kayne what it is for, and keep strict accounts.'

'Yes, High Bishop,' he said faintly.

'Come to Kayne for whatever you need,' she continued. 'Report to me once a day if you have anything new to report, to Kayne if you have nothing. Take your meals in the Abbey or in the city, as you prefer, but meals in the city will have to come under your own expenses. Wear your uniform as you deem advisable;always within the Abbey, but outside of the Abbey, you may choose to wear civilian clothing. As a Special Inquisitor, your duty is to investigate whatI deem necessary, not religious irregularities. Those are for the General Inquisitors, of which this Abbey has none. The city constables will not interfere with you when you show them your papers—but in any event, once they know you by sight, they won't bother you. I'll tell Fenris only that you are conducting an investigation for me. Only Duke Arden's men might continue to impede you, and they won't after I send my cousin a little note. The people who will know your true rank will be myself, Captain Fenris, Captain Othorp, Duke Arden, and Novice Kayne. Any questions?'

Tal Rufen still looked as if he had fallen from a great height onto his head. 'Ah—just one,' he said, finally. 'Why?'

As an answer, she tossed him her cousin's letter—for those who did not know Talaysen—or Gwydain, the name he had been born with—the contents were innocuous enough.

Tal read it through quickly; that answered one of her questions: he was obviously not only able to read, but fairly literate.Which means he may well be an amateur scholar of history. I shall have to be sure to let him make free with the Abbey library. He got to the last paragraph, and she watched him as he read it through twice.

He looked up at her. 'This Talaysen—this is—?'

'Free Bard Talaysen, Master Wren, Laurel Bard, and advisor to the King of Birnam.'

'And the leader of the Free Bards, as well as a person respected and admired among the Gypsies. I see.' He handed the letter back to her. 'I think we can probably assume that most, if not all, of the murders he speaks of bear the same signature as the ones I told you about.'

'I would say so.' She put the letter away in her desk. 'You also asked for a mage; I can offer you two. The first is a fellow Justiciar who also has some other abilities—he can touch minds, and sometimes read the past from objects. His name is Arran, and he just happens to be another cousin of mine.'

The corner of Tal's mouth twitched a little at that; the first hint that he had a sense of humor. 'Are you related to half the Kingdom?' he asked.

She sighed. 'Only a third. Oh, not really, but sometimes it feels as if I am,' she replied feelingly. 'Especially when they all seem to have favors they want granted.'

'Well, it looks as if you are granting another,' he observed cautiously.

She shook her head. 'No. That wasn't what I meant when I handed you that letter. I would have done this if Talaysen hadn't sent that letter and that request. It was simply a confirmation of everything you told me, with the additional information that there were more victims than evenyou knew about. It is the duty of the Justiciar to see that all creatures have justice. Generally, miscreants are brought before us, but it is fully within our power to order investigations when the secular authorities are moving too slowly.'

'Or not at all,' Tal muttered bitterly, giving her a brief glimpse of how deeply his anger ran that he had not been heeded.

'Or not at all,' she agreed. 'It is our duty to see to it thatnothing impedes an investigation that needs to be made. Not even when suspicion indicates a suspect within the Brotherhood of the Church.'