food and passed his own device to Smythe, Collette making a point of using only that one too. It was real, but the idea was that Smythe wasn't taking any more risk than they were.
The small talk was about the festival and how exciting things were this year, the singers and free food, events and all that. Countess Ross confided that staying with Tor was much nicer than the palace, which was, she assured them, still very nice, but those that insisted on staying there tended to be a little too concerned with the appearance of position.
“It's just a shame that the King and Queen can't come here for a night and get away from their own world for a bit. That would be delightful, but a lot of work to set up. The Royal Guard won't allow it I imagine. I'm surprised that Prince Alphonse is allowed, to be honest. Isn't it dangerous?” This came from the giant Countess who directed it past her husband and Petra to Rolph directly.
“Not really. This place is more fortified than it looks and there are guards here that no one knows about.” He leaned close to her and whispered loud enough for the top quarter of the table to hear.
“If you look around you can spot the Royal Guard all over the place. They're the ones grinding their teeth over the change in routine.” He smiled suddenly getting a polite chuckle from the table, echoed by those too far down to have heard. When in doubt, join in.
It was in the book. Chapter six.
After dinner he “retired” with Smythe, but didn't take anyone else along. It didn't concern them at all and no one thought it was odd. People often did that when they had to speak of either secret matters, or things so boring it would be tedious to guests still at table.
They went to a small room with wood panel walls, unstained looking but so rich and dark that the sanded appearance gave them a soft feel, smooth like silk. There were two large and comfortable chairs, made to be particularly soft to allow them to relax, sinking in a few inches as the furniture hugged their bodies comfortably. Like him, Smythe didn't drink alcohol, so there was a wine decanter filled with apple-pear juice. Tor fought a wince and checked it, both glasses and the outside of the container for poison.
It was his favorite flavor, but he'd nearly died drinking it once and his body remembered that. Just the scent was making his stomach try and knot a little. The amber liquid was cold though, and when he took a sip delicious, even as he nearly gagged on it, his body trying to fight the poison that wasn't there by instinct.
Smythe waited, sipping slowly at the beverage. Finally, slowly, he spoke.
“Was there something you wanted to say to me? I take it that this isn't some clever trap, since you could have killed me a thousand times here already, so…”
Sip, near choke and swallow, a slightly painful thing, then Tor started.
“I'm due to go to Afrak and set up some rivers. It should take a month, maybe slightly longer. I wanted to get permission from you for it though, since I'm assigned to you for the investigation. I don't want to get in the way of it. We need to uncover all the Austran agents, so if I can't go, well, I'll send the gear and some people to set it up. I am the Ambassador… Still the war effort has to come first.” He could do that, Ali would still be safe, even if he wasn't there. He'd sneak over to get married on the day and it would be all right…
Smythe smiled and touched his arm. An odd gesture for the older man.
“Is that all? You want permission to go and do the King’s work, building bridges of support with Afrak? It's… very kind of you to ask. Since we've determined that it was the Austrans, I just assumed that your part was done, and well done too. Those little truth devices… We've cleared more investigations in the last week than normally would be done in a year. I'm almost at a loss as to what to do with myself.”
It was nice to hear really. The devices would make sure that people got an honest hearing. It may not always be popular, especially with people that would have walked with a mere lie before who wouldn't now, but it was fair.
“There is something else…if you seriously have the time?” Tor added casually. Or maybe not that casually since Smythe gave him a wry and slightly sour look.
Smythe humphed at him.
“There always is. So what is it? Want me to help you railroad the Degray girl for the Princess? She's guilty, you can rest your mind there. She'll hang within a week.”
“That's… kind of the problem actually. We need to make certain she wasn't working with anyone else first. Once she's dead we won't have a chance to pick her brain, will we? Karina needs to know for certain that this is really over, and that if Degray had an accomplice, or if someone was backing her, putting her up to the thefts or moving goods, that they're uncovered as well.” Tor shrugged and grinned, it was actually a good point. They needed to get the whole of the weed, including the roots, or part of it could come back.
“Plus, Karina and Alphonse are going with me to Afrak. We want that to be kept quiet, obviously, for safety, but Karina would like things to be ready for her, trial wise, when she gets back, to get it over with, but also to be assured that the whole thing gets a real investigation and that Degray isn't railroaded. That basically means you doing the work. I love Karina, and we’re close personal friends. If I did the investigation, or were even part of it, people might suspect something. They might also be right. I… can't be objective here… I want Lilli dead for this!”
His voice had become surprisingly sharp, so he took a deep breath and smoothed the green silk of his shirt. Taking a deep breath as if he needed to calm down he sat straighter and let his voice become cold.
“But it has to be a real investigation. Justice demands it. Even if it's some secret royal thing behind the scenes. It needs to be real and honest, so that when people find out later, they can look at it and know Lillith Degray had to die and her organization, if she has one, went with her. No doubts, no questions left hanging and no appearance of us having killed her for being unpopular, or inconvenient to the crown or one of the royal family. It has to be real. The case merits it and we need to show it so clearly that anyone trying to ever say different chokes on their words.” Tor felt himself tear up and wiped at his eyes angrily.
The old man shook his head slowly, Tor felt his stomach drop.
“You want a full investigation done in a single month? On a theft ring like this? Trafficking in slaves? It could take a lot longer than that. I understood that Princess Karina was eager to see the end of this, but your point is well taken too, if she can be made to support it. I… to tell the truth, I felt the whole thing rushed, and while I understood why, as some things are best left hidden to save the Princesses pride, I'll hardly be spreading tales across the kingdom about it.” Smythe sat up himself and started to nod softly.
“Very well then, I'll suggest to the King that I've conferred with my… colleague and that we both agree that a more thorough investigation is in order.” The breath Smythe took was huge, filling his giant lungs slowly and let out even slower.
“It's the cowards part, but I'll leave the task of telling the Princess to you. Tell her… Three months? It's the best I can do, and I may need longer.” He looked uneasy.
“Alright. I'll hold Karina and keep her out of the way. She wants justice too, but she may grow impatient. That monster killed her friend. I can't say I blame her for her anger, but you'll have your time.”
Smythe rose.
“Very good then. I'll be at it now.” His eyes shone with excitement, for some unknown reason, and he left without another word.
Chapter ten
They were going to leave the day after King’s week ended, flying by transport to Printer and leaving from there by ship. Petra offered hers, but when it came down to it there were seventy people going with them and Petra only had the one bed. The Royal Guard respected Kolb's people and vice-versa, but they weren't letting the heir and first Princess go to a strange land without them. Tor didn't blame them. It was, on the surface, a stupid idea. Really they should have left Rolph all together, but he wanted to go, and Tor kind of wanted to have another guy to talk to.
It turned out not to be a problem at all. There were lots of men coming with them.
The problem was that Petra's boat just didn't have facilities for a group that large. Even two ships that size wouldn't be enough. The space was there, but it was configured all wrong. Tor looked at the problem, meditated on the state of his own field and decided to risk making something new. It was mainly something he'd already done in
