patrol that arrested me originally, I suppose--must have come
across Master Xiphias, Patera Incus, and Chenille. I was surprised
to see them here, but I believe I understand now. Sand must have
sent the other man back here with them and gone on alone until he
found me, perhaps because he'd heard my voice--I'd been talking
to His Cognizance. Is that correct?'
'Where is this tunnel, Patera?' Maytera Marble asked. 'Are you
talking about a tunnel underneath the house?'
Potto grinned at her, displaying gleaming teeth.
Blood put down his drink. 'Yeah, we're right over it, Mama, and
it hooks up with a bunch of others.'
Loris told her, 'That's the first item you ought to pass on to your
principals, Maytera. They think they have us like rats in a cauldron.
Nothing could be further from the truth. We can leave this house,
and them, whenever we wish.'
Blood added, 'Only I don't want to. It's my house.'
She looked thoughtful, a finger pressed to her cheek.
'Bad hole.' Oreb ruffled his feathers apprehensively. Chenille
whispered, 'Your bird was down there with us. Auk had him on the
boat.'
'You're sunburned!' Inwardly, Silk reproached his own stupidity.
'I've been looking at you--gaping actually, I suppose. I hope you'll
excuse it, but I couldn't imagine how your face had gotten so red, so
close to the red-brown color of a wood-carving my mother used to
have.'
'She wore _nothing_ on the boat,' Incus interposed. 'Then my robe.
Maytera _forced_ them to give her that gown.'
Loris snapped, 'Is this germane?'
'Perhaps not,' Silk admitted. 'It's just that Chenille has reminded
me of a childhood incident, Councillor.'
Loris waved aside Chenille's sunburn, tossing the largest fragment
of the bookend onto the rosewood end table at Maytera
Marble's elbow. 'Marble? Isn't that your name, Maytera? The calde
just reminded us of that.'
'It is.'
'That was what this knickknack was, I'd say. Real marble from
the Short Sun Whorl, precisely like you.' For an instant, Loris's face
was no longer attractive. 'I'll leave that chunk there so you don't
forget it.'
'I shan't,' Maytera Marble promised. 'It would be wise for you to
keep in mind that you're surrounded by thousands of well-armed
troops, Councillor. I suppose most people in my position would be
inclined to exaggerate their numbers, but I won't. I'll tell you the
truth, so you won't be able to say that you were deceived, or even
misled, afterward. There are two companies of Trivigaunti
pterotroopers, almost the entire Third Brigade of the Civil Guard,
and elements of the Fourth. I asked Generalissimo Oosik what he
meant by 'elements' and he said four floaters and the heavy
weapons company. Besides all those, there are about five thousand
of Maytera Mint's people, with more arriving from the city all the
time. They've heard that Patera Silk's in here, and they want to
charge the house. When I left, General Saba and Generalissimo
Oosik were afraid they might not be able to prevent them without
using Guardsmen and creating more friction.'
'Fight now?' Oreb inquired.
Smiling, Maytera Marble turned to Silk. 'That's the bird I saw
hopping into your kitchen when Doctor Crane was treating you,
isn't? Later on my glass, and on your shoulder like that in the
garden. I knew I'd seen him before.
'No, little bird, no fighting. Not now, or not yet. But Generalissimo
Oosik told me quite frankly that if there's no way to stop
Maytera Mint's insurgents from attacking short of firing on them,
he'll stand back and let them do it. You see, I confided to the
children that your master was in here. They seem to have told a
great many other people before we left the city, so the whole thing's
my fault. I feel very badly indeed about that, and I'm trying to make
amends.'
Blood added, 'But she won't say who told her. Or have you
changed your mind about that, Mama?'
'Certainly not. I gave my word.'
Loris, who had been leaning against the mantel, left it to stand in
front of Maytera Marble. 'This little conference has already run too
long. Allow me to tell you what we want, Maytera. Then you can go
back out there and repeat it to the Trivigauntis and Mint's five
thousand rioters, if there are actually that many, which I am
ungentlemanly enough to doubt. Our position is not negotiable.
You accept our terms or we'll kill these prisoners, Silk included, and
crush the rebellion.'
Incus stood again. 'You have _no_ authority--'
Potto's fist striking Incus's cheek sounded almost as loud as the
breaking of the bookend.
'So, we've come to that.' Maytera Marble smoothed the black
skirt covering her metal thighs. 'It will be needlers and knives next,
no doubt.'
Silk said, 'I warn you, Councillor Potto, not to do that again.'
'Or you'll break my neck?' Potto's smile was that of a fat boy
contemplating a stolen pie. 'Beat little butcher, big butcher bark?
We've had some games of strength already. If you've forgotten
them, I can teach you the rules again.'
Incus spat blood. 'The just _gods_ avenge the wrongs of _augurs_. A
doom...'
Potto lifted his hand, and Incus fell silent.
'No hit,' Oreb suggested.
'The gods may or may not,' Silk murmured. 'I don't know, and if
I were forced to choose, I'd probably say that they did nothing of
the sort.'
Loris applauded with a sardonic smile; a half-second too late,
Potto joined him.
Abruptly Silk's voice dominated the room. 'The law does,
