'It's such a lovely day,' he said, waving a hand at the golden, sunlit city beyond the transparent lift wall as it sped down the outside of the tower, 'that I thought we might meet in Regiano's, if that's all right with you, Dame Honor. I've reserved an upper section to insure privacy.'
Honor looked at him. He met her eyes with the half-hidden worry she'd grown too accustomed to seeing in the faces about her, and the effort he'd put into making his voice light was almost painful. She wished her friends would stop fretting. There was nothing they could do, and their concern was one more burden she longed to shed, but she made herself smile.
'That sounds fine, Willard,' she said.
'Excuse me, My Lady, but that's a security risk.' Neufsteiler blinked in surprise as the auburn-haired head of Dame Honor's guards protested in a soft, foreign accent. 'We haven't had time to check out the restaurant.'
'I think we can live with that, Andrew.'
'My Lady, you've warned this North Hollow you're coming for him.' There was a stubborn edge in Major LaFollet's voice. 'It would solve his problem neatly if something happened to you first.'
Neufsteiler blinked. Was the man suggesting what Neufsteiler thought he was suggesting?
'The same idea had occurred to me,' Honor replied quietly, 'but I don't plan on jumping at shadows. Besides, no one knew we were coming. Even the newsies missed us this time around.'
'The fact that we think no one knows is no proof they don't, My Lady, and you're not exactly the hardest person to identify if someone sees you. Please, I'd feel much better if you stuck to your original schedule and met in Mr. Neufsteiler's offices.'
'Dame Honor, if you think it would be better—' Neufsteiler began, but she shook her head.
'I think it might be safer, Willard, but that doesn't necessarily make it better.' She smiled and touched her chief armsman's shoulder. 'Major LaFollet is determined to keep me alive.' The edge of fondness in her voice surprised Neufsteiler, and he watched her give the Grayson a gentle shake. 'We're still working on how much veto right that gives him—aren't we, Andrew?'
'I'm not asking for veto right, My Lady. All I want is a little commonsense caution.'
'Which I'm willing to give you, within limits.' Honor released LaFollet's shoulder, but her smile didn't fade. Nimitz raised his ears, cocking his head to regard the major with bright green eyes, and she felt the armsman's frustration-tinged concern for her through her link to the 'cat. 'I know I'm a trial to you, Andrew, but I've spent my entire life going where I wanted without armed guards. I'm willing to admit I can't get away with that any longer, but there are limits to the precautions I'm willing to take.'
LaFollet opened his mouth, then hesitated, visibly reconsidering his words, and sighed. 'You're my Steadholder, My Lady,' he said. 'If you want to go to a restaurant, we'll go, and I hope I'm worrying about nothing. But if anything does happen, I expect you to take my orders.'
He gave her a mulish look, and she nibbled her lower lip as she gazed back down at him. Then she nodded. 'All right, Andrew. If something happens, you're in charge. I'll even put up with your telling me 'I told you so.''
'Thank you, My Lady. I hope you don't have to,' LaFollet said. Honor patted his shoulder again, then looked back at Neufsteiler.
'In the meantime, Willard, where are we on our Grayson funds transfer?'
'Um, we're doing fine, Milady,' Neufsteiler had to give himself a mental shake at the change of subject, 'though I'm afraid the transaction was a bit more complicated than you apparently assumed. Since you're a Manticoran subject and your major financial holdings are here, you're technically subject to Manticoran corporate taxes even on out-system investments. There are ways around that, however, and I've already transferred four million to Regent Clinkscales. I drew up the incorporation papers under Grayson law; that let us take advantage of the most-favored-nation status and the tax credit incentives the Crown has extended to Grayson. In combination, that was enough to get us off with no tax burden at all on this one, but it put us right at the limit for a single- investor project, unless we can get a special exemption from the Exchequer. I think we can, under the circumstances, but given your status as steadholder, it might not be a bad idea to transfer everything to Grayson. I'm still looking at your steadings fiscal structure, but there are two or three very interesting Grayson tax provisions that—'
Honor nodded, reaching up to stroke Nimitz and listening with half her attention while the lift whizzed down the five-hundred-story tower and she stared out at the Star Kingdom's thriving capital. She knew her memory would play it all back for her, word for word, when she needed to think about it. Just now she had other things on her mind, and as long as Willard was satisfied with his financial maneuvers, she could concentrate on what really mattered.
Regiano's was a high-ceilinged, airy restaurant that sprawled up and down through a five-story atrium. It fell midway between Dempsey's and Cosmo's for sheer swank, but it had a lively yet relaxed air all its own, and if its staff weren't accustomed to seeing Sphinx treecats for lunch, they'd recovered quickly. No one had suggested anything about leaving pets at the door, and they'd produced a high-chair for him with commendable speed. Besides, the food was good. It was not the 'authentic Old Earth Italian' cuisine Regiano's owners claimed—Honor had met real Italian cooking and knew the difference—but it was tasty enough for her to forgive them, and their wine cellar was excellent.
She sat back to let the waiter remove her plate and sipped a glass of the house rose. Its pleasant little bite suggested a Sphinx vineyard, and she let it roll over her tongue while she waited for the waiters to complete their duties and disappear.
She and her companions sat on a platform of polished golden oak that floated eight meters above the floor. She couldn't decide whether the architect had used grav plates under the platform or corner tractors from the overhead. It could have been either, for there were no other platforms directly above or beneath, but it didn't really matter. The hovering effect was pleasant, and its position gave them both the privacy of isolation and a commanding lookout post for Andrew LaFollet.
She looked over her shoulder at the major and felt a pang of remorse. He and his men hadn't eaten, and they couldn't quite hide their unhappiness. The very things that made her table's position so pleasant also brought it into clear sight of everyone. LaFollet had done his very best not to wince when he looked at all the possible sightlines, but his unhappy acceptance made her feel a little guilty. She supposed any good security officer required a streak of paranoia, and she made a mental note to keep that in mind for the future. There was no point in distressing someone so obviously devoted to her well-being as long as she could compromise without feeling like a prisoner.
The last waiter vanished down the platform stairs, and she lowered her glass and looked at Neufsteiler. They'd finished all her official business over lunch; now it was time for the real purpose of her visit.
'Well?' she asked quietly.
Neufsteiler glanced around, checking for eavesdroppers out of sheer instinct, then shrugged.
'You can't get to him, Milady,' he said, equally quietly. 'He's holed up in his official residence, and he's only coming out to visit the Lords.'
Honor frowned and ran an index finger up and down the stem of her wineglass while she berated herself. There were advantages to the approach she'd taken—at the very least, the entire Kingdom knew what North Hollow had attempted—but she'd also warned him of what she intended, and he'd done the one thing she hadn't counted on.
He was hiding from her, and it was proving surprisingly effective. As long as he refused to sue for slander, she might as well not even have her illegal recording, unless she chose to hand it directly to the media, and that could have disastrous consequences for the people who'd obtained it for her. And as long as he avoided meeting her face-to-face, no one could accuse him of declining her challenge. He was trying to wait her out, counting on the Navy to order her out of the home system sooner or later, and she wondered if he'd heard about the orders the Admiralty had already cut. She had five days, possibly six before
It was the coward's approach, but that shouldn't have surprised her. And, in the meantime, the Opposition 'faxes were playing the refrain she'd half expected. Most were doing their best to turn her into some sort of ravening monster, lashing out at her old enemy in pure hatred without a scrap of proof, but the more dangerous ones simply oozed sympathy for her. She'd been through so much, lost the man she loved in the brutal
