austere enough for a monk.
Several Bruglioni youngsters, with bodyguards, were there to meet the new man, whose as yet ill-defined duties included teaching them how not to end up like their kinsmen in the Madhur Plaza. The bodyguards did not look comfortable. Only a glance was needed to see that they were not what they pretended.
Paludan and Gervase Saluda made no introductions. The senior Bruglioni asked, 'Have you been using your time wisely, Hecht?'
'That's a subjective question, but I think so. I've been getting to know this place and the people who make it work.'
'I've seem him,' one of the young Bruglioni sneered. 'Always with the cooks and servants. There's a valuable pastime for a warrior.'
'If you'd known your staff you might have recognized Father Obilade's inconsistent behavior beforehand. In which case, those who perished in the Madhur Plaza wouldn't have been there in the first place. The man you discount, overlook, or take for granted will be the man who brings you down.'
'Be quiet,' Paludan told his youngsters. 'You're here to learn, nothing more.' The rage that drove him was close to the surface tonight.
The kid who had mouthed off was not yet sixteen. Dugo Bruglioni was a grandson of Soneral Bruglioni and the son of the oldest Bruglioni slain in the Madhur Plaza. Dugo bullied the staff. And did not do much else.
The help dared not fight back. Jobs were scarce and precious.
Paludan continued, 'I don't want to hear anybody talk. Hecht. How well do you know the city?'
'Not well at all, sir. The Arniena gave me no chance to explore. My role in their scheme was defense and instruction.'
'Learn your way around. Without attracting attention.'
'Yes, sir.' He was being told to go live his secret dreams, with pay.
'You worked with the Brotherhood in the Connec. Did you develop a passion for their ways?'
'None whatsoever. They're arrogant, self-important fools. They deserved what they got Though they were executing orders from the Patriarch. Which got modified every five minutes by the Bishop of Antieux. Serifs was such an idiot that nobody who didn't know him will believe the truth. I hear Principatй Doneto had him thrown off a cliff because he was such a miserable excuse for a priest.'
'I've heard that rumor myself,' Gervase said. 'But it isn't true. Bishop Serifs did die in a fall, but while trying to escape from a Braunsknechts officer after he'd been captured by the Emperor's men. His death really was an accident'
'Really?' Else said. 'That is interesting.'
'Rumors make everything more exciting.'
Paludan asked, 'So you have no love for the Brotherhood of War?'
'None. As an organization. There were individuals I found likable. Why?'
'The Brotherhood murdered six Bruglioni. Including my only sons, Acato and Gildeo. And several nephews, one of them the family's hope for the future. If I fall down dead right now, Dugo will take over. And would ignore you and Gervase. And would put the family down the shitter in a year. Unless one of our country cousins has sense enough to cut his throat'
Else said, 'It may not fit the Bruglioni way but I have a suggestion.'
Paludan brightened dramatically. He did entertain genuine worries about the Bruglioni future. “Tell me.'
'Change the rules. Call in the best Bruglioni who've left the city.'
Paludan grunted, gave Else a dark look.
Else said, 'See who's doing the job out there. Bring them back where their competence can do the most good.'
Paludan and Gervase stared at Else like he was a genius talking with the mouth of a fool. Because there was a tacit understanding that Bruglioni who left the city freed themselves from their Brothen obligations.
Paludan said, 'That has possibilities, Hecht. I'll consider it.' With condescension. “Tell us how to avenge ourselves on the Brotherhood.'
'What? Revenge? The men responsible are dead.'
Paludan scowled at Else, possibly wondering why he was ignorant one moment and well informed the next. Was he not supposed to know? What about the heads? How about what the priest went through before he fell into the Teragi a half mile upstream from Castella dollas Pontellas? Everyone in the Bruglioni citadel knew all that. Which meant the details would be common knowledge outside the citadel, too.
Else said, 'In your place, I'd worry more about protecting myself from the Brotherhood.'
'That's a good point, Paludan,' Gervase said. 'We don't want to get into a war with them.'
Else suggested, 'Give them the men who did the killing. Say they exceeded their orders.'
'That's what they did do. They were just supposed to grab Rodrigo Cologni. So my boys could rescue Rodrigo from them. But the Brotherhood turned up. And Obilade's patsies had minds of their own. They were like supernatural monsters. Anyway, I couldn't give them up if I wanted. Obilade was the only one who knew how to get in touch.'
Gervase said, 'We're not going to have any choice about bringing family in from the country, Paludan. We need more people here with a stake in keeping family secrets.'
Paludan whined, 'What happened? Ten minutes ago I was busting with plans. I was going to make Sublime ache. Now I'm facing a potential siege. I'm surrounded by people I can't trust.'
Gordimer the Lion's predecessor had used similar words to describe his own situation before his fall. Else said, 'Don't change your goals. Just change your plans to reflect your strengths and weaknesses.'
Gervase observed, 'We have more weaknesses than strengths. We haven't kept our swords sharp.'
Else said, “To plan, we need to know what our adversaries might be thinking. We need to know who our potential adversaries are. We need an honest assessment of our own strength. And firmly established goals.'
'Meaning?'
'We need to find out what the Brotherhood, the Cologni, the Patriarch, and the Collegium are up to. We need to know how they see the Bruglioni. You have an uncle in the Collegium. He has friends. The Bruglioni have a tradition of being major players on the Brothen stage. You have vast resources. Get them catalogued. Imagine what can be done with them.'
Else sensed that Paludan had received no training for the position he held. He was faking it and hoping for the best.
Paludan said, 'Gervase, follow up on what Hecht's saying. Real life seems to be closing in. Dugo, boys, come with me.' Paludan rose.
Dugo protested, 'We were going out to …'
'Be quiet. Weren't you listening? People who have a grudge against us are probably planning to do something about it. I don't want you out where they can get you. Come along.'
Dugo pouted. It looked like he would have to survive a harsh, close call before he started listening.
Gervase Saluda said, 'If my chin keeps hitting my chest it's because I just witnessed the longest run of intelligent, responsible thinking ever seen from Paludan Bruglioni.'
'Oh?' Else said.
'Until Acato and Gildeo were killed he spouted the same nonsense as Dugo. Which is why Dugo was all confused.'
'How did he keep the family going, then?'
'Inertia. And he hasn't. Not well. He never really had to be responsible, growing up. He's always let things ride while he had a good time. He got away with it until the disaster in the Madhur Plaza.'
'The world caught up?'
'It didn't change who he is but it did make him realize that there're challenges beyond just seeing if he can't bed more women than his father did. Even so, he passed the work on to us. He has no faith in himself.'
'And?'
'You have to understand. Besides his character shortcomings, Paludan just isn't very bright. He isn't subtle. His preferred solution to any problem is to hit it with a hammer.'
