I opened the envelope to find a plain white card with just a few words.
South Middle at Dugalle, sixth and a half, Meredi.
So now I could meet with Horazt and learn something-if I happened to be fortunate.
14
What I observed in the justice chamber on Mardi was much the same as what I had seen on Lundi, although there were three separate cases involving the sale of elveweed. Meredi followed the same pattern, except that one prisoner was released because none of the witnesses could be found, and no patroller had observed the reported assault on a taudis-dweller. The purported victim could not identify who attacked him, and three women of what I would have termed dubious occupations insisted that the accused had been with them. The advocate for the accused was not a public advocate, but the same man who had defended the two piss-bucket assailants on Lundi.
I was getting a very definite feel for matters, and I didn’t exactly like what I was seeing, but as with other matters I didn’t like, there wasn’t anything faintly resembling proof.
The caseload at the Square of Justice was heavier on Meredi, and Baluzt and I-and the coach-wagons-did not return to Patrol headquarters until almost fifth glass. I couldn’t have walked to the Collegium, eaten, and then taken a hack to meet Horazt, not and be there by half past sixth glass. Instead, I decided that I’d walk to Chaelia’s and sample the cooking there. I carried the package holding the cloak and cap. I certainly wasn’t about to wear them until after I left Chaelia’s.
According to Seliora’s directions, the bistro was two blocks east and off Pousaint. Her directions were quite accurate. I’d had the impression that the place was just a common bistro, but it wasn’t, not from the outside. The polished light oak double doors were framed by a bright green casement, and the shutters on each side of the sets of leaded glass windows were of the same green. Two large bright brass lamps were set on each side of the door, and the front facade of the bistro was of gray stone, rather than of brick.
I’d barely stepped inside when Staelia hurried forward. She wore black trousers and a gray sweater, with no jewelry. The effect was strangely impressive, perhaps because her skin was just olive-dark enough that her face stood out against the pale gray.
“Master Rhennthyl! I wondered when we might see you.”
She spoke loudly enough that several people looked up from the nearby tables to study me. The bistro was mostly full. After a moment I realized that the loudness had been deliberate, and a way of reassuring everyone that I was known and expected. I couldn’t help but smile.
“This is the first time I could get away for a meal. I haven’t had lunch off all week.”
“I’m glad you could come, whenever it happened to be.” She led me back through the tables, all of which were covered in pale green linen, and sat me at a small circular table near the rear, but not the one next to the door to the kitchen.
“No one told me what Chaelia’s was like,” I said as I seated myself in the chair that would let me watch the front of the restaurant.
“Some things are better left undescribed.”
Like Seliora, I thought. “You told me what not to order. What would you recommend? I didn’t have lunch, but I have to meet someone later.”
Staelia nodded. “The fowl with brown mushrooms and grass rice, with the blanched vegetables on the side. It comes with a small plate of greens.”
“That sounds good. Cambrisio or Grisio?”
“We have a sparkling Grisio.”
“Done.” I grinned.
Staelia returned with the wine almost immediately, and I sat and sipped it, studying the others in the dining area. Almost all the diners wore coats or dresses or skirts with jackets. I was the only person dining alone. Couples or sets of couples comprised those at other tables.
In a short time, Staelia returned, placing the “small” plate of greens before me-a full salad with fresh fall apple slivers, toasted almond fragments, and a crumbly bluish cheese.
“Thank you.”
“We’re glad you came. Would you mind if Taelia and Sartan came over and met you?”
“Not at all.” While I couldn’t have said anything else, I did want to meet them.
In moments, they were there. Taelia looked to be a year or two older than Khethila, and she took more after her father, shorter, a bit more solid than her mother, with Clyenn’s light brown hair.
Sartan was taller than his mother, a shade taller than me, black-haired, and was probably about twenty. His mother’s features looked good on him, and there was a twinkle in his eye as he said, “I’m very glad to meet you, Master Rhennthyl. Everyone has been talking about you.”
I didn’t bother to conceal the wince. “I just hope it’s not too bad.”
They all laughed. Then Sartan and Taelia slipped away.
“They’re good children,” Staelia said.
“They look that way.”
Someone entered the restaurant, and Staelia nodded and left.
I addressed the “small” salad, and after Staelia had seated the two couples who had just entered and turned them over to Taelia, she eventually returned to my table.
“Did you like the greens?”
“They were excellent. What was the cheese?”
“Blue cave cheese from north of Eshtora. It doesn’t take much to give a special flavor to greens. It’s a pity it doesn’t take heat. You can’t use it in most cooked dishes unless you add it at the very end.” She paused. “Seliora is my favorite niece.”
“She thinks most highly of you.” I had an idea what might be coming next.
“You know that Seliora thinks you’re very special.”
“I think she’s more than special.”
“That’s good. I’ve never seen her look at anyone like she does you . . . but . . .”
“You have reservations about me?”
“You could be a very dangerous man, Rhenn, and women can be hurt by dangerous men, even unintentionally.”
Staelia’s words were a bit of a shock. I’d never been called dangerous, and she wasn’t flattering me by doing so. Still, she deserved an answer. “I’m involved in a dangerous profession, Staelia, and I’ve never hidden that from Seliora or her parents.”
“I know, but Betara has her reasons.”
“I know that, too,” I replied softly. “I’ve thought about it more than a little, and Seliora knows that.”
She nodded thoughtfully. “You look the type to have done that.” A crooked smile followed, part affectionate and part wry. “That makes you more dangerous and more desirable, and not just to Seliora, you realize.”
That was something I hadn’t thought about.
“Good! You need to think about that. Now . . . I need to get your entree.” She straightened and headed for the kitchen.
I took another sip of sparkling Grisio, thinking that it was no wonder none of the men in Grandmama Diestra’s family strayed. I also wondered if the death of Aegina’s husband had been exactly unrelated to the family, despite what Seliora had said about it.
Staelia returned with a platter that she set before me. “I hope you like it.”
“I’m sure I will.” I was still hungry enough that I started right in. The fowl had been pounded thin and tender, breaded in some sort of savory crumbs I didn’t recognize, cooked quickly at high heat while only browning the covering, and then served with some sort of thickened wine sauce with sauteed mushrooms. The side vegetables-beans and carrot strips-were still crisp, yet both warm and tender.
I ate it all, enjoying every bite, and I’d barely finished when Staelia returned.
“How was it?”
“Delicious, better than you said, if anything.”
“Good. Clyenn will be pleased.”
“I’m going to have to go. I do have this meeting . . . How much?”
“You’re almost family . . .”
“I’m also with the Patrol, and not paying . . .” I shrugged. “That could cause me some difficulties. I hope you aren’t offended, but I’m a very junior master and need to be very careful.”