“You understand that. Will all the men who served?”
“Give Vaelora and me a glass or so. We might have a better solution. One that doesn’t involve ‘accidents’ or death.”
Sister and brother looked at him quizzically.
Quaeryt just smiled.
“Fifth glass, then, but I want to know your proposed solution by fourth glass.”
“We’ll see what we can do.”
Bhayar started to reply, then shook his head, finally saying, “Fourth glass.” Then he rose and walked toward the window.
Quaeryt and Vaelora left the study silently.
57
“What now?” asked Vaelora once they were well away from Bhayar’s study and approaching the grand staircase down to the main level.
“First, I have to tell Zhelan and Calkoran to allow a messenger to leave to summon Deucalon. I ordered them not to allow any troopers or officers to leave Chateau Regis.”
“You didn’t want Deucalon storming in until you briefed Bhayar?”
“Exactly, and I didn’t know if Bhayar would even be here or if he would be busy meeting with someone.” Quaeryt started down the grand staircase.
“He would have met with you.”
“And while we were meeting, some junior officer would have been riding off to warn the marshal. I wasn’t sure how Bhayar would take it. You saw how he didn’t want to believe it of Deucalon.”
“I did. But brother dear can be most implacable when he feels he has been betrayed.”
“Does he feel that way about Deucalon?”
Vaelora frowned. “He’s angry. He doesn’t like being deceived, and he doesn’t like it when he’s shown that he made a mistake. And he hates being wrong.”
“Don’t we all?” asked Quaeryt wryly. “While I’m giving orders to Zhelan and Calkoran, would you see about assembling what records you have about vacant high holdings, including any that Kharst bestowed in Khel?”
“Khel? You have a nasty turn of thought, dearest.”
“You mentioned sending word to Baelthm and Horan. Are they quartered on Imagisle now?”
“Since last week.”
“Then we’ll need to call them in, and have Khaern ready to bring in Eleventh Regiment.”
“Do you think that will be necessary?”
“I doubt it, but we’d both be neglecting our duty to Bhayar if it turns out to be required.”
“Do you need anything else?” she asked.
“You,” he replied with a warm smile.
“That, dearest, will have to wait.”
They separated at the foot of the staircase.
Quaeryt turned and walked half the width of the chateau to the rear door to the courtyard. When he stepped out into a stiff breeze under the high gray clouds, he saw Zhelan walking toward him. With the major was an undercaptain, and from the junior officer’s impassive expression, he was less than happy.
“Undercaptain Culean has a problem with your orders, Commander,” said Zhelan, offering a predatory smile.
“What is your difficulty, Undercaptain?” asked Quaeryt.
“The marshal himself ordered me to report when any companies or officers returned to the Chateau Regis. Your officers refused to let me do so.”
“They refused to let you do so because I ordered them not to. Since I report directly to Lord Bhayar, and since Lord Bhayar is the marshal’s superior, they were right to do so, since they are not in your chain of command. They also outrank you.” Quaeryt smiled. “Shortly, I understand, Lord Bhayar will be sending a courier to the marshal. You-and you alone from your command-may accompany that trooper and report to the marshal.”
“Yes, sir.”
Ignoring the combination of fear and anger almost but not quite suppressed from appearing on the undercaptain’s face, Quaeryt turned to Zhelan. “See that he does not leave until Bhayar’s courier departs.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Where is Subcommander Calkoran?”
“He and his men are deployed in the front of the Chateau Regis.”
“Thank you. I need to give him some instructions.” He turned to the waiting imager undercaptains, all standing beside their mounts. “Lhandor, if you’d join Subcommander Calkoran. Khalis, Elsior, you’re to support Major Zhelan.”
“Yes, sir.”
Quaeryt hurried back into the chateau, crossing to the front entrance, where he found Calkoran at the base of the steps up to the entry and there conveyed his orders for the messages to the imagers and Subcommander Khaern. Then he made his way back to Vaelora’s study.
She looked up from a ledger. “It will be a quint or so before the clerks have what we need about the high holdings in Bovaria. There weren’t many granted in Khel. I can only find six, and all were near port cities.”
“How did you find that out?”
“The tariff records kept by the Bovarian factors’ councils. I assume you’re thinking about giving Deucalon a high holding in the northwest of Khel.”
“I am. One as far away as possible-Eshtora or Moryn.”
“Khel hasn’t even agreed to terms.”
“They will. Bhayar can tell him that he will not only be stipended with honor, but he will be named as High Holder once Bhayar has determined a large and appropriate holding, and that it will not be that long. If Khel doesn’t come to terms, we’ll find the most isolated large high holding we can and bestow that on him.”
“It’s too bad we can’t just have him executed,” said Vaelora.
“It’s better that Myskyl be thought the villain. Besides, he is the greater villain. We can spread the word that Deucalon wasn’t himself in the last part of the war and that Myskyl took advantage of that … and that Bhayar felt his previous service merited recognition. That way, if Deucalon does try to stir up trouble, then Bhayar will have reason to act more harshly.”
“Brother dear might like the honorable stipend approach better.”
“Much as I dislike Deucalon, it makes more sense. That way, Deucalon becomes an officer who served well, but just too long, and it buries the fact that the two top-ranking officers were conspiring against Bhayar.”
“There were more than two, if you count Kharllon.”
“He just had a seizure after being faced with an impossible situation,” said Quaeryt dryly. He said nothing more as Vaelora continued to look through the ledger.
Finally, she looked up. “There are several vacant high holdings in Khel, all of them, in fact. The one that meets your criteria best is Khunthan. It’s one of the largest in Lydar. It’s located northeast of Eshtora, and it was bestowed on one Elizaran. According to the tariff records, the last tariffs were not paid because Elizaran and his family vanished and are possibly dead. That’s true of all six of the holdings Kharst created.”
“All we have to do is insist on a few high holdings when Khel comes to seek terms,” said Quaeryt.
“Will they?”
“You’re better at seeing what will be. What do you think?”
“The High Council isn’t stupid. Khel now stands alone. They don’t have anything to lose by suggesting the most favorable terms they can.”
“We both know that. What do you feel? Or farsee?”
“I haven’t had farsight flashes, not since the one…” She frowned. “You’ve never said…”
“You were right. The officers’ salon was pitch-dark from where I stood when Myskyl ordered the iron shutters dropped. We can talk about that later, but your telling me about the farsight made me aware that I would be facing some sort of trap.”
“I’m glad it helped.”
“We don’t have that much time,” Quaeryt said. “Would you mind seeing what the clerks have come up with?”
She smiled and headed for the door to the adjoining study.
In the end, even with the incomplete records that Vaelora and the clerks had been able to piece together, Quaeryt and Vaelora found three possible high holdings in Bovaria that could be granted to Deucalon, assuming that Bhayar agreed with their “solution.”
Promptly at fourth glass, Quaeryt and Vaelora entered Bhayar’s study.
Bhayar was already seated at the conference table. He did not rise, but gestured for them to sit, waiting to speak until they were seated. “The more I think about this, the angrier I become. At first, I couldn’t believe it was possible, but then…” He shook his head. “How could he do this? Why?”