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“Excellent,” smirked Zygor. “Let us put these other two clans in order so that I may search out my new host. We will accomplish more with twenty thousand men than Grulak had hoped for with his hundred thousand.”

Chapter 5

Unraveling Deceit

Lord Marak anxiously eyed the loading of the caravan wagons. He noticed that the escorts for the caravan appeared nervous, although they were subdued enough in their emotions that a casual observer would not notice. The Torak lord sighed anxiously as he mounted the steps to the mansion in Fardale and moved swiftly to the office of Lord Marshal Yenga. Yenga’s back was to the door as he studied a large wall map. Lord Marak cleared his throat intentionally as he entered. Lord Marshal Yenga turned promptly and yet calmly.

“Has the air tunnel spying revealed anything about Lord Quavry’s interest in the departing caravan?” Marak asked.

“Nothing at all,” answered Yenga. “Our mage reports that Lord Quavry holds his talk behind closed doors. The air tunnel is not effective in that situation.”

“So we may be sending this caravan to its doom with no better information than we had the last time,” sighed Lord Marak.

“Not true,” smiled Yenga. “First, we know approximately where we will be attacked. Second, our troops will be wearing Qubari armor. They will not be killed easily and without retribution this time.”

“Still, it would have been good to put this treachery behind us before the meeting of the Assembly of Lords,” frowned Lord Marak. “I will be leaving in the morning.”

“This business with Lord Quavry is not finished,” declared Yenga. “Marshal Patoga and Seneschal Shamino are waiting to see you. Talk to them before you make plans for your trip.”

“The Sorgan marshal and seneschal?” questioned Lord Marak. “Do you know what this is about?”

“Basically,” nodded Yenga, “but I requested that the information be delivered directly to you. I would like to be present if I may.”

“By all means,” Marak nodded. “Where are they?”

“In the meeting room,” replied Yenga.

Lord Marak pivoted and strode out of the office and into the meeting room across the corridor. Lord Marshal Yenga followed him and closed the door when they had entered the room. Marshal Patoga saluted smartly as the Lord of the Torak Clan entered the room, and Seneschal Shamino rose and bowed

“I understand that you have need to discuss things with me,” Lord Marak said as he sat at the head of the table. Please be seated and begin.”

“I fear that I may be making more out of this than I should,” frowned Seneschal Shamino, “but when I mentioned my concerns to Marshal Patoga, he demanded that I come to Fardale and speak with Lord Marshal Yenga. The Lord Marshal demanded that I speak to you. I do hope that I am not wasting your valuable time.”

“My time is always available for my people,” stated Lord Marak, “from my lord marshal to the lowest of laborers. Please tell me what is troubling you.”

“I must admit to some bias in the telling of my tale,” declared Seneschal Shamino. “Ever since the day you came to Watula Valley and ordered Vows of Service be given to you, I have felt that Lord Quavry plans to break them. He has never openly spoke ill of you, but his mannerisms speak otherwise.”

“You should have brought this to my attention immediately,” interrupted Lord Marak. “I wish to know about anyone who does not take his Vows seriously.”

“Understood,” nodded the seneschal as perspiration began to form upon his brow, “but there is really nothing to report. It is only a feeling, and I am hesitant to condemn a man with only my perceptions. In fact, I did not speak to Marshal Patoga with thoughts of condemning Lord Quavry. I merely expressed concerns with what I saw as aberrant behavior.”

“What type of behavior?” questioned Lord Marak.

“As I am sure you are well aware,” Seneschal Shamino began, “working without slaves presents a challenge for an estate that has long utilized slavery to accomplish our tasks. You were wise in ordering us to send our people here to Fardale for training, and I have seen a marked increase in efficiency upon their return. I became concerned when Lord Quavry demanded to meet with people privately upon their return from Fardale. Lord Quavry has never taken an interest in the running of the mansion before, so it intrigued me that he suddenly became very interested in these people.”

“So you reported this to the marshal?” asked Lord Marak.

”No,” Seneschal Shamino said. “I also interviewed the same people to find out what he was asking them, but he had no questions that indicated a betrayal, so I imagined that I was seeing wolves where none existed. It was not until yesterday that I became concerned enough to mention all of this to Marshal Patoga. Lord Quavry demanded that I send more people to Fardale for training.”

“Why does that bother you?” inquired Lord Marak. “You just said that the training was making the workers more productive.”

“Indeed it does,” Seneschal Shamino nodded vigorously, “but all of my people have already been here for training. Lord Quavry did not seem to care that they had all been trained. He wanted some sent back here for more training. Thinking that he had witnessed some poor behavior among my people, I questioned which ones needed to be retrained. His answer disturbed me. He did not care who I sent to Fardale for training, as long as I kept up a steady flow of people going to Fardale. There is something very wrong going on here, but I cannot fathom what it is. That was when I decided to bring my concerns to Marshal Patoga.”

“What type of questions has Lord Quavry been asking your people?” asked Lord Marak.

“That is the puzzling part of it all,” frowned the seneschal. “I cannot see any harm in the questions that he asks. It sounds as if he just wants to know what is going on here. He asks about visitors, meetings, caravans, and a lot of questions about you. I know there is something devious going on, but I cannot discover it.”

“He asks about caravans?” questioned Lord Marak. “Does he ask specifically about when they are leaving?”

Seneschal Shamino hesitated for a moment before answering. “Yes,” he finally nodded. “One consistent question always asked of my people was if they had seen any caravans leaving Fardale. You seem to find something in that question that I fail to see. What possible harm can there be in him knowing when your caravans leave Fardale?”

The veins in Lord Marak’s temples began to throb visibly, but he remained silent for several minutes. Finally he rose and began pacing.

“Would you leave us for a moment, Seneschal Shamino?” Lord Marak asked as he stopped pacing and faced the table. “Wait in the hallway beyond the door. I will need to speak with you again in a moment.”

“Certainly,” bowed the seneschal as he rose and retreated out of the room.

“As you suspected,” Lord Marshal Yenga said softly. “Shall I have him arrested?”

“Not yet,” Lord Marak shook his head. “While I cannot find any viable reason for Lord Quavry to be searching for the information that he has been seeking, it is not enough to arrest the man. If he does try to get that information to others, then he shall pay the price for violating his Vows of Service. My attention now is on Lord Quavry’s replacement. What do you think of Seneschal Shamino? He obviously seems to honor his Vows of Service. Does he have the skills necessary to be Lord of the Sorgan Clan?”

“He does,” nodded Yenga. “I have known him for many years, and loyalty is one of his strongest traits. He runs the mansion flawlessly and is a stickler for details. I think his feelings about Lord Quavry show that his intuition is good, and the way he conducted himself with his suspicions speaks highly for his intelligence. He was not rash in leveling false charges, yet he knew when to confide in others. I cannot think of a finer replacement unless you went outside the Sorgan clan in you search for a new lord.”