“You what?”
“I reasoned that if he was with the conspiracy, there would be gold hidden somewhere in his chamber. That’s the one thing we know about the Qirsi who lead this movement: they have a good deal of gold and they pay those who serve them quite well.”
“How dare you do such a thing!” Diani said, her voice quavering with rage. “I lead our house, not you! You should have discussed it with me first! You should have asked my permission!”
“Would you have let me do it?”
She started to reply, then closed her mouth again, looking away.
“That’s why I didn’t discuss it with you.”
Diani felt her face redden. She didn’t want to have this conversation in front of the queen. “You had no right,” she muttered.
“I received word from Curlinte today. Don’t you want to know what they found?”
She looked at him. Of course she wanted to know, but she couldn’t bring herself to ask.
“Nothing,” he said. “Nothing at all. Kreazur had twenty qinde to his name, about what you’d expect for a man living on a minister’s wage.”
“That doesn’t mean anything. He might have spent it all.”
“On what? He had no jewelry, no riches of any sort. He wore simple clothes beneath his ministerial robes. He carried a blade with a wooden hilt.”
“Maybe he gave his gold to someone else. Perhaps he had a woman in Curlinte. Or maybe he brought all his gold with him to Yserne and it was taken by the brigands who killed him. This tells us nothing.”
“I’m afraid I must disagree, Diani,” the queen said. “It may not establish his innocence, but in my mind it certainly casts some doubt on his guilt.”
“Who was it searched his chamber?” the duchess demanded, glowering at Sertio again. “Another white-hair?”
“Actually it was your master of arms.”
She felt her mouth twitch.
“Isn’t it possible that we were wrong about him, Diani? Isn’t it possible that there’s some other explanation for the way he died?”
“Like what? If he wasn’t a traitor, what was he doing in the city? Why did he come to Yserne at all? There’s no other explanation that makes any sense.”
Sertio looked at the queen, abruptly seeming unsure of himself. “Perhaps we were intended to think that he was a traitor.”
“To what end?” the queen asked. “His death certainly didn’t help the Qirsi in this castle. It’s only served to deepen our suspicions.”
“Maybe whoever was responsible didn’t have any choice. Maybe Kreazur had learned that this person was the traitor, but he died before he could tell anyone else.”
“I don’t believe any of this,” Diani said, shaking her head. “We found Kreazur in the city, not someone else. It was his body that was covering those gold pieces and lying next to an empty money pouch. What you learned from the master of arms changes nothing.” Even as she spoke the words, however, Diani felt doubt seeping into her mind. She couldn’t countenance what her father had done-certainly he never would have sent instructions to anyone in Castle Curlinte while her mother was duchess-but neither could she ignore what he had learned. There should have been gold in the man’s chamber, or failing that, some evidence of the riches that would have accrued from his service to the movement. What if she had been wrong about Kreazur? What if his denials had been true, his devotion to Curlinte genuine? Wasn’t this one instance where it was preferable to be mistaken?
“In a way she’s right,” Sertio was saying to the queen. “This message from Curlinte doesn’t change a thing. In fact, it makes it more likely that one of the other ministers is a traitor.”
“You’re certain it would be one of the ministers?”
“If we’re right about Kreazur, it would almost have to be. They’re the only Qirsi with whom he had any contact after his arrival. If he went to the city because he overheard something-”
“Or if he followed someone there,” Diani broke in, the words seeming to come to her unbidden.
Sertio and the queen looked at her.
“Now you agree with us?” her father asked.
“I’m willing to admit that it’s possible.” Seeing the smile on her father’s face, the relief, she felt much of her anger at him sluice away. “You may not believe this, Father, but I never wanted to believe that he was a traitor. I know how much Mother cared for him.”
Sertio gazed at her another moment before facing the queen once more. “As I was saying, if he overheard a conversation among traitors or followed someone to the city, it would have meant that he first encountered them here in the castle. In which case, the traitor is still here, and we need to figure out who it is.”
“There could be more than one,” Diani said. “That’s why I still believe we need to keep all of the ministers at a distance.”
“For a time perhaps,” Sertio said. “Until we can winnow out those who have betrayed us. But eventually we need to begin trusting the Qirsi again. Even in those realms that have suffered the most for the betrayals of their Qirsi, only a few of the ministers have proven to be traitors. It would be folly for us to assume that all of our Qirsi have abandoned Sanbira for this conspiracy of theirs.”
“But how are we to know who we can trust and who we can’t?” Diani asked, looking from her father to the queen. “All it takes is one traitor to endanger the queen’s life or-” She stopped abruptly, the realization coming to her with such force that for a moment she couldn’t draw breath.
“Diani?” her father said, taking a step toward her, his eyes wide with concern.
“Your Highness,” she began, finding her voice, “do I remember correctly that you questioned the gate guards who were on duty the night Kreazur died?”
“Yes, and all of them said the same thing. They saw no one leave the castle, not even your first minister.”
The duchess nodded, her mouth suddenly dry. “Then I regret to say that our search for the traitors must begin with those Qirsi who serve House Yserne.”
Olesya’s brow furrowed. “Why would-?” She lifted a slender hand to our mouth, the color draining from her face. “Ean save us all! You’re right, of course.”
Sertio shook his head. “I don’t understand.”
“Kreazur didn’t know this castle well enough to find a way out that would allow him to avoid all of the queen’s guards. Regardless of whether he was accompanying someone else or merely following, the other person had to be one of Yserne’s Qirsi.”
“How many Qirsi live in the castle, Your Highness?” the duke asked.
“I have six ministers in all, and many healers-I’m not certain of the number.”
“We should question them.”
Diani brushed the hair from her face with an impatient hand. “I disagree. We need more information first. If we make it known that we’ve narrowed our suspicions to the queen’s Qirsi, we’ll give them time to escape, or at least to prepare their lies. Best we reveal nothing for now.”
“You’re right,” the queen said. “I believe it would be a mistake even to inform the other nobles.” She gave a small smile. “It seems the two of you have a bit of work to do.”
Diani frowned. “Your Highness?”
“As you just said, Lady Curlinte, we need more information. And it seems I have little choice but to leave it to the two of you to find it for me.” She stood, as if to signal an end to their audience. “You’re to start immediately, and work as quickly as possible. I agree that loyal Qirsi will be invaluable to us in the coming war. The sooner we can begin to win back their trust and offer them ours, the better.”
“But, Your Highness,” Diani began. “How-”
“You can begin by searching the quarters of all the Qirsi who live in Castle Yserne,” the queen told her. “It worked in Curlinte, perhaps it will work here as well.”
“Very well, Your Highness.” Diani met her father’s gaze and held it briefly. After a moment, they both started toward the door.
“Lady Curlinte,” the queen said, stopping her. “I assume that you came to my chamber looking for me. Was there another matter you wished to discuss?”