"I am asking you a hypothetical question," I replied. "I have made no charge. Do you care to answer?"
"There is no question as to what I should do," said the general, "if such an emergency confronted me. I should be the first to turn against any jong who did such a traitorous thing as that, but that is something that no jong of Korva would do."
"And you other gentlemen?" I asked.
Without exception they all concurred in the sentiments of the general.
"Then I may tell you that such an emergency exists," I said. "I shall shock you by my disclosures, but I must have your assurance that you will hear me through and consider impartially the evidence I have to offer."
"I can assure you that we shall," said Taman .
"Muso, swearing me to secrecy, sent me to Amlot with a message for Spehon, Mephis's chief lieutenant. He chose me for two reasons. One was that he thought I could not read Amtorian, and therefore could not know what was in the message; and the other you had proof of in his palace this night—he wanted my woman. But I can read Amtorian; and after I got to Amlot, I became suspicious and read Muso's message to Spehon. In it he offered to open the gates of Sanara to Zani troops in return for the throne of Korva, and he agreed to accept Mephis as his advisor and to reward the Zanis. He also suggested that it would be best if Carson of Venus were destroyed in Amlot."
"This is preposterous!" cried a great noble. "The man must be mad to make such charges. They are prompted by jealousy, because Muso desires his woman."
"They cannot be true," exclaimed another.
" Taman ," cried a third, "I demand this man's arrest."
"You are not keeping your promise to me," I reminded them. "Is this what I am to expect of Korvan nobility? And do you think I am such a fool as to make charges of this kind without ample evidence to substantiate them? What would I have to gain? I would be signing my own death warrant. I may be doing so anyway; but I am doing it for the only country on Amtor that I can call my own, the one country in which my princess and I feel that we have a chance to live happily among friends."
"Go on," said the great general. "I apologize for my confreres."
"Where are your proofs?" asked Taman .
"Here," I said, and drew Muso's message from my pocket pouch. "Here, in his own handwriting, Muso convicts himself." I handed the envelope to Taman . He opened it and read it through carefully to himself; then he passed it to the man to this right. Thus it passed around the table, each man reading it carefully. It left them silent and sober-faced. Even after the last man had read it and passed it back to Taman , they sat in silence. It was the great general who spoke first.
"I do not doubt the integrity of this man or his belief in the duplicity of Muso," he said. "It is sufficient to shake the confidence of each of us. In addition, he knows that Muso sought his life. I cannot blame him for anything he may think; I should think as he does, were I he. But he is not a Korvan by birth. There is not bred in him the reverence and loyalty to our jongs that is part of every fiber of our beings. For him, this document is sufficient proof. As I have said, it would be for me, were I he; but I am not. I am a Korvan noble, the first general of the jong's armies; and so I must give Muso the benefit of every doubt. Perhaps this message was a ruse to lure the Zani troops from some part of the line, that Muso might order an attack upon that weakened part. It would have been excellent strategy. Now I suggest that we prove conclusively whether such was his intent, or whether he did intend to open the gates to the enemy."
"How may that be done?" asked Taman .
"We shall try to arrange to have the enemy shoot three blue rockets into the air before the main gates of Sanara on three successive nights; then wait and see what Muso does."
"But how can we get the enemy to co-operate?" asked another.
"I shall commission Carson of Venus to drop a message behind their lines, telling them that I should like to hold a parley with them and asking them, if they are agreeable to the suggestion, to shoot the blue rockets."
"An excellent suggestion," said Taman .
"But," I objected, "seeing me returned alive, Muso may be suspicious, for he definitely asked Spehon to have me destroyed."
"Write a report," said the general, "stating that after you delivered the message you became fearful and escaped."
"That would certainly arouse Muso's suspicions," said Taman .
"I might tell him the truth," I suggested, "and that is that the very night I arrived in Amlot the message was stolen from me. The very fact that I remained there so long should convince Muso that I had no suspicion of what the note contained."
"I think your idea is the best one," said the general; "but why did you stay so long in Amlot—if you could have escaped?"
"I had several reasons," I replied. "I suspected that Mintep, jong of Vepaja and father of my princess, was a prisoner there. I also wanted to gather what information I could for the Sanaran high command. Lastly, I had to establish myself before I could safely make an effort to escape. I became an officer in the Zani Guard and was, for a while, acting governor of the Gap kum Rov."
"And you absorbed some information?"
"Much," I replied. "I have learned that a counterrevolution is about to be launched, the proponents of which hoped to restore Kord to his throne."
"You say 'hoped,’" commented a noble. "Have they now given up the idea?"
"Kord is dead," I said.
I might as well have thrown a bomb among them. They leaped to their feet almost as one man. "Kord dead?" It was the same stunned reaction that I had seen before.
"But," cried one, "we have heard that rumor often before, but it has never been substantiated."
"I saw him die," I told them; then I had to go all over that harrowing episode again.
Well, at last they prepared to go; but before they did I propounded another question. "And now, gentlemen," I said, "just who is going to protect my princess and me from Muso. If I am not mistaken, I stand a good chance of being assassinated the first time I go on the streets."
"He is right," said the general.
"He should certainly be protected, General Varo," agreed Taman .
"Well," said Varo, "I know of no safer place for them than where they are now, under the protection of the man who is next in line for the throne of Korva, after Muso."
There was a subdued cheer at that, but I was not surprised. Taman was the most popular man in Sanara. He sat for a moment with his head bowed, and then he looked up at Varo. His face showed traces of mental strain; his manner was tinged with embarrassment.
"I wish that I might agree with you in that," he said; "but, unfortunately, I cannot. As a matter of fact, I believe that my palace would be the least safe place for Carson of Venus and the janjong of Vepaja. During the past ten days three attempts have been made upon my life—twice by poison, once by dagger."
The disclosure so shocked the assembled nobles, that, for a moment, there was deep silence; then Varo spoke.
"Were the scoundrels apprehended?" he asked. "Do you know who they were?"
"Yes," replied Taman , "but they were only the instruments of another."
"And you know who that may be?" asked a noble.
"I can only surmise," replied Taman . "Unfortunately, my retainers killed all three before I had an opportunity to question them."
"Perhaps I had better remain here, then," I said, "as additional protection for the next jong of Korva."
"No," said Taman . "I appreciate your generosity; but I am well protected by my own people, and there are more important things for you to do."
"You may come to my palace," said Varo. "I swear no one shall take you from there, even if I have to protect you with the entire army of Sanara."
I shook my head. "Muso will unquestionably send for me," I said. "Should you refuse to give me up, his suspicions would be aroused; and our entire plan might come to nothing. I think I have a solution of the problem."