“Well, there’s one less now,” I said. I didn’t show it, but I was worried. This experiment of Richard’s had been a failure. What would happen if he succeeded?
It was an hour and a half later. The security men, along with my team of mages, had pulled back to a perimeter around the farmhouse. Although we were technically still on watch, the mood was more relaxed now, and several of the men were smoking. Our job was to guard the investigation team, but if anything was going to happen, I should be able to spot it well in advance.
“So how was the family visit?” Variam asked. The two of us were standing under a tree, a little way out of earshot. Up ahead, Ilmarin and Sergeant Little were in the farmyard supervising as the Council investigative team carried plastic boxes in through the front door. The contents of the facility would be packed into those boxes, then taken away and processed as evidence.
“It was . . . interesting,” I said. I glanced to the side, where Anne was talking with the two injured men, Peterson and Nowy. “I can see why Anne doesn’t go home often.”
Variam snorted. “If I was her, I wouldn’t either.”
“You met them back when you were in school together, didn’t you?” I said. “What did you think of that couple?”
“Father’s a wimp, mother’s a bitch,” Variam said. “She wouldn’t even let me in the house most of the time. Acted like I was going to steal her silverware.”
I laughed. “Apparently I get higher-class treatment. I just got snubbed over the dinner table.” I thought for a moment. “When Sagash kidnapped her, what happened? I mean, they must have noticed.”
“Oh, they noticed,” Variam said. “Biggest thing they were worried about was that it might hurt their daughter’s chances of getting into a good uni. Pissed me off so badly. Was actually what made me decide to find her myself.”
“And I used to think my parents were bad.” I looked across at Anne and wondered what it would be like growing up in a house like that. A couple of years ago Anne had told me that she liked the fact that when she was with me and Luna, she wasn’t expected to look after us. It had seemed a strange comment at the time. “That was when you ended up going to that dragon, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
Variam had called the creature he’d met the Fire Dragon, and it had given him a warning: if Variam wasn’t able to get Anne away from Sagash, she’d fall into darkness. To the best of my knowledge, I was the only other person Variam had ever told that to. Vari’s always kept an eye on Anne, ever since I’ve known them. Everyone else assumes that he’s trying to protect her; some assume he’s got a crush. I’ve come to realise that it’s for quite a different reason.
But Vari had been able to get Anne away from Sagash, and it had been years since we’d seen or heard anything from the Dark mage. “You think that prophecy’s done? I mean, Sagash hasn’t shown up for a long time.”
Variam was silent for a moment. “That jinn,” he said. “Before I killed it. What did it say?”
“Something about how we both would serve.”
“Mm,” Variam said. He turned and walked away.
Anne walked over just as Variam disappeared into the shadows. “Is Vari okay?”
“Not sure,” I said, looking after him. I couldn’t help noticing that Variam hadn’t answered my question. “I think he’s worried about something.”
“He does that a lot,” Anne said, and leant against me with a sigh. “I’m glad it’s over.”
I looked down at Anne with a smile and put my arm around her; she rested her head on my shoulder. “You did well back there.”
“I’m glad everyone’s safe,” Anne said. “One more day without a disaster.”
“There’s always tomorrow.”
chapter 3
It was tomorrow, and I was on trial for treason.
“As I said in my report at the initial inquiry,” Barrayar said, “Solace and I were in one of the interview rooms with Keeper Caldera when we first became aware of the attack. We left and were immediately engaged by what we are now aware were summoned lesser jinn. After they were dealt with, we conferred and realised that the attack was most likely an attempt to rescue Morden. Therefore, we headed directly for his cell.”
Barrayar is on the small side, well dressed, with a calm, polite manner that gives little away. Looking at him now, standing in front of the bench with his hands clasped behind his back, you wouldn’t guess how many deaths and attempted murders he’s responsible for. I’ve hated him for years. Maybe that was something people looking at me wouldn’t guess, either.
“No,” Barrayar said in response to a question from the bench. “We had separated from Mage Verus at the facility entrance and saw no trace of him until the events later.”
There were a moderate number of people in the courtroom. Full trials are open to all Light mages, but in this case attendance had been restricted. Off to one side were the other witnesses to be called: several of the surviving staff from San Vittore, along with Solace and Caldera. Solace shot me unfriendly glances when she thought I wasn’t looking. Caldera stood stone-faced and silent.
Sitting at the bench were the bench clerk, the records clerk, and the coroner. Officially the coroner was the one in charge, but sitting at the back of the room were two men and one woman, and though all three had yet to speak and no one looked at them too closely, everyone knew that they were the real power in the room. They were from the Senior Council, and they’d be the ones who decided the verdict.
Technically this wasn’t a trial, in the same way that technically, I hadn’t been charged with treason. Officially speaking, this was a follow-up inquiry into the attack on San Vittore. But Council inquiries are generally motivated by politics, and the fact that they’d ordered a second inquiry strongly suggested that they were looking for a scapegoat. It wasn’t hard to guess who they had in mind.
“Mage Verus appeared at the tail end of the fight in the control room,” Barrayar was saying. “He claimed to have no knowledge of the creatures engaging us. At this point, Morden and Vihaela were able to override the door to Morden’s cell and advance upon us.” Barrayar paused. “I believe the details of the ensuing fight were covered at the previous inquiry.”
The coroner glanced sideways at the table where the Senior Council were seated, then nodded to Barrayar. “The court will refer to your previous statements.”
“Thank you.”
I managed not to roll my eyes. The “fight” had consisted of Caldera being taken out in one move, at which point Morden and his companion had walked out while Barrayar, Solace, and I stood back and watched. But the real problem, and the secret I had to keep today at all costs, was that “Vihaela” hadn’t been Vihaela. It had been Anne.
“Once the conversation was over,” Barrayar continued, “Morden and Vihaela departed. They left their summoned jinn behind, who began to press upon us.”
“And who was the ‘us’ at this point?”
“Myself, Mage Solace, and Councillor Verus. Keeper Caldera had been disabled.”
“And what happened then?”
“The three of us engaged in a brief discussion on how best to handle the situation,” Barrayar said. “Councillor Verus ended the conversation by declaring that he was going to pursue Morden and Vihaela. He then proceeded to run through the creatures, avoiding their attacks long enough to reach the security gate and lock it behind him.”
“Locking the three of you in there with the summoned jinn?”
“That’s correct.”
Well, of course it’s going to sound bad when you put it like that. At the time my only concern had been pursuing Anne. I’d figured that the other mages could probably look after themselves. I’d been right, though it obviously hadn’t done much to improve relations between us.