“Good morning, Rhenn. Do come in.”
I did follow her into her study. I also made sure the door was firmly closed.
She set several folders on the desk, then looked at me. She did not sit down, but flipped the end of the gold and green scarf back over her shoulder. “I am glad you left a note, Rhenn. It would have been rather disconcerting to discover those events in Veritum this morning.”
“Since escaping from a coach in icy water, swimming a quarter mille in that water, and climbing an ice-encrusted iron ladder does have a tendency to exhaust and chill one, I trust you might understand why I did not choose to wait for you, especially since Gherard had no idea when or if you would be returning, and especially since I had already waited almost a glass.”
“It must be the position. If I closed my eyes, I could easily have been talking to Maitre Dichartyn.” She sighed and seated herself. “You might as well sit down.”
I took one of the chairs before the desk.
“Please tell me what was not in the note.”
I did, all about Cydarth and his sudden and out-of-character cheerful stalling and the link to the Banque D’Ouestan.
When I finished, she said, “You’re doubtless correct, but there’s no proof at all. Exactly what do you have in mind?”
“Looking farther. I need to see if I can find out more about the Banque D’Ouestan, especially about their agent here. I have some indication that he lent Glendyl 25,000 golds almost a year ago.”
“Is there anyone Glendyl doesn’t owe?”
“I don’t think he owes the Banque D’Rivages or the Banque D’Excelsis,” I replied dryly.
“Glendyl isn’t likely to hold onto his works or anything else, except he won’t let go of anything willingly, and that won’t be good for Solidar or the Navy.”
“From his behavior and attitude…it shouldn’t be surprising if he loses everything. Besides, it might be better if someone else took over the engineworks.”
Dyana shook her head. “Nothing good is going to come of that. Be very careful.”
“I don’t intend to do anything else dealing with Glendyl.” I didn’t point out that I’d already done all I could.
“That would be best.”
“Oh, there is one other matter concerning the Banque D’Ouestan. This was discovered by Maitre Khalasa…” I went on to summarize the findings Kahlasa had presented to me.
“What do you intend to do?”
“I’d like to look a little farther. Like so many things, there’s little enough direct proof.”
“Isn’t it always? Let me know when you find out more.” Dyana shook her head, ruefully. “I trust you read the other stories in this morning’s newsheets?”
“I did.”
“How would you interpret them?”
“As an indication that the retirement or ill-health of Sea-Marshal Valeun might be beneficial to all Solidar.”
“What good would that do if his successor feels the same way, or, more important, that most of the junior marshals feel that way?”
“Then I need to determine what our options are.” I could be wrong, but, after having met Deputy Sea-Marshal Caellynd, I had the feeling he had to be an improvement over Valeun, but that was another thing I needed to determine.
“Or if we have any. Change for the sake of change is not a particularly good policy, especially if it creates even greater distrust of the Collegium.”
“Greater distrust would not be good.” I nodded politely, even as I worried about keeping what we had when it didn’t seem to be doing that much good for either Solidar or the Collegium.
After I left Maitre Dyana, the first thing I did was have Schorzat send a message requesting a meeting with Sea-Marshal Valeun for Vendrei, suggesting a certain urgency. Then I met with Kahlasa and asked her if she could check what she had discovered with the false transport companies to see if there happened to be anything in common with the false barge lease for the vessels used in the attack on Imagisle.
Next, I went back to my study to think.
61
On Vendrei morning, Veritum featured a story about the northern fleet and about how the fast frigate delivered to the Navy last week from the Suyrien shipworks was the only half-modern ship in the fleet, and how even the Collegium, once known for its concern about matters military, was silent on the need for fleet modernization. There were also a few lines about how the lack of better ships required a greater reliance on innovative and often desperate tactics, tactics that could only go on for so long. I thought that touch was particularly clever on Valeun’s part. I couldn’t help but wonder how Maitre Dyana was taking it all.
Then I found a note from Maitre Jhulian that said High Holder Haebyn had filed a motion to stop Broussard from rebuilding his impoundment dam, on the grounds that such reconstruction prejudiced Haebyn’s ancillary water rights. Jhulian had added that Haebyn’s legal actions were obviously the beginning of a salvo designed to keep the dam from being rebuilt until after the height of the spring runoff.
I could only shake my head.
Moments later, there was a knock on the door, and Schorzat stepped inside. “We did receive a reply from his highest excellency Sea-Marshal Valeun.” His voice was emotionless.
“Does he condescend to see me?”
“Only at the first glass of the afternoon, and only for two quints. He will expect you then, unless you send a messenger declining. He can see you on Mardi or Jeudi next week.”
“He’s playing position gaming. I’ll see him today. Timing’s more important than bureaucratic maneuvering.”
“If it were anyone but you, I’d suggest not seeing him until two weeks from now.”
“Waiting only benefits him, and he knows it. That’s what he’s playing for.” I couldn’t help shaking my head-again. I was doing that all too often. “Thank you for setting it up. I’ll let you and Kahlasa know what happens.”
When he left, I went and checked with Ghaend about Desalyt, but so far no one had reported any sign of him or his body. It was a certainty he was dead, and Ghaend had already talked to his wife, most likely his widow.
“It wasn’t exactly an accident, was it?” he asked.
“I don’t think so, but I don’t have any proof, either about whether it was or about who might have done it.”
“You were leaving Patrol headquarters, weren’t you?”
“I was. I’d just paid a call on Cydarth.”
“There are all sorts of rumors about him.”
“I know, but I’ve never found a single shred of proof to support any one of them.”
“Be nice if the Namer finally claimed him.”
I could agree with that.
When I left the Collegium in the duty coach at two quints past tenth glass, heading out to the Naval Command, I had a fairly good idea of what awaited me. I wasn’t that far off. When I reached the anteroom of the Sea-Marshal’s study just before first glass, I had to wait. Not long enough to be truly insulting, perhaps less than half a quint, but just enough, and when the door opened, a junior ensign emerged.
Valeun appeared behind the young officer, beaming. “Maitre Rhennthyl, I had no idea you were waiting.”
“Neither did I,” I replied with a smile equally false.
“Do come in!”
“Thank you.”
Once I was inside the study, the aide closed the door, and I didn’t bother with being invited to sit. I just took the middle chair across the desk and waited for Valeun to seat himself.
“What can I do for you, Maitre Rhennthyl?”
I waited a few moments. “What news do you have from the northern fleet?”
“I received a dispatch this morning. The Lyiena arrived in good stead on the evening of the fifth, and dispersal of imagers began on the morning of the sixth.” Valeun smiled politely. “If we assume that dispersal and positioning are on schedule, the attacks could have begun on Mardi. But we don’t know the weather or the state of Ferran defenses. It may be that Fleet-Marshal Asarynt will need to wait or that he commenced earlier.”