“Not in the Guild,” Lorlen replied, “or people will make up stories just for the chance to have a look at us.”
“Somewhere in the city then.”
Lorlen drummed his fingers softly on the doorframe. “The Guard have several halls around the city. I will arrange to have one of them prepared for our use.”
Dannyl nodded. “Could you ask for some guards to remain to keep order, as well?”
The Administrator nodded. “I’m sure they’ll be quite anxious to stay.”
“I’ll see if I can find some volunteers to help question the informers.”
“It sounds like you have everything in hand.” Lorlen took a step back from the doorway.
Dannyl smiled and inclined his head. “Thank you, Administrator.”
“If you need anything else, just send a messenger to me.” Lorlen nodded, then strode away.
Crossing the room, Dannyl gathered up the implements he had used to draft the reward notice and placed them in the ornate writing box. He entered the corridor and hurried toward his quarters, stopping as a novice stepped out of a nearby classroom and began to stroll toward the stairs.
“You there,” Dannyl called. The youth froze before spinning around. His eyes met Dannyl’s, then slid to the floor as he bowed. Dannyl swept down the corridor and thrust the box into the boy’s arms.
“Take these to the Magicians’ Library and tell Lord Jullen that I will collect them later.”
“Yes, Lord Dannyl,” the novice replied, nearly dropping the box as he bowed again. He turned and hurried away.
Continuing to the end of the corridor, Dannyl started down the stairs. Several magicians stood within the Entrance Hall, all staring through the huge doors of the University toward the gates. Larkin, a young Alchemist who had recently graduated, looked up as Dannyl neared the bottom of the stairs.
“These are your informers, Lord Dannyl?” he asked, grinning.
“Reward seekers,” Dannyl said dryly.
“You’re not bringing them in here,” a gruff voice said.
Recognizing the sour tone of the University Director, Dannyl turned to regard the magician.
“Would you like me to, Director Jerrik?” Dannyl asked.
“Absolutely not!”
From behind, Dannyl heard Larkin utter a soft bark of amusement and he resisted the temptation to smile. Jerrik never seemed to change. He had been the same disapproving, sour old man when Dannyl had been a novice.
“I’m sending them to a Guard hall,” Dannyl told the old magician. He turned away, wove between the other magicians milling around in the hall, then started down the stairs.
“Good luck,” Larkin called.
Dannyl raised a hand in reply. Ahead, a dark crowd of milling bodies was pressed against the ornate bars of the Guild Gates. Dannyl grimaced, and sought a mind familiar to him.
— Rothen!
— Yes?
— Look. Dannyl sent a mental image of the scene. He felt alarm from the other magician, which quickly changed to amusement as Rothen realized who the people were.
— Informers already! What are you going to do?
— Tell them to come back later, Dannyl replied, and that we won’t be tossing money to anyone until we have the girl. As quickly and clearly as mental communication allowed, he explained that Administrator Lorlen was organizing a place in the city to interview the “informers.”
— Shall I come back to help?
— I couldn’t keep you away if I tried.
He sensed amusement from the older magician, then Rothen’s presence faded beyond his detection.
Drawing closer to the gate, Dannyl could see people pressing against the bars and jostling each other. A bewildering clamor of voices reached his ears as they all began to call to him at once. The guards regarded Dannyl with a mixture of relief and curiosity.
He stopped about ten paces from the gates. Straightening his back to take full advantage of his height, he crossed his arms and waited. Slowly the noise dwindled. When the crowd had quietened, Dannyl worked the air before him to amplify his voice.
“How many of you are here with information regarding the girl we are seeking?”
A clamor of voices rose in reply. Dannyl nodded and lifted a hand to silence them again.
“The Guild welcomes your assistance in this matter. You will be given an opportunity to speak to us individually. We are arranging for a Guard hall to be prepared for this purpose. The location of this hall will be posted on these and the city gates in an hour. In the meantime, we ask that you return to your homes.”
A few grumbling voices rose in the back of the crowd. Dannyl lifted his chin and put a note of warning in his voice.
“No reward will be given until the girl is secure within our protection. Only then will the reward be paid, and only to those who have given us useful information. Do not approach the girl yourself. She may be da—”
“She’s here!” a voice shrieked.
Despite himself, Dannyl felt a thrill of hope. A disturbance stirred the crowd and people grumbled as someone pushed their way forward.
“Let her through,” he commanded.
The crowd parted and a shrivelled woman pressed up against the gate. A bony hand thrust through the bars and beckoned to him. The other held the arm of a thin young girl dressed in dirty, threadbare clothes.
“This is her!” the woman declared, her huge eyes staring at him.
Dannyl looked closely at the girl. Short, unevenly cut hair surrounded a thin, hollow-cheeked face. The girl was pitifully thin and her clothes hung loosely from her formless body. As Dannyl’s eyes fell on her, she burst into tears.
Doubts crept over him, then, as he realized he could not remember the face of the girl Rothen had projected in the Guildhall.
— Rothen?
— Yes?
He sent the magician an image of the girl.
— It’s not her.
Dannyl sighed in relief. “She is not the one,” he announced, shaking his head. He turned away.
“Hai!” the woman protested. He turned back to find her glaring at him. He held her gaze, and she quickly lowered her eyes. “Are you sure, my lord?” she wheedled. “You’ve not looked at her close.”
The sea of faces watched him expectantly and he realized that they wanted some kind of visible proof. Unless he convinced them that he could not be deceived, others would bring young girls in the hope of gaining the reward—and he couldn’t keep asking Rothen to identify every girl who was brought to him.
He approached the gate slowly. The girl had stopped crying, but as Dannyl drew closer she turned white with terror.
Dannyl reached out a hand to her and smiled. The girl stared at it and shrank away, but the woman beside her grabbed her arm and pushed it through the bars of the gate.
Taking it, Dannyl sent a mental inquiry to her mind. He immediately sensed a well of power lying dormant. Surprised, he hesitated a moment before releasing her hand and stepping back.
“She is not the one,” he repeated.
The informers began shouting again, but there was less urgency and demand in the din. He moved away a few paces and lifted his arms. They shied back.
“Go!” Dannyl called. “Return this afternoon.”
He turned quickly so his robes swirled around him dramatically and strode away. A low exclamation of awe rose from the crowd. Smiling, he lengthened his stride.
But his smile vanished as he considered the power he had sensed in the beggar girl. She had not been particularly strong. If she had been a daughter of a House, it was unlikely that she would have been sent to the Guild for training. She would have been more valuable to her family as a bride who would strengthen the magical bloodlines in her House. If she’d been a second or third son, however, they would have been delighted. Even a weak magician brought prestige to a family’s name.