"Are you suggesting that I stop? Give it up and trust the Grand Trabbar to see to it that justice is served?"
"Not necessarily," Kovrim began.
"Good, because there's no way I'm leaving this alone now," Vambran replied angrily. "The man and woman who were murdered were servants of House Pharaboldi. Her name was Jithelle, a kitchen maid, and his was Hoytir, a stable hand. Apparently, Denrick Pharaboldi was seeing her on the sly. Em found that out today."
Kovrim whistled and said, "That sheds some unusual light on the whole affair."
"Exactly," Vambran replied. "And seeing as how our two Houses are so friendly right now-Em was, in fact, there for a social tea-I think it behooves me to make sure we as a family are not getting involved with someone untrustworthy or willing to commit murder to further their business causes."
Kovrim nodded and said, "I agree. But you still need to be particularly cautious. You don't want to draw any more of the temple's attention to yourself in this way."
"It's a little late for that, don't you think?" Emriana said, nodding back the way they had come. "You brought a squad of mercenaries who answer to the temple with you tonight. Word is bound to get around."
Kovrim looked at the girl with surprised admiration.
"Very good point, Em." He smiled and continued, "But in this case, not a worry. Those are some of my most trusted soldiers. We already discussed the need for silence on this matter. They are working tonight strictly freelance."
"Excellent. And Adyan and Horial know to do the same," Vambran said. "At least, once I get a chance to talk to them. Perhaps we can make sure Grolo takes care of that."
"I'm sure we can arrange that," Kovrim answered. "I'll speak to him later. But for now, here's what I think you should do next. If this is the same Jithelle I think you're talking about, I know her mother, Nimra Skolotti. A sweet old woman, and likely wondering what really happened to her poor daughter. She might know something useful, so I think you two should go visit her tomorrow and see what you can find out."
Vambran nodded and Emriana said, "Oh, the poor woman. Maybe it would make her feel a little better if she knew someone was trying to clear Jithelle's name."
"Precisely," their uncle said. "In the meantime, I'll do a little more digging-very subtle digging, mind you-to see what I can find out about potential business opportunities with House Pharaboldi. If I turn anything useful up, I'll let you know."
Vambran turned to face his uncle. "Thank you, sir, for everything you've done so far."
Emriana stepped in and gave the priest a hug.
"Yes," she said, "thank you so much for coming tonight. I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't been able to reach you."
"You two just be careful," replied Kovrim. "This isn't a game we're playing, here."
"Damn it!" Grozier snarled as he watched Kovrim, Vambran, and the girl exit the warehouse. "Follow them!"
The wizard Bartimus shook his head.
"I can't," he said, shrinking away from his employer's angry gaze. "I focused the spell on Dressus; it goes where he goes."
Grozier threw up his hands in frustration and began to pace.
"Well, that clinches it, then," he said. "They're uncovering far too much, and furthermore, they know that we're watching them. You heard the priest say as much."
Bartimus nodded, though he didn't think that Grozier saw the gesture, and furthermore, didn't care. The less attention paid to him, the better, as far as the wizard was concerned.
"I've got to talk to the others. That damned mercenary is proving more resourceful than I expected, especially when he has so many friends and family to aid him. He's got too many resources."
"Pardon, sir," Bartimus said, wondering why he would dare to question his employer's logic. "But why don't we take those resources away from him?"
"What?" Grozier asked harshly, scowling and looking at the wizard as though he had just noticed him for the first time. "What are you talking about?"
Bartimus took a deep breath, then said, "The high priest outranks all of them. I'm sure he could arrange it so that the mercenary can't draw on fellow soldiers or his uncle for help. In fact, that may have been what Lavant intended from the beginning, and we didn't give him a chance to put it into motion."
Grozier cocked his head, regarding the wizard with approval.
"Why don't you offer up these kinds of insights more often?" he asked.
Bartimus cringed, but said, "Because you usually just yell at me when I do."
"Yes," Grozier replied with a sigh. "I suppose I do. All right, I'll try to control that. You just keep doing more thinking. I like it."
"All right," Bartimus said, stunned.
"In the meantime, I think we need to move up our meeting. Let everyone know."
"Yes, sir," Bartimus replied, already moving through his study to fulfill his employer's request.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Vambran strolled along inconspicuously, following the woman as she made her way carefully through the market and holding on to the younger woman's arm who was escorting her. The mercenary had been following the pair for a while, watching as they shopped for fresh vegetables in the lines of stalls that filled the open square. The day was bright and crisp, somewhat cooler than it had been the day before, but still the sun was warming to the lieutenant's skin as he kept pace with his quarry.
Vambran had tracked down Jithelle's mother easily enough from the instructions Kovrim provided him the night before, getting up early and making his way to the east side of the city, where the less affluent neighborhoods were. He had no trouble finding the small house, really an apartment on the second story of a rug merchant's shop, where Nimra Skolotti and her youngest daughter Mirolyn lived. Initially, he intended to just visit the woman directly, but then caution got the better of him, and he decided to wait. If he was being followed, or watched in some other way, perhaps it would be better not to draw undue attention to the grieving mother.
The mercenary did not have to wait long before Nimra and her daughter appeared on the street. The pair of them headed first to the bakery where they purchased a single small honeyed bun to split between the two of them, then they made their way to the market, nibbling at their breakfast and chatting softly as they strolled. Nimra maintained a steady grip on Mirolyn's arm. It took Vambran a few minutes to realize that Nimra was blind.
The mercenary watched as the two women examined some melons, Nimra picking up one then another, squeezing them with her hands and smelling them. They selected one and paid the merchant, then moved on, toward a stall that sold peppers. Vambran smiled to himself, wondering if those might have been the very same peppers he'd helped make their way across the Sea of Fallen Stars aboard Lady's Favor. Nimra and Mirolyn chose a small handful of the peppers and completed their purchase.
When they reached a corner next to a small kiosk selling hot tea, Vambran approached them. He stepped up next to the younger woman and spoke softly.
"Excuse me, but I would like to speak with you and your mother for a moment."
Mirolyn turned to face the mercenary in surprise, but Nimra only cocked her head to one side and said, "I wondered how much longer you were going to follow us before you showed your intentions."
Vambran did a double take.
"You… you knew I was following you?" he asked.