“As I had suspected,” murmured Khaavren.
The Easterner, who was close enough to Khaavren to hear, said, “As I had suspected you suspected.”
“Well,” said Khaavren. “Would you care to explain matters to me?”
“It is not my place to do so. Perhaps Lady Saruchka would, if you asked.”
The bard, hearing this, said, “Do you think I should, Vlad?”
“If you wish, Sara. It is entirely your decision.”
“Perhaps I will, then.”
As she finished speaking, she had placed herself next to Khaavren, and, holding her reed-pipe as if it were a weapon, she stared at the five Issola. “Or,” she added, “you could ask them. Hearing their opinion cannot fail to be amusing.”
Khaavren shrugged and, addressing the Issola whose arm had been wounded, said, “Would you care to offer an explanation?”
The Issola, who was ignoring the blood that continued to fall from his arm, said coolly, “My lord, what is it you wish to know?”
“In the first place, your name.”
“I am Dury.”
“Thank you, Lord Dury. Now, if you would be so kind as to explain, why did you attack this Easterner?”
“Why, what else could we do when he has dishonored our House and our family? You perceive, my lord, one cannot challenge an Easterner to a duel.”
“Oh, I understand that well enough.”
As this exchange took place, Khaavren observed a glance exchanged between the Easterner and the bard.
Khaavren cleared his throat. “Please forgive the brusqueness of an old soldier,” he said. “But I will to be clear about this. The Easterner and the bard are lovers, are they not?”
“Yes,” said Dury, at the same time the Easterner and the bard said, “No.”
“But,” added Szurke, “I would very much like to be.”
“And I,” added Saruchka, “am very nearly ready to consider it, out of annoyance if for no other reason.”
“How, you are not?” said Dury.
“I answered the captain, my lord uncle,” said Saruchka. “Had you asked, I would have declined to answer. With this in mind, I am certain you can understand my reluctance to give reassurances.”
“And yet,” said Dury, on whose face a certain degree of consternation was now visible, “it has seemed to me that the two of you have been seen together, and have met secretly, and—”
“Good my lord uncle,” said Saruchka, “if our meetings were secret, well, then we did not want them known. If we did not want them known, what would make you think I will now explain them?”
“For my part,” said Szurke, “I would be curious to hear the explanation from our brave captain.”
“From me?” said Khaavren.
“Why not?”
“You believe I arrived already understanding the circumstances that led us all here?”
“You pretend you do not?” asked the Easterner with a smile.
“Well, perhaps I have certain guesses.”
“I would admire to hear them.”
“Shall I tell you, then?”
“If you would. You perceive, we are all listening.”
“Then, if you insist—”
“To be sure, I do.”
“—I will explain.”
“Well?”
“This is it, then: The Lady Saruchka, who had already earned the ire of her family by playing social music, gave the appearance of having—how may I say this? ‘Taken up’ is I believe the expression, with an Easterner. That, in the event, they were wrong did not stop them from attempting to deliver a beating to the upstart Easterner. The Easterner, unaware of the reason behind the attack, or, indeed, the nature of it, assumed his life was in danger and reacted accordingly. This led to the death of—who, exactly?”
“My brother, Amlun,” said Dury.
“Amlun is dead?” said the bard.
“Yes,” said Dury.
“I’m sorry to hear it,” said Saruchka. “Vlad, that wasn’t nice.”
“Sorry,” said the Easterner.
“What remains to be answered,” said Khaavren, “is, if you two were not romantically involved, just what were you doing together?”
“That is a good question,” agreed Szurke.
“I’m glad you think so,” said Khaavren.
“Another good question is, whatever became of the mysterious artifact called the silver tiassa?”
“What is that?” asked Dury.
“I had expected that you wouldn’t know,” said Khaavren.
“Well, I am pleased to meet your expectations, but what is it?”
“No, no,” said Khaavren. “It is not for you to ask questions. It is for you to answer them, at least until I have decided what to do with you.”
“It is up to you, of course, but may I suggest that finding us a physicker might not be unreasonable?”
“Cha,” said Khaavren. “None of you are hurt badly.”
“As you say,” said Dury.
Khaavren, then, turned to Lady Saruchka and said, “What is your opinion, my lady? Should I arrest them?”
She laughed. “Aside from the amusement value, no. I imagine they are sufficiently chastised by having been defeated, twice, by an Easterner.”
Dury kept his eyes facing straight ahead, and made no response; but it is undeniable that his face reddened somewhat.
“Very well, my lady. I will do as you say. Naturally, the Empire has no interest in matters within your family, or between you and your House.”
“I am pleased to hear it, my lord Captain.”
Khaavren then turned to Dury, bowed, and said, “You may go.”
For an instant, the Issola looked as if he might say something; then it looked as if he wished to do something; but in the end he simply made a deep courtesy and, enlisting the help of the others, assisted the wounded out the door.
When they had left, Khaavren turned toward Saruchka and said, “Now, then. Will you tell me of the silver tiassa?”
“I confess myself astonished, Captain, that you know so much of what has transpired, and yet have no guess about this artifact for which you have been looking for so long.”
“But, how do you know we’ve been looking for it?”
“Vlad told me.”
Khaavren turned his eyes to the Easterner, who said, “I could not imagine the Empire being so concerned about the health of one poor Easterner—Imperial title or none—as to devote this much effort to the search.”
“And you reached this conclusion when, my lord?”
“When the concert was announced. It was obvious that it was only scheduled in order to bring us all together.”
“And yet, you came anyway?”
“You perceive, Captain, that I am hardly going to pass up an opportunity to see Sara.”
“Indeed? Then, the Lord Dury was not entirely wrong.”
“Oh, he was perfectly right, if my wishes were the only consideration. But perfectly wrong when Lady Saruchka’s wishes are taken into account.”
“That is not necessarily true, Lord Taltos,” said Sara with a smirk.
The Easterner coughed, and appeared to be uncertain about where he was looking. One of the jhereg on his shoulders began to bob its head up and down furiously, almost as if it were laughing. Khaavren, other than a certain disgust at what was being implied, had little interest in the matter. He said, “In any case, it was not dalliance that brought the two of you together two months ago, nor that caused the lady to retrieve your sword—which sword, I perceive, she has returned to you.”
“She was kind enough to do so,” said the Easterner, who appeared to have recovered somewhat, although his face was now as red as Dury’s had been.