The Way of Shadows
Page 21

“Fair enough.”
“What took you to Seth?” Solon asked.
“Slavery,” the count said. “Before I became fully part of the movement that finally ended slavery here seven years ago, I thought a more moderate path might work. I went to Hokkai to see if I could learn ways to make slaves’ lives better.”
From the small size of his house—which was very small for a noble, even one as low as a count—Solon knew that Count Drake hadn’t been one of the slavers who felt guilty about his newfound wealth. He must have been a real crusader all along.
“It’s totally different in Seth,” Solon said. “The Year of Joy changes everything.”
“Yes, I advanced the idea here, even got the law passed, but the Sa’kagé immediately suborned it. Instead of every slave being freed on the seventh year, slaves were to be freed seven years from the beginning of their indenture. The Sa’kagé claimed it was simpler, that it would be ridiculous to buy a slave in the sixth year and own them for only a month or a week. Of course, in practice, the Sa’kagé’s people kept the records, so where in your country, the seventh year is full of celebration as every slave is freed, here the years passed and slaves were never freed. Slaves became slaves for life. They were beaten, scourged, given to the Death Games, their children sent to the baby farms.”
“I’ve heard those became truly awful,” Solon said.
“The Sa’kagé set them up, saying that they would be places where the children of prostitutes might be redeemed. Slaves, true, but redeemed. It sounded good, but it gave us places like the House of Mercy. Sorry, I shouldn’t go on. It was a dark time. Is that boy ever coming down?”
“Maybe we should get started,” Solon said. “I don’t think this will wait, and from the way Logan was looking at your daughter, they might be talking a while.”
The count chuckled. “Are you testing me now?”
“Does Duke Gyre know?”
“Yes. He and I are friends. Regnus is loath to demand control of Logan’s flirtations, given the circumstances of his own marriage.”
“I’m not familiar with those. Can you enlighten me?” Solon asked.
“It’s not my place. Anyway, Logan and Serah will grow out of it. What appears to be the problem?”
“Catrinna Gyre.”
“Careful,” the count said.
“Did the duke give you letters that declared his son Lord Gyre in his absence?”
“He spoke of it, but he had to leave quickly. He said his steward would bring them.”
“Lady Gyre has stolen the letters and destroyed them. Then she went to the queen.”
“She went to whom?” The count was astonished.
“Is that unusual?”
“They have no love for each other. What happened?” Count Drake asked.
“Lady Gyre asked to be made Logan’s guardian. The king overheard them. He came in and said he would take it under advisement. What does that mean?”
Count Drake removed his pince nez and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “It means that if he acts quickly, he can appoint a guardian for Logan.”
“Will Catrinna Gyre do such a poor job?” Solon asked.
Count Drake sighed. “Legally, the king can put anyone in Logan’s place that he wants so long as they’re related to him, which means almost anyone in the nobility. And once he’s got a guardian in place, even Regnus won’t be able to rescind the appointment. Catrinna has just delivered House Gyre to the king.”
“But you’re Duke Gyre’s solicitor—and he told you his wishes. Doesn’t that carry any weight?” Solon asked.
“If the king were interested in the truth, yes. As is, to save the Gyres, we’d need the Gyre family parchment, the duke’s Great Seal, and a reckless willingness to forge a state document. The king holds court in half an hour. I’d guess this will be the first item on the agenda. There’s just no time.”
Solon cleared his throat and produced a roll of heavy parchment and a large seal.
Count Drake grinned and snatched the parchment. “I think I suddenly like you, Master Tofusin.”
“Wendel North helped me with the wording,” Solon said. “I thought I’d leave the signature and the seal to you.”
Count Drake rummaged through his desk, found a letter from the duke, and laid it on top of the writ of guardianship. With quick, sure strokes, he forged the duke’s signature flawlessly. Count Drake looked up guiltily and said, “Let’s just call it an artifact of a misspent youth.”
Solon dribbled sealing wax on the parchment. “Then here’s to misspent youth.”
“Next time you’ll move,” Blint said as Azoth groaned his way back into consciousness.
“I don’t think I’ll ever move again. My head feels like someone threw it against a wall.”
Blint laughed, the second time Azoth had heard him do that recently. He was sitting on the edge of Azoth’s bed. “You did well. They thought you were embarrassed because you got knocked down in front of Drake’s daughter, so they decided it was all harmless kid stuff. The young lord Gyre was mortified that he hit you—apparently he’s a real big friendly giant, never loses his temper. The fact you’re about a quarter his size and Serah was furious with him also helps. They were all quite impressed.”
“Impressed? That’s stupid.”
“In their world fighting has rules, so fighting means risking embarrassment and pain and at worst risking your looks if you get a broken nose or an unfortunate scar. It doesn’t mean dying or killing. In their world, you can fight a man and then become his friend. In fact, you’re going to play it so Logan does become your friend, because with a man like him, you can only come out of this as a great friend or a terrible enemy. Do you understand that, Kylar? We’ll work together on your new identity soon.”
“Yes, sir. Sir, why didn’t you want Master Tofusin to see you? That’s why you made me fight Logan, isn’t it? To be a distraction?”
“Solon Tofusin is a magus. Most magi—that’s male mages—can’t tell if you’re Talented just by looking at you. On the other hand, most magae—female mages—can. There are disguises against their sight that I’ll teach you later, but I didn’t have the time to do it and I didn’t feel like going upstairs and jumping out a window.”
Azoth was confused. “But he doesn’t act like a mage.”
“And how would you know?” Durzo asked.
“Uh . . .” Azoth didn’t think saying, “He isn’t like the mages in stories” was going to please Durzo.
“The truth is,” Durzo said, “Solon hasn’t told Logan or anyone else that he’s a mage, and you won’t tell anyone either. When you know a man’s secrets, you have power over him. A man’s secret is his weakness. Every man has a weakness, no matter . . .” Master Blint’s voice dropped to nothing, his eyes suddenly distant, lifeless. He stood and left without a word.
Azoth closed his eyes, confused. He wondered about his new master. He wondered about the guild. He wondered if Ja’laliel had bought review. He wondered how Jarl was doing. Most of all, he wondered about Doll Girl.