"Of course."
"I will be watching," Belen added.
"I understand completely."
Belen watched as the other disappeared.
* * *
The HC's eyes were on us whenever we weren't looking during breakfast the following morning. I'm sure he was wondering what had happened to his little band of assassins, but he would have to keep on wondering. The fog was still thick and would cause problems as we made our way up the mountain toward the pass. I could find my way easily enough but was thankful that the General was familiar with the territory and knew where he was going. The HC would have been hopelessly lost after five minutes.
The fog did cause problems; we didn't travel a third of the planned distance before the HC was forced to call a halt—the General had sent two messages during the day, both asking to halt and camp until the fog cleared. The tents were set up and the cooks had set about preparing an early meal when the messenger arrived at our tent.
"Message for the General. I was instructed to hand it to him personally," the boy said, holding the rolled-up paper back as I reached for it.
"What the hell for?" The General came through the slit in the canvas that separated his portion of the tent from mine. I didn't scent any taint about the boy, but I still watched him closely when the General came forward, his hand held out for the message.
"I was instructed to wait for a reply," the boy dipped his head respectfully to the General. The General looked briefly at the boy—he couldn't be more than seventeen—by his scent, anyway. He looked older, as if he'd been through too much already, and only expected more of the same from his life. The seal on the rolled-up message was broken and the General opened it to read. He seemed a bit angry afterward, motioning the boy into his section of the tent to write a reply. He hadn't asked me to accompany him so I stayed where I was, listening carefully in case I needed to assist the General in any way. My help wasn't needed and the boy walked out a scant three minutes later, a freshly sealed message in his hand.
"We'll be entertaining guests after dinner," the General said, coming out again. His face looked worried, though. I nodded.
Chapter 6
Thurlow Burghin stood before the Minister for Defense, who was in charge of the Alliance armies, their spies, investigators, military tribunals and any other thing that might keep the Alliance safe and adhering to the law. Thurlow wasn't particularly handsome, not as some measured it, anyway. He had thick, black hair, gray eyes, a slightly crooked nose and lips that were full and nearly sensuous. They were his best feature, according to the three female secretaries who'd passed him through office after office, from one ranking officer to the next, until he reached the Minister for Defense.
"Your record is impeccable," the Minister noted, setting the handheld computer on his desk. The Minister was in his sixties—still young for this day and time upon any number of Alliance worlds. "And the Founder has personally approved your assignment to Le-Ath Veronis."
"Thank you sir," Thurlow nodded respectfully.
"We need someone to act as Liaison with Le-Ath Veronis," the Minister sighed. "We are getting more and more arrests from there—people who have been hired by the remnants of Solar Red, all trying their best to gather information to send back to those murderous fanatics. I want someone on the ground, there, to hear those confessions firsthand. I want this stopped before it can start, do you understand? Our newest monarch, on our newest Alliance world, is being threatened, and I'm sure I don't have to tell you that Le-Ath Veronis is padding the Alliance coffers right now."
"I understand that, sir," Thurlow nodded slightly. "Why do we need someone there, though?"
The Minister rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Rumors have reached me, and those above me, even, that if the present Queen dies, all except the comesuli will be forced from the planet. You've read the information on Kifirin?"
"The planet or the demigod?" Thurlow asked.
"The god part," the Minister breathed a sigh. "He has been heard to say that if Queen Lissa dies, the others will be forced off the planet, except for the comesuli. That means the revenue that we are currently enjoying from Le-Ath Veronis will cease, and gambling will once more be done on non-Alliance worlds, more than likely. You understand, now, why we have an interest in all this? We very much wish to keep the Queen alive, by any means necessary. That is why we want to send one of our best. You are our eyes and ears. You will report directly to us, so we may see how urgent the matter is and take appropriate measures."
"Of course, sir. I understand." Thurlow didn't even twitch at the news. The Minister wanted to sigh again—his spies and undercover agents could all hide their expressions—quite well, in fact. They'd been trained in it, after all.
"You won't be undercover so much there; I've informed them that you are coming, in an effort to keep everyone apprised. We are obligated to keep all our Alliance leaders alive, after all."
Thurlow wanted to smile. Those leaders were kept alive as long as they agreed with the general consensus among the Grand Alliance Council. Assistance might come a little slower if the leader disagreed too loudly with the Founder and the twenty Charter Members that made up the Grand Alliance Council. "How quickly should I pack, sir?" Thurlow asked, a slight smile playing across his lips.
"Right away. I want you on a ship tonight. Passage is already booked. I'd provide an assistant, but I'm hoping that they'll do that for you. Ask when you arrive. Let me know if that request is denied."
"I will, sir." Thurlow dipped his head and turned to go.
* * *
"Now is the time I wish Lissa were here, just to deal with this," Tony grumbled. The Alliance was sending a Liaison, while he and Gavin were scheduled to follow Paulin, their little artistic spy, off world to Hraede. Paulin's employer, Ibbitt, might have connections to Solar Red, and Tony and Gavin were going after him. Lynx offered to come along, claiming a bit of boredom since he'd retired from the Saa Thalarr. Gavin was doing his best to be pragmatic about the Alliance sending in one of their own.
"It's only a bureaucrat," Gavin replied. "He'll follow others around and make a nuisance of himself, more than likely. Erland, Aurelius and Gardevik have already offered to keep him entertained and out of our hair while we tend to actual business. Flavio, too, has offered to help."
"But he's coming in right before we leave," Tony wasn't done, yet.