This fallacious document Stragen found might give us a place to start, Caalador mused. Caalador frequently dipped in and out of the dialect like a leaping trout. If Kolata took a cluster of friends and relatives into the ministry with him, wouldnt it stand to reason that theyd be the ones hed trust the most?
It would indeed, Stragen agreed, and wed be able to tell from the dates on their appointments just who these cronies of his are, and his cronies would have been the people hed have been most likely to confide in when he decided to take up treason as a hobby. Id guess that anybody whose appointment coincided with Kolatas elevation to office is probably involved in this business.
The ones oz is still alive, anyway, Caalador added. A feller what turns down the chance t join some friends in the treason business aint got too much in the way o life-expectancy after he sez no.
May I speak, your Majesty? Alcan asked Ehlana timidly.
Of course, dear.
The gentle girl was holding one of the files in her hands. Does ink always fade and paper turn yellow as the document gets older? she asked them in a barely audible voice.
Indeed it does, child, Sarabian laughed. It drives librarians crazy.
And if there was something written down in one of these packages of paper that the people at the Inferior Ministry didnt want us to ...
Oscagne suddenly howled with laughter.
Alcan blushed and lowered her head. Im just being silly, she said in a very tiny voice. Im sorry I interrupted.
The place is called the Interior Ministry, Alcan, Melidere told her gently.
I preferred her term, Oscagne chuckled.
May I be excused, my queen? Alcan asked, her face flaming with mortification.
Of course, dear, Ehlana replied sympathetically.
Not just yet, Ehlana, Sarabian cut in. Come here, child, he said to Alcan.
She crossed to his chair and curtsied a bit awkwardly. Yes, your Majesty? she said in a scarcely audible voice.
Dont pay any attention to Oscagne, he said. His sense of humor gets the best of him sometimes. What were you going to say?
Its silly, your Majesty. Im just an ignorant girl. I shouldnt have spoken.
Alcan, he said very gently, you were the one who suggested that we take all the files of all the ministries out of the government buildings and spread them out on the lawns. That turned out to be an excellent idea. I dont know about these others, but Ill listen to anything you have to say. Please go on.
Well, your Majesty, she said, blushing even harder, as I understand what Milord Stragen just said, those people wanted to hide things that were written down, so they wrote new papers and put them in place of the ones they didnt want us to see.
It looks as if thats what theyve done, all right.
Well, then, if new papers white, and old papers yellow, wouldnt that sort of mean that anybody whose package has white papers mixed in with yellow ones has something to hide?
Oh, good God! Stragen exclaimed, smacking himself on the forehead with his open palm. How could I have been so stupid?
And I went right along with you, Caalador added. We both walked right over the top of the simplest and most obvious answer. How could we have missed it?
If I wanted to be spiteful, I could say that it was because youre men, Master Caalador, Baroness Melidere smiled sweetly, and men just adore unnecessary complications. Its not nice to be spiteful, though, so I wont say it. She gave the two thieves an arch little look. I may think it, but I wont say it, she added.
Its very easily explained, your Majesty, Teovin replied calmly. Youve already touched on it yourself. Teovin, the Director of the Secret Police at the Interior Ministry, was a dry, spare sort of man with no really distinguishing features. He was so ordinary looking that Ehlana felt him to be an almost perfect secret policeman.
And what is this brilliant explanation that Ive already discovered without even noticing it? Sarabian asked acidly.
Teovin held up the yellowed sheet the Emperor had just given him. As your Majesty pointed out, the ink on this document has faded rather badly. The information in our files is vital to the security of the Empire, so we cant let time erase the documents. The files are constantly reviewed, and any document that shows signs of approaching illegibility is copied off to preserve it.
Why hasnt that one in your hand been updated then, Teovin? the Emperor asked.
Its barely legible. Teovin coughed diffidently. Ahbudgetary considerations, your Majesty, he explained. The Chancellery of the Exchequer saw fit to cut our appropriation this year. Theyre strange over at Exchequer. They always act as if it were their own personal money.
They do rather, dont they? Sarabian laughed. The Emperor, Ehlana noted, was very fast on his feet, instantly adjusting to surprises. Chancellor Gashons hands start to shake every time I start talking about replacing broken tiles in the throne-room. Im glad we had the chance to straighten this out, my friend. I commend you for your devotion to your duty and your concern for the documents which have been placed in your care.
I live but to serve, your Majesty. Teovin paused. I wonder might I have a word with Interior Minister Kolata? There are some mattersstrictly routine, of coursethat should be brought to his attention.
Sarabian laughed. Afraid not, old boy, he said easily. You wouldnt be able to keep his attention for very long today.
Oh?
He got some tainted fish at supper last night, and hes been vomiting into a pail since just after midnight. We keep checking the pail, but his toenails havent come out as yet. Poor Kolata. I cant remember when Ive seen a man so sick.
Do you think its serious, your Majesty? Teovin sounded genuinely concerned.
Oh, probably not. Weve all come in contact with bad food before, so we know what to expect. He thinks hes going to die, though. Id imagine that he rather wishes he could. We have a physician in attendance. Hell be all right tomorrowthinner, maybe, and a little shaky, but recovered enough to look after business. Why dont you come by in the morning? Ill make sure that you get in to see him.
As your Majesty commands, Teovin said, dropping to the floor to grovel formally before the Emperor. Then he rose to his feet and left the audience chamber.
They waited.
Hes gone, Mirtai reported from the doorway. He just went out into the courtyard.
Quick, isnt he? Caalador noted. He didnt so much as turn a hair when your Majesty handed him that document.
He was ready for us, Stragen said. He had his story prepared well in advance.
His explanation is plausible, Stragen, Sarabian pointed out.
Of course, your Majesty. Secret policemen are very creative. We know that Interior Minister Kolatas involved in treason. He wouldnt be much of a threat all by himself, so his entire agencys suspect. We almost have to assume that every department head is involved. As Caalador so colorfully pointed out, anyone who didnt join in probably got himself defenestrated just as soon as he objected.
De-what? Melidere asked.
Defenestrated. It means getting thrown out of a windowa high one, usually. It doesnt accomplish very much to push somebody out of a ground-floor window.
There isnt really such a word, Stragen. Youre making it up.
No, honestly, Baroness, he protested, its a real word. Its a common solution to the problem of politically inconvenient people.
I think were straying here, Ehlana told them. Sarabian, why did you make up that story about Kolata and the bad fish?
We dont want his underlings to find out that were keeping him drugged into insensibility most of the time, do we, Ehlana?
No, I suppose not. Are you really going to let Teovin in to see him tomorrow?
Maybe we should. Weve been stalling Kolatas underlings for three days now, and Im starting to run out of excuses. Wed better let one of them see him, or theyll start to get suspicious.
Im not sure its a good idea, but maybe youre right. Alcan, do be a dear and run down to the kitchen. Tell the cooks not to drug Minister Kolatas supper tonight.
Yes, your Majesty, the girl replied.
You might want to tell them to give him an emetic instead, Stragen suggested.
Why would we want to do that? Melidere asked.
Emperor Sarabian just told the excellent Teovin that Kolatas been throwing up all day. We wouldnt want people to start accusing his Majesty of lying through his teeth, would we? Minister Kolata should show some signs of illness when Teovin visits him tomorrow. A good strong emetic should take care of that. Alcan giggled wickedly.
The Royal Princess Danae sat on a divan. She was carefully dressing Mmrr in a new dolls gown. Over the centuries, Aphrael had noticed that little Elene girls did that quite frequently. It didnt really make any sense to the Child Goddess, but since it was a long-established custom
Oh, quit, she murmured to her struggling cat. Im not hurting you. Mmrr objected loudly, giving vent to a plaintive yowl filled to the brim with a heart-rending self-pity.
Teovin was right about one thing, Stragen was saying to the rest of them. They had all gathered in the royal apartments again, and the Thalesian thief was holding forth once more. Danae liked Stragen, but the fact that he absolutely adored the sound of his own voice made him a bit tedious at times. The Ministry of the Interior would die en masse before theyd destroy a single scrap of paper. The documents they pulled out of those files are somewhere in the building, and those documents would tell us things we havent even guessed as yet about the conspiracy. Id give my teeth to get a look at them.
And spoil your smile, Stragen? Melidere objected. Bite your tongue.
And spoil your smile, Stragen? Melidere objected. Bite your tongue.
I was speaking figuratively, of course.
Hes probably right, your Majesties, Caalador agreed, forgoing the dialect. Those original documents would be an absolute gold-mine. I dont know that Id give my teeth, but I would give a lot to browse through them.
Danae rolled her eyes. Elenes, she said under her breath. If its all that important to you, Caalador, she said, go look at them.