David Eddings - The Complete Elenium Trilogy - The Diamond Throne, The Ruby Knight, The Sapphire Rose

‘Truly,’ Dregos grated. ‘Let us rid ourselves of this Pandion infection once and for all.’

A thin smile touched the primate’s lips. Then he flinched, and his face went deathly pale as Sephrenia released her counterspell.

It was at that point that Dolmant stepped forward, pushing back the hood of his monk’s robe to reveal his face. ‘May I speak, your Majesties?’ he asked.

‘Y-your Grace,’ Annias stammered in surprise, ‘I didn’t know that you were in Cimmura.’

‘I didn’t think you did, Annias. As you’ve so correctly pointed out, the Pandions are under Church authority. As the ranking churchman present, I think it’s proper for me to take charge of this inquiry. You are to be commended for the way in which you have conducted things thus far, however.’

‘But –’

‘That will be all, Annias,’ Dolmant dismissed him. He turned then to the kings and to Lycheas, who was staring open-mouthed at him.

‘Your Majesties,’ the patriarch began, pacing back and forth with his hands clasped behind him as if deep in thought. ‘This is indeed a serious accusation. Let us, however, consider the character of the accusers. On the one hand, we have an untitled merchant, and on the other, a runaway serf. The accused is the preceptor of an order of Church Knights, a man whose honour has always been above question. Why would a man of Lord Vanion’s stature commit such a crime? Indeed, we have as yet received no substantiation that the crime did in fact take place. Let us not move in haste.’

‘As I mentioned, your Grace,’ Annias injected, ‘I have dispatched church soldiers to Arcium to view the scene of the crime with their own eyes. I have also ordered them to seek out the churchmen who were in the castle of Count Radun and witnessed this horror and to return with them to Cimmura. Their reports should leave no doubts whatsoever.’

‘Ah, yes,’ Dolmant agreed. ‘None whatsoever. I think, however, that I might be able to save us a bit of time. As it happens, I myself have with me a man who witnessed what happened at the castle of Count Radun, and I don’t think his testimony can be questioned by any man here.’ He looked at the robed and cowled Count Radun, who had remained unobtrusively at the rear of the chamber. ‘Would you be so good as to step forward, brother?’ he said.

Annias was gnawing on a fingernail. His expression clearly showed his chagrin at having the proceedings taken out of his grasp and at the appearance of Dolmant’s unexpected witness.

‘Would you reveal your identity to us, brother?’ Dolmant asked mildly as the count joined him before the kings.

There was a tight grin on Radun’s face as he pushed back his hood.

‘Uncle!’ King Dregos gasped in astonishment.

‘Uncle?’ King Wargun exclaimed, coming to his feet and spilling his wine.

‘This is Count Radun – my uncle,’ Dregos told him, his eyes still wide with amazement.

‘You seem to have made an astonishing recovery, Radun.’ Wargun laughed. ‘My congratulations. Tell me, how did you stick your head back on?’

Annias had gone very pale. He stared in stunned disbelief at Count Radun. ‘How did you –’ he blurted. Then he recovered. He looked around wildly for an instant as if seeking a way to escape. Then he seemed to get hold of himself. ‘Your Majesties,’ he stammered, ‘I have been misled by false witnesses. Please forgive me.’ He was visibly sweating now. Then he spun about. ‘Seize those two liars!’ He pointed at Tessera and Verl, who were both cringing in terror. Several red-liveried guards quickly rushed the pair from the room.

‘Annias thinks very fast on his feet, doesn’t he?’ Kalten murmured to Sparhawk. ‘How much would you care to wager that those two will manage somehow to hang themselves before the sun goes down – with a certain amount of help, of course?’

‘I’m not a betting man, Kalten,’ Sparhawk replied. ‘Not on a proposition like that, anyway.’

‘Why don’t you tell us what really happened at your castle, Count Radun?’ Dolmant suggested.

‘It was really fairly simple, your Grace,’ Radun replied. ‘Sir Sparhawk and Sir Kalten arrived at my gates some time ago and warned me that a group of men dressed in the armour of Pandion Knights were planning to gain entry by subterfuge and murder me and my family. They had a number of real Pandions with them. When the impostors arrived, Sir Sparhawk led his knights against them and drove them off.’

‘Fortuitous,’ King Obler observed. ‘Which of these stalwarts is Sir Sparhawk?’

Sparhawk stepped forward. ‘I am, your Majesty.’

‘How did you become aware of this plot?’

‘It was quite by accident, your Majesty. I happened to overhear a conversation concerning it. I immediately informed Lord Vanion, and he ordered Kalten and me to take preventive steps.’

King Dregos rose to his feet and came down from the dais. ‘I have wronged you, Lord Vanion,’ he said in a thick voice. ‘Your motives were the very best, and I accused you. Can you forgive me?’

‘There is nothing to forgive, your Majesty,’ Vanion replied. ‘Under the circumstances, I’d have done exactly the same.’

The Arcian King took the preceptor’s hand and clasped it warmly.

‘Tell me, Sir Sparhawk,’ King Obler asked, ‘could you by chance identify the plotters?’

‘I couldn’t see their faces, your Majesty.’

‘A shame, really,’ the old king sighed. ‘It would appear that the plot was fairly widespread. The two who came before us to testify would also seem to have been a part of it, and at some prearranged signal were to have stepped forward with their obviously well-coached lies.’

‘That same thought had occurred to me, your Majesty,’ Sparhawk agreed.

‘But who was behind it? And against whom was it really directed? Count Radun, perhaps? Or King Dregos? Or even Lord Vanion?’

‘That might be impossible to determine – unless the so-called witnesses can be persuaded to identify their fellow plotters.’

‘Excellent point, Sir Sparhawk.’ King Obler looked sternly at the Primate Annias. ‘It lies upon you, your Grace, to ensure that the merchant Tessera and the serf Verl are available for questioning. We would all be most distressed should anything of a permanent nature happen to either of them.’

Annias’ face grew stiff. ‘I shall have them both closely guarded, your Majesty,’ he assured the King of Deira. He gestured to one of his soldiers and muttered some instructions to the man, who blanched slightly, then hurried from the room.

‘Sir Sparhawk,’ Lycheas blustered, ‘you were ordered to Demos and told to remain there until you received permission to leave. Why is it that you –’

‘Be still, Lycheas,’ Annias snapped at him.

A slow flush crept up the pimpled young man’s face.

‘I would say that you owe Lord Vanion an apology, Annias,’ Dolmant said pointedly.

Annias paled and then turned stiffly to the Pandion chief. ‘Please accept my apologies, Lord Vanion,’ he said shortly. ‘I was misled by liars.’

‘Of course, my dear Primate,’ Vanion replied. ‘We all blunder from time to time, don’t we?’

‘I believe that more or less concludes this matter then,’ Dolmant said. He cast a sidelong glance at Annias, who was obviously making a great effort to control his emotions. ‘Be assured, Annias,’ the Patriarch of Demos said to him, ‘I will cast this entire matter in as charitable a light as I can when I make my report to the Hierocracy in Chyrellos. I’ll try my very best not to make you look like a complete idiot.’

Annias bit his lip.

‘Tell us, Sir Sparhawk,’ King Obler said, ‘could you in any way identify the people who approached the count’s castle?’