Martin Scott - Thraxas at War

'Come to brush up on your reading skills?'

Hanama strides past me without replying. Assassins are never great with small talk.

The interview with Rittius is exactly as unpleasant as I'd anticipated. Sensing that I'm stuck with a losing hand, the head of Palace Security wastes no opportunity to rub it in.

'Please, ask me anything you wish,' he says. 'I'm eager to co-operate. Seeing you struggle hopelessly to clear the name of a guilty man is reward in itself.'

'Lodius is not a guilty man.'

And on what do you base that fine conclusion? Not on the evidence, certainly. On your intuition perhaps? I remember you were always keen on that during your brief sojourn at Palace Security.'

He smiles mockingly.

And now you're in a tavern in Twelve Seas, scrabbling round for a few gurans to pay the rent. Yes, a man can go a long way with intuition like that.'

'Does the state have any direct evidence that Lodius had carasin on him at the meeting?'

'He is the only importer of the substance into the city.'

'Did you check out the other people at the meeting? Did you get a Sorcerer to take a look at them? A Sorcerer might have been able to detect traces of poison if it was brought there by someone else.'

'Quite unnecessary' says Rittius. 'There is clear proof of the Senator's guilt.'

'Have you checked out who else might benefit from Galwinius's death?'

'There are no other strong suspects.'

'You really haven't investigated a hell of a lot, have you?'

Rittius leans forward.

'Have you? Have you looked into the matter of the forged will?'

I'm working on it.

'Then unless you're even more incompetent than I remember, you'll know by now that Senator Lodius had indeed defrauded Prefect Galwinius of a great sum of money. The Prefect was taking the matter to court and would have won the case. The only thing that could have stopped the prosecution and the subsequent disgrace of Lodius was the death of Galwinius.'

This is true. Under Turanian law, only the injured party can sue in the matter of a forged will. With Galwinius out the way, Lodius is in the clear.

'What stronger motive could you wish for?'

A strong motive is not evidence.'

'Nothing is evidence to an Investigator like you unless he wishes it to be.'

I'm swallowing Rittius's insults. I'm not enjoying it.

'I don't see why you're so keen on the prosecution, Rittius. After all, you're a supporter of Lodius's party'

'I have a job to do for this city,' says Rittius. 'Personal considerations don't enter into it. Particularly when the nation is in danger.'

It's puzzling. I wasn't expecting Rittius to have fallen so completely in line with the Consul on this one. Rittius has been Deputy Consul in his time, and as head of Palace Security he's still a very important politician in Turai. Up till now he's been a firm supporter of the Populares. I can't believe he's decided to desert his political master merely because he thinks he's guilty of murder. What does Rittius care if a man is guilty of murder? Absolutely nothing, to my certain knowledge. It's not as if he's an honest man, or anything like it.

I question him some more but I'm not getting anything. Nothing useful anyway. I plug away at the notion of who else might have had a motive for killing Prefect Galwinius.

'The Society of Friends were annoyed when he closed down their establishments.'

'We have good intelligence concerning that group. They didn't do it.'

'Government intelligence on organised crime isn't usually that good. Mainly because the criminals bribe the government. And if the Society of Friends aren't behind it, the Prefect had other enemies. The Association of Gentlewomen, for instance.' Rittius laughs.

'You can't be serious. That collection of harlots likes to make a lot of noise but they're not murderers.'

I suppose not. Though I wonder if Rittius is fully aware of just how many of Turai's most powerful women support the association. Lisutaris does, for sure, and Melus the Fair. All the way through society, from the richest matron to the poorest barmaid - Makri, for instance - the Association of Gentlewomen have a lot of tacit support. I'm sure that Hanama has had some involvement with the group, and with an assassin like her on your side, any murder would be theoretically possible. But I don't really believe it myself. Killing Galwinius wouldn't have advanced their cause. The Prefect's death hasn't set Herminis free. Unlike the forging of a will, which is a civil matter between the parties involved, murder is prosecuted by the state. Galwinius's successor as Prefect will take over the case. Unless the Association has somehow arranged things so that the next Prefect might pardon her? Not completely impossible, given Lisutaris's power and influence. I file it away for future consideration.

'What about the war? Have the Civil Guards considered that angle? The Prefect of Thamlin handles a lot of sensitive information. Maybe he got news that someone was charging the state treasury too much for supplying weapons.'

'This is all pointless speculation.' 'A man's life is worth a little speculation.' Rittius draws his toga around him and rises to his feet. 'Thraxas. I'll go this far. Senator Lodius deserves a fair trial. The evidence has to be investigated. It's a hopeless task but he has the right to a defence. Maybe you're the man for the job. You can get things done when you want. Good luck with the investigation. But we both know it's hopeless.'

And with that Rittius walks out of the room. I stare at the floor for a while. Then I stare at my boots. They're in a bad state. I could do with a new pair. I'll have to attend to it before the Ores attack. I stare at the wall. Some nice artwork here, a good Elvish tapestry. I head south slowly, drawing my magic warm cloak around me to protect me from the chilling wind. After a while I stop and stare at a wall. It's a blank wall. Nothing of interest at all. Two children, well wrapped up against the cold, hurry by in the company of a governess. They're shouting happily to each other. Unaware of the imminent attack, maybe, or too young to care. I stare at the wall for a while more. There's something seriously wrong here. Rittius came close to paying me a compliment. He said I might be the man for the job. I'm familiar with his mocking humour. I don't think he was trying to be humorous. I walk on, my eyes on the ground. If Rittius is paying me a compliment, there's definitely something wrong. I just don't know what.

I walk a long way down Moon and Stars Boulevard, over the river and into Pashish. When I reach St Rominius's Lane I take it as the shortest route to the Avenging Axe. Last summer I met a unicorn in this alley. I ran after it but it disappeared. It was a strange summer. When I turn the corner three men with swords step out in front of me. They raise their weapons.

I'm still carrying my sleep spell; I never go on a case without it. I intone the arcane words and they fall down in a heap. Suckers. They should have known better. There's a noise behind me. I spin round. Four men with swords are approaching fast. Two more appear in front of me, stepping over the unconscious bodies of their comrades. I guess they did know better. Sent in a couple of decoys to draw out my magic. Now it's out of my mind, I can't use it again till I re-learn it. It's the only spell I was carrying. These days I find carrying any more too much of a mental strain. I put my back to the wall. The six men approach in a semicircle, blades in hand. Things are starting to look bleak.

My sword is in my right hand and my dagger in my left. Street toughs in Turai generally aren't experts with their weapons. Even so, faced by six men with nowhere to retreat I'm unlikely to survive. Someone is going to get their sword through my guard.