Ebudae (46 page)

The voice of the magistrate rang loud,
causing the murmur in the room to fade. “I have reached a number of
conclusions and shall present them now. My decisions in all matters
are final as per . . .” He threw the scroll in his hands onto the
table. “If you want to know, look it up. I promised my wife I’d
take her and the little monsters to dinner at a nice restaurant, so
let’s get to the details.”

There was a general chuckle through the
room. Ebudae’s heart fluttered in nervousness.

“There is an avalanche of information here
proving that Master Blavoci’s interests in Dralin were being run by
Master Thanzin in violation of countless laws.” He gestured toward
a stack of books on the floor behind him. “My clerks are going to
write up all the laws broken along with my decision over the next
few days. You can read the details when they’re done if you’re so
inclined.” He rested his elbows on the table and steepled his
fingers in front of him. “The basic sentence is that Master Blavoci
is prevented from doing business in Dralin for a year.”

That drew unhappy mumbling from the officers
who had worked so hard to bring the organization down. Ebudae
didn’t think it was enough.

“All of Master Blavoci’s holdings within the
city have been confiscated, which amounts to tens of thousands of
gold pieces worth of property, possibly even hundreds of
thousands.” He scanned the room from one end to the other, making
certain there were no complaints. “If he decides to rebuild after a
year, it’ll cost him just as much again.”

Ebudae knew that would be incredibly
difficult, even for someone as rich as Blavoci. It didn’t mean she
thought it was enough though. By the glance Pelya gave her, she
didn’t either.

“All slaves rescued have been delivered to
temples who aid in finding slaves homes. Donations of one hundred
gold per individual have been made to those temples, confiscated
from Master Blavoci’s holdings.”

That was substantial and pleased everyone in
the room. Pelya grinned and happily squeezed Ebudae’s hand.

“Numerous holdings were taken from
individuals through coercion or by outright theft. Where possible,
they will be returned.” The magistrate glanced at a paper. “I won’t
go into details. The clerks get paid to work all that out.”

Ebudae noticed one of the clerks sighing
heavily. It seemed she wasn’t of the opinion that it was fair.

“Master Blavoci’s staff will be tried
individually to determine what illegal activities each was engaged
in, if any. This is standard in cases like this.” Most of the
audience nodded. “A number of Master Blavoci’s personnel are
deceased at the hands of the Dralin City Guard.”

Silence became heavy at that point. The
magistrate sat back and folded hands over his robed belly. “There
was more than sufficient evidence for the Dralin City Guard to
infiltrate Master Blavoci’s holdings in the way it did. I’m
satisfied that the resultant deaths were necessary to accomplish
the mission. I’ve weighed the fact that every holding had numerous
survivors. Every death was a wizard or swordsperson who attempted
to prevent Guardmembers from performing their duties. I’ve found
that the fate of servants is one of the best indicators of whether
or not Guardmembers have abused their authority.”

“Daddy said only two Guardmembers lost their
lives, which is exceptional,” Pelya whispered. She looked miserable
though.

“What’s wrong?” Ebudae whispered back.

“I knew them. They were two uncles who
always gave me coppers when they saw me.” Ebudae squeezed her hand
and was about to say something comforting, but the magistrate
continued speaking.

“I’m not happy that Master Thanzin died in
jail.” The magistrate looked genuinely angry. “I do an excellent
job of delivering justice and have earned the right to do so. If
any member of the City Guard has anything to do with it, I’m very
disappointed . . . and
angry
with you.” He glared at them
all. Not one person looked guilty.

The magistrate sat back and sighed. Then he
picked up another piece of paper. “Sir Imbra,” He looked up when
the knight stood. “Thank you for assisting the Dralin City Guard in
its duties. It is rare for a Knight of Reanna . . . or anyone to do
so.”

“You are welcome, Lord Magistrate.” Sir
Imbra bowed slightly and sat down.

The magistrate stared at him for a moment.
“You also talk less than any knight I’ve ever met. Thank you for
that too.” The magistrate looked at his paper again, ignoring the
laughter that filled the room.

“Lady Ebudae Pallon.” He looked directly at
Ebudae. She wanted to hide under the table but stood with her head
high as a proper lady would. Her grandmother had taught her many
useful things even if suffering had been included in each lesson.
The magistrate managed a small smile. “Thank you for assisting the
Dralin City Guard. You were instrumental in the success of the
mission and that is appreciated.”

Ebudae decided to follow Sir Imbra’s lead.
“You’re welcome, Lord Magistrate.” She curtsied and sat down.
Talking was one of her least favorite activities anyway.

The magistrate shook his head. “A noble lady
and a knight who speak efficiently and say thank you. Perhaps this
is all a dream.” He grinned at the laughter caused by his jest and
then stood. “Those are the important parts. If any of you have
questions, please speak to my clerks, not me.” With that, he left
to spend time with his wife and little monsters.

Pelya whispered into Ebudae’s ear, “They
didn’t say anything about Zaan or . . .”

“Well that settles that,” Commander Coodmur
said interrupting her, standing and patting Ebudae on the back.
“Nicely done, Milady.”

Ebudae stood and curtseyed after stepping
away from the chair. “Thank you, Commander.”

“I have recruits to terrorize after dinner.
We’re doing nighttime drills.” He bowed to her before giving Pelya
a hug that lifted her off the ground. “You come talk to me whenever
you’re ready, lass,” he told her while waggling a finger.

Pelya nodded. “Yes, Uncle. I will.”

Clutz, Grinkin and Florsy approached Ebudae.
“Thank you for all you did. You ever need anything, you come see
us,” Grinkin told her.

“You’re welcome, and I will.” Ebudae smiled
at them and hoped they wouldn’t try to hug her. Luckily, she
escaped, but they hugged Pelya all the more fiercely for it before
leaving.

“Lady Pallon,” Sir Imbra said from behind
her. Ebudae turned in surprise, thinking he was talking about her
grandmother for a brief moment. “May we give you a ride home?”

“No thank you. I have my carriage.”

“May we visit with you then? It’s extremely
important.” Sir Imbra’s expression was grave.

“Of course. You may follow my carriage if
you like.” Ebudae was curious and a little concerned.

“Will Frath and Pelya be accompanying you?”
he asked.

“I know Pelya is. I’m not sure about her
father.” Ebudae looked and saw they were talking to Captain
Zephan.

“I’ll ask.” He moved to join the
conversation, leaving Ebudae alone with Appana.

“My behavior was atrocious, Milady,” The
priestess said.

The genuine apology stunned Ebudae. “Thank
you, Your Holiness.” She decided to explain a little as a peace
offering. “I learned magic younger than I should have and have
spent all my life in the manor reading books. I’m also talented. It
sounds lame, but it’s the truth.”

“Thank you for telling me.” She smiled. “How
do you and Pelya heal if I may ask?”

The question stunned Ebudae. She had
completely forgotten about it as she usually did. The priestess
shouldn’t have remembered the incident either though. It was part
of the enchantment. The mark clamped down on her jaw. Ebudae
couldn’t say
anything
.

“Never mind. I see that you are unable to
tell me. Therefore, I will not persist.” Appana curtseyed and
turned to join Sir Imbra, leaving Ebudae to stare at her back in
astonishment. The priestess was able to avoid being affected by the
dragon mark and was also aware that it held a guise over Ebudae
that prevented her from talking.

Pelya gestured for Ebudae to join them. When
she did, Captain Zephan asked, “May we adjourn to your manor,
Milady? There are matters we need to discuss with you.”

“I’ve invited Sir Imbra over . . .” Ebudae
wasn’t sure if Captain Zephan was including him in the request.

The knight spoke first. “I believe our
information may be important to each other.”

Captain Zephan chewed on her lip for a
moment. “Very well. I believe you may be right and your assistance
has proven to be valuable at every step.”

“Then let us resume the conversation at my
estate,” Ebudae said. She was slightly surprised and pleased when
everyone agreed, accepting her as Lady Pallon and according her the
respect due her station.

***

Ebudae sat at the head of the dining table.
To her right Pelya, Frath and Captain Zephan were enthusiastically
digging into the mouthwatering food Bubbo had cooked. Sir Imbra and
Appana sat on her left, also enjoying the food.

“Give my regards to your cook, Milady,” Sir
Imbra said. “I usually can’t get Appana to eat more than three
bites of a meal.”

Appana turned bright red. “I’m usually not
hungry, but this is wonderful.”

“It is,” Captain Zephan agreed. “Who is your
cook?”

Ebudae finished chewing her own bite. “His
name is Bubbo. Frath hired him for me along with Bubbo’s sister . .
.”

“Poolu,” Kitta said. She poured Appana more
wine. The seneschal was taking care of everyone else while Tina
looked after Ebudae and Pelya.

“Yes, Poolu. Frath also hired Kitta as my
seneschal,” Ebudae said with a gesture toward Kitta.

“It’s my honor, Milady,” Kitta said as she
moved to top off Sir Imbra’s glass. “I’ll inform Bubbo of your
compliment, Sir Knight.”

“Thank you, Kitta.” Sir Imbra took a sip of
the wine.

“Kitta, will you excuse us for a while?”
Captain Zephan asked. “We have matters to discuss and need
privacy.”

“Of course, Captain.” Kitta nodded and
glanced at Tina who was standing behind Ebudae.

“Tina will serve us during the meeting,”
Ebudae told the seneschal. Kitta bowed and left the room. To
Captain Zephan, Ebudae said, “I trust Tina with my life and
secrets. She’ll stay.”

Captain Zephan frowned. “Are you
certain?”

“Yes. She has been with me since I can
remember.”

“Very well.” The captain shrugged. “I wanted
to speak to you and Pelya regarding certain matters that weren’t
discussed during the trial and need to remain secret. I also wanted
to let you know, Sergeant,” she told Frath. Then she looked at Sir
Imbra and sighed. “I probably shouldn’t include the two of you in
this conversation, but you already know some things.”

“We do not have loose lips, if that helps
your decision, Captain,” Appana said.

“If I thought you did, I wouldn’t have
agreed to your presence here,” she said with a smile. “I’m also
curious about the information you have.”

“Is any of this about Zaan, the Rojuun?”
Pelya asked. Ebudae knew it had been eating at her the whole
day.

“My information is,” Sir Imbra said. “In
fact, Zaan is at the Temple of Reanna now. He has sought asylum and
we’ve granted it. In return, he’s told us a great deal about his
people and why they’re here.”

“We spent the day talking to him yesterday,”
Appana added.

“I would like
very
much to hear about
that in addition to how he escaped our grasp,” Captain Zephan said.
“I also have some information about the Rojuun, but that’s not the
main reason I wanted to speak to the girls.”

“Are we in trouble for some reason?” Ebudae
asked. She didn’t think they would be, but the worry had been
nagging at her.

“No! Not at all,” Captain Zephan reassured
her. “You and Pelya have been exemplary in your actions. We’re here
because you uncovered much more than you may have realized.”

“Please tell us,” Pelya pleaded. “I’m dying
of curiosity.”

Captain Zephan turned her chair toward the
head of the table so she could address the girls more directly.
“Your involvement started at Carnival with Aphry’s troupe and the
rescue of her brother. You may have noticed that neither of you
were asked about that incident, nor was it mentioned at the
trial.”

“Yes!” Pelya exclaimed. “Aphry and Jovias
were imprisoned and forced to sign over their stages.”

“I figured that was one of the small details
the magistrate was going to have the clerks look over,” Frath
said.

“No. In fact, that was the biggest crime
Master Thanzin was committing on Master Blavoci’s behalf.” Captain
Zephan crossed one leg over the other and folded her hands over her
stomach, relaxing from the meal. “They were in the process of
buying up everything in Carnival, not just the stages, but all of
the vendors and shops that provided services like costumes and the
such.”

“That’s impossible. Nobody could do that
without being noticed,” Frath said with a shake of his head.

“Not to mention how much it would cost,”
Ebudae pointed out.

“They had the deeds to one out of every ten
stages and nearly half of the shops that supplied goods to
Carnival.” Captain Zephan paused to appreciate the looks of shock
before continuing. “Much of it was purchased legitimately, but
Carnies don’t like to work for anyone as a general rule, so Thanzin
was beginning to resort to kidnappings and intimidation.”

“That’s just unbelievable that they thought
they would get away with it,” Appana said with a shake of her
head.

“If it weren’t for these young ladies, they
would have gotten a lot further,” the captain said with a gesture
to Pelya and Ebudae. “It was the threat to Pelya that got Commander
Coodmur involved and he pulled on every string he had in order to
get the High Council to agree to the coordinated sting and
immediate trial.” She paused again to let that sink in.