Hastur Lord (29 page)

The party paused at the Ardais entrance. Gabriel and the most senior of the Guardsmen went inside, verifying the safety of the premises. The last time Regis had entered this room, it had belonged to Dyan Ardais. In his time, Dyan had been and done many things, not all of them honorable.

Gabriel reported that all was as it should be and that
Dom
Valdir and Rinaldo were waiting. He stepped back for Regis to enter. At first glance, the two men inside appeared dressed for a funeral. Valdir wore a suit of green velvet so dark it looked black and a gold chain around his neck. Rinaldo was dressed in a simple belted robe reminiscent of his monkish habit.

The room was comfortably furnished, used more as a living and entertaining space than the more formal presence-chamber in Dyan’s day. Regis recognized a few pieces of furniture from those times. Dyan’s taste had been heavily masculine, leaning to heavy wood glossy with polish. The newer pieces reflected a woman’s more delicate hand.

Valdir sat on a brocaded divan, Rinaldo on a more modest straight-backed chair. Two men in Ridenow green and orange leathers stood along the far wall.

Dyan’s favorite chair, which must have dated as far back as old Gabriel-Dyan Ardais, was unoccupied. Gesturing for his escort to assume their positions, Regis strode to the center of the room and paused for Valdir and Rinaldo to rise.

After a moment of uncertainty, they did so. Tradition and protocol demanded it. Valdir had grown up in a world that respected the Hastur Domain above all others, and as for Rinaldo, he might well become the next Lord Hastur, but he did not possess that prestige yet.

Regis held the tableau for a moment longer than necessary, enough to see the faint tension in Valdir’s jaw muscles. He lowered himself into Dyan’s chair and gestured for them to sit.

“Now that we are all here together,” Regis said, “I would hear what you have to say to me from your own mouth.”

Let’s not play games,
Valdir’s expression said. He had more self-control than Regis had given him credit for.

“
Dom
Regis, I speak not only for the Domain of Ridenow but for the people of Darkover. If I had my way, the Comyn would be as truly equal as we once were. Unfortunately, the common people require a ruler.”

Valdir paused, perhaps awaiting a response. Regis did not give him that satisfaction. Valdir gave a little shrug. “Since the people cling to their adulation of the Hasturs, they shall have one—but one who looks to the future.” He leaned forward, his face tightening. “Not one who would have Darkover remain frozen in time, while the rest of the inhabited worlds move forward.”

Rinaldo had been sitting motionless, hands folded on his knees in the manner of a monk. Regis imagined a flicker of discomfort in his expression. Perhaps his brother did not agree with Valdir’s argument.

“It was a mistake to reject the benefits of Federation membership,” Valdir declared, “just as it was a mistake to abandon the Comyn Council and give so much power to that flock of squabbling barnfowl you call the Telepath Council.”

“
Dom
Valdir,” Rinaldo said earnestly, “my brother acted from the best of intentions. He and our grandfather served the Domains through many crises. Once a man has been forced to take extreme measures, one cannot fault him for continuing on as he has before. I will not hear my dear brother censured or his achievements so lightly dismissed.”

“So you would put Rinaldo in my place,” Regis said to Valdir, “thinking him easier to bend to your will.”

Rinaldo flushed visibly. Valdir said, “I would elevate him to his rightful place, completing what you yourself began by declaring him your father’s legitimate firstborn son. But there would be no point in supporting his cause if he were not also a man of vision.”

A moment passed. Regis shifted in his seat. “If you speak for the people of Thendara and you truly represent their interests, then why abduct three—two innocent men? Are these not the acts of a man who has placed himself outside law and custom? Why should I reward these crimes with my cooperation?”

“No man such as yourself, accustomed to unquestioned authority and power, surrenders his position simply because it is
right,
” Valdir replied. “Do you expect me to believe you are willing to have Rinaldo become Head of Hastur?”

“I think you do not know me at all, if you need to ask.”

“
Dom
Valdir, let me speak privately with my brother.” Rinaldo’s voice betrayed his agitation. “I am sure that once he understands the necessity of such safeguards and that no harm has come to either guest, he will be agreeable.”

Valdir scowled. “This is not wise,
vai dom.
Your brother wears a sword and has been trained in its use, whereas you are a man of peace. Should he turn on you—”

Regis wanted to laugh, except for the bitterness welling up in his mouth. Did Valdir think him such a villain as that? A man who would murder his own kin for gain? A tendril of suspicion brushed his thoughts, and he wondered at how easily Valdir had come into power in his own Domain, how conveniently those in the line of succession had fallen, one by one. What lessons must Francisco, still young and impressionable, be learning?

Rinaldo was reassuring Valdir in such animated tones that it would have been impossible to resist without restraining the monk. Valdir agreed, although reluctantly. Within a few minutes, Gabriel, Valdir, and both sets of guards had withdrawn.

Rinaldo picked up his chair and brought it closer. “I am sorry the situation has come to this—”

“
What happened
? Rinaldo, how in the name of—” he could not invoke
Aldones
as he would with any other kinsman, “—the Holy Bearer of Burdens did you come to ally yourself with that man? Have you been deceiving me all along, waiting for your chance? Or has even a brief captivity softened your mind?”

“You cannot believe I
planned
this!” Rinaldo shot back with the first sign of temper during that meeting. “
Planned
to be seized, bound, hauled away like a piece of meat?
Planned
to be used against the brother who has shown me nothing but kindness?”

Regis let out his breath. Rinaldo had been taken by force, like Danilo and Mikhail. That fact eased his sense of betrayal. Eased it, but did not entirely erase it.

“Does it matter?” Rinaldo moderated his tone. “However we have been thrust into this situation, we must work together now. Valdir is not an evil man, although somewhat prone to extreme measures. I will teach him better.”

“You intend to collaborate with him, then?” Regis did not know whether to feel relieved or appalled.

“I mean to use whatever St. Christopher has placed in my hands to do good. Why else would the blessed saints have brought me from St. Valentine’s and yet preserved the fire of righteousness in my breast? Look at me, brother. I could never be a military commander or a great statesman like Grandfather. I am not fitted to caper about in finery or sing ballads to ladies, although in my new position, I might soon enjoy the blessings of marriage. Valdir has spoken of an eligible young kinswoman . . . Be that as it may, I have been shaped for better things than frivolity—and what more holy purpose than to bring the teachings of St. Christopher to the larger world? Do you not see all around you the evidence of ignorance and sin? Pride, greed, deceit, lust, violence—do they not stalk the streets in human form?”

“I am glad you see the opportunity to wrest some good from the situation,” Regis said carefully. “But I fear for you and for our world. You know so little of Comyn politics, and Valdir means to influence you, to shape you to his own ends. Those ends do not bode well for Darkover.”

“Valdir is mistaken. It is I who will rule, not he. It will take time to consolidate my position. In order to do that, I must lull his vigilance while I retain his confidence.”

“It seems neither of us has any choice in the matter.”

Rinaldo’s expression turned grim. “Although it pains me to admit it, Valdir does not trust you, and nothing I have said has changed his mind. He means to reform the Comyn Council and become my chief councillor. Mikhail will be released as a token of his good will, but your paxman must remain a prisoner—”

Remain a prisoner—
R egis hardly heard the end of Rinaldo’s sentence.

It took every scrap of discipline that Regis had forged over the years not to leap up and throttle the man who had uttered those words. Rinaldo was not to blame. He was merely repeating what Valdir had said.

Regis gripped the carved wooden armrests so hard, his joints cracked. Valdir was wrong, damnably wrong, if he thought Regis would give in as long as Danilo still remained a prisoner.

Rinaldo leaned forward, concern furrowing his brow. His eyes were very bright, and his long scholar’s fingers hung gracelessly loose.
Let us try to make the best we can of this terrible dilemma,
he seemed to plead.
Together, as brothers.

“I believe we have said everything we can on this subject,” Regis said. “I understand your viewpoint,”
although it is clear you have no comprehension of mine,
“and would speak further with
Dom
Valdir.”

Valdir was the one he had to face down, and he refused to make any agreement without getting Danilo back.

At Rinaldo’s summons, Valdir and the others returned. Gabriel sought Regis with his gaze, but Regis made no response. He needed all his concentration for Valdir.

With an expression of triumph, the Ridenow lord resumed his place. “Are you now convinced of the necessity of sensible cooperation,
Dom
Regis?”

“I am convinced of the sincerity of my brother’s motives,” Regis replied, “but not of yours. You have stated your demands and my brother has told me your conditions—that my paxman will remain your hostage, regardless of my agreement.”

“Correct.” Valdir’s half-smile did not waver.

“Now I will state
my
conditions.”

Valdir blinked, for a moment looking unsure. Then his face hardened. “
You
are in no position to dictate terms to
me
.”

“On the contrary,” Regis riposted, “you need me. You need my public participation in this mad scheme. Not even you,
Dom
Valdir Ridenow, are arrogant enough to fake my abdication. If you simply had me killed, the rest of the Domains would rise up against you.”

By the whitening of Valdir’s pale skin, Regis saw he’d made his point. He pressed on. “You want me to cede the ruling of Hastur to my brother. Very well, if he is fool enough to want it. I will do so only when my paxman is free and back at my side.”

No one moved. No one breathed.

“You do not realize you have no say in this matter.” Valdir shifted in his chair, although his gaze remained steady.

“You have nothing to gain by holding the man,” Rinaldo pointed out.

Valdir shot Rinaldo a warning look before turning back to Regis. “How do I know you’ll keep your part of the bargain?”

“I have already said I would.”

“Ah! The fabled Word of a Hastur! I’m afraid that isn’t sufficient. There’s too much at stake. I can’t risk your changing your mind or agreeing now and then blocking me at every turn. I respect your ability to generate all kinds of trouble.”

With a wrenching effort, Regis waited to hear what further demands Valdir would make. Instead, Valdir smiled, an unctuous rictus that left his eyes cold.

“Come now, I have no animosity against your paxman. I hold him only to ensure your good behavior. But if you cross me, if you continue this obstinate defiance . . .” the pale cheeks, which had drained of all color, now turned dusky with emotion, “I will hang Danilo Syrtis and display his body from the Castle battlements as a warning to all who stand in the way of progress.”

For a heart-stopping instant, terror blurred all thought. Then icy certainty swept away all other emotion. Regis dared not deliberate, dared not feel. Dared only to act. “
Dom
Danilo Syrtis-Ardais is Comyn. He served in the City Guards and as Warden of Ardais. The Comyn will never stand for such an outrage against one of our own.”

If a man as well-born and respected as Danilo could be treated like a nameless outlaw, who would be next? And then Regis realized this was exactly the reaction Valdir wanted.

“Who’s going to stop me? You?” Valdir growled. “Are you willing to wager this man’s life that I am bluffing? That I cannot produce a convincing public justification for whatever I choose to do with him? Or do you care so little for your paxman after all? Are you thinking that once he is dead, I will have no further hold over you? I do not believe you have
no
other loved ones.”

“You would not dare—” Regis pushed himself half out of the chair.

“I would.”

Valdir wasn’t bluffing. He would do it.

Slowly, Regis stood up. Gabriel came alert. His Guardsmen looked to him for a signal. The air hummed with adrenaline.

“Commander Lanart, this is not your affair.” Valdir’s tone dropped menacingly. He lifted one hand and four more men in Ridenow colors filed in, swords drawn.

Gabriel’s glance flickered to Regis.
Say the word.

Regis shook his head.
This is a fight we cannot win.

Gabriel’s expression turned stormy, but he bowed to Regis and withdrew, his men after him.

“How can I be sure Danilo Syrtis is still alive?” Regis said.

A faint lightening passed over Valdir’s features, not rising to the level of a smile. “I anticipated that you would require assurance.” He offered a folded paper to Regis.

The note was unsealed so that anyone could read it. For a moment, Regis could not focus on the words, only on the exquisite, flowing script. As cadets, they had joked that Danilo wrote with the finest hand of any of them.