Conspirator

“And you never presented yourself at court. You never consulted with my grandson about this daring maneuver. Do go on.” The dowager had notsupported Tabini’s hearing the South. If not for the aiji’s playing Southern politics, Bren thought, he might be in his own apartment in the Bujavid, the Farai would be out, and none of this would have happened at all.

“One had missed court. I was sick, aiji-ma. I was truly sick.”

“But you had visitors.”

“I had word from them. A message. A letter. And then—then I thought—now I shall be ashamed, aiji-ma, I thought to myself how things are not settled yet, and I should see how stable the aijinate is and how stable the South is before I commit to them or say no. One is profoundly ashamed.”

“The brightest thought you had had yet,” Ilisidi muttered. “The most honest you have yet expressed. Say on. Be precise, now. When did you acquire these guards?”

“The Guild of my house had gone to the fight in Shejidan, and never came back, so I had had members of my staff pretend to be Guildc” Baiji cast a nervous glance about at the Guild in black, grim attendance. “I had no choice but that, nadiin!”

“You were not the only one to do so, nandi,” Algini said quietly.

“Then—” Baiji said, looking back at Ilisidi, “then when the Usurper was going down, and it was clear my own guard would not come back, these Guildsmen came saying they had served in the Guild itself, but that there was a new regime coming in, there was a great deal of bloodshed, they had lost relatives, and they wished the peace of serving in a country house, remote from troubles. They had credentials!”

“Did you write to the Guild to confirm them, nandi?” Cenedi asked.

“I askedthem to write.”

“You did not confirm what they said,” Banichi said grimly, “by writing to the Guild yourself, and by a Guild representative officially confirming their man’chi.”

“I had no idea of the procedure, nadi! Kajiminda has never been without Guild until now. One had no idea what to do— one knows—one knows now this was not the thing to do!”

That, in itself, was possible. There had always been such a closely-woven network—and it was true that Baiji had been isolated from advice, out of society, getting his advisements in protocol mainly from the Tasaigin Marid, to be honest, while the neighbor at Najida, whose security might properly have advised a young neighbor what he should do, was light-years off in space, leaving noGuild at all behind on his estate. His apartment in Shejidan—the place was rife with Guild in and out of uniform, active and retired; but in the fall of the regime, indeed, Guild had gathered to the Guild headquarters, and dispersed on this side and that of the action.

And, as Algini had said, certain desperate houses had put up a facade of Guild protection where it did not exist.

“Do you believe him, paidhi-aiji?” the dowager asked.

“Logically, I follow what he says,” Bren said. “But myself being human, and this being a question of man’chi, I would not venture to have an opinion about his loyalty.”

“Cenedi?”

“Hadjaijid, aiji-ma.”

A mental condition. Isolation from the networks of society. Aiji-like, in having no upward or lateral man’chi—no co

Sociopath.

“I am not,” Baiji cried, and flung himself out of the chair—a dozen guns flashed out—and onto his knees and onto his face on the carpet.

And there went the teacup, Bren noted, in surreal detachment. It shattered in an unfortunate four pieces.

Bad omen.

Baiji lay on his face on the floor, crying, “Aiji-ma, I am not disco

“And man’chi to my great-grandson?”

There was a moment of heavy silence.

“And association with your neighbor nand’ Bren?” Ilisidi pursued him.

“I have only met nand’ Bren once before,” Baiji said into the carpet, and lifted his head and sat up and bowed again. “I beg pardon. I beg pardon. I had no idea my security was disco

And had been a spoiled brat at that one meeting, when his mother had had to beg him to come down to di

“Then why,” Bren said, divorcing himself from all mercy, “did you not visit me? Why did you not, knowing I am co

“Because—because they would never agree!”

“They,” the dowager snapped. “ Theywould not agree and you knew it!”

“Aiji-ma!”

“Your aishid would not come here,” Bren said sharply. “And you are quite sure they would not have approved the visit. Do you or do you not lead the house?”

“Where are the Edi?” Ilisidi asked from the other side. “Is your staff still alive, or did they leave you?”

“Some—some are there, aiji-ma. Some stayed!”

“While you assure one side and the other of your good intentions,” Bren shot at him, “all the while courting the Marid? Explainthis to a simple human. One fails to understand this complexity. But one very well understands your motives in rushing to find our lost boat!”

“No!” Baiji cried. “Nand’ dowager, one had no idea you were here! One had no idea the heir was here at all, or that you were! A village child, he said. He said it was a simple accident—”

“Really?” she asked. “You have no source of gossip, considering we arrived at the public airport in quite a large plane? You have no news from Dalaigi Township? None from the market? We are quite astounded, nandi!”

“No, no, no, we had no idea.”

“Then your aishid failed to inform you of a critical event, one touching on your welfare. What a remarkable thing!”

“We saved your great-grandson, aiji-ma! We had no advisement of the dowager’s presence! We had no warning of any such incident! The Tasaigi had contacted me days ago—one had no idea they were advised—”

“By your own staff. You arenot the aiji on this peninsula,” Ilisidi said. “You are not even aiji over your estate. You are the major domo for your uncle, who does not make mistakes like this. You will notremain lord of Kajiminda, let alone of Sarini province!”

“Aiji-ma!”

“We will choose one of the Edi, with adequate guard of our choosing, to manage the estate in your uncle’s name, granted we can correct these matters short of regional war. And thank me that you are not awaiting your funeral, boy, nandi no longer! Nand’ Bren.”

“Aiji-ma.”

“This person will lodge here until we have exhausted the information we may draw from him. Keep him comfortably situated, for the sake of his uncle. But do notgive him freedom of the grounds.”

“Yes, aiji-ma.” Bren caught the eye of the servant, who had cautiously rescued the fragments of the teacup. “Advise Ramaso-nadi.”

A silent bow, a quiet departure. Baiji, having gathered himself onto his knees, continued to rock to and fro in distress.

“We are appalled,” Ilisidi said, and, leaning on her cane, and with Cenedi’s hand, rose. “Cenedi. Get my great-grandson back.”

“Banichi,” Bren said. “With the dowager’s permission, my bodyguard will assist. And I shall. Personally.”

“Nandi,” Banichi said, with a small nod.

Ilisidi’s men gathered up Baiji, who made no protest to being taken away from Ilisidi’s vicinity, and escorted him out.

“We shall bothbe involved, nand’ paidhi,” Ilisidi said. “Is the bus damaged?”

“Not significantly,” he said, “granted a hole in the back roof and the resources we have to replace a rear tire—if not a wheel.”