Kings of the North - Elizabeth Moon [18]
“Does he pose any present threat to us?”
“Not unless he gains control of the Guild League,” Dorrin said. “I’m sure he now controls river trade down the Immer to the sea, but taking over the Guild League will not be easy or quick.”
“That much should be enough for anyone,” Count Halar said.
“It wasn’t for Siniava,” Dorrin pointed out. “And if he hadn’t been stopped, he might well have cast his eyes northward.”
“If this Alured heard about what you found,” Duke Mahieran said, “would that influence him?”
Dorrin felt a cold chill down her back; she had not thought of that. “Alured? Certainly. He would want that crown as proof of his claim that he was descended from the old royal family of Aare. Impossible, of course, but a lost crown rediscovered would, in his mind, be his family’s.”
“No chance it could be his?” Serrostin asked. “I mean—your family’s had it, and perhaps they were related. Could this fellow be a distant relative of yours?”
“I suppose,” Dorrin said. She hated the thought, but Alured’s cruelty and even his slight magery fit her family’s pattern. “But our family records are so unreliable, with the transfer of personalities, that I cannot possibly tell. What I do know is that he had a vast network of spies in Aarenis during Siniava’s War, and it would be folly to think he had none here.”
“And if he had them here,” Duke Marrakai said, “he will have heard the rumors that were going around the markets.”
“And are now going through the court,” Dorrin said, nodding. “How many people saw me battle my father in the courtyard? How many heard of the gifts I brought the king? Whatever is widely known, he will know, and things we think confined to a few he may also discover.” She turned to the king. “The regalia, Sir King, are not safe: he will seek to have them stolen for his benefit. He will hire the Thieves’ Guild.”
“It’s in my treasury,” the king said. “He couldn’t possibly get to it, nor could any thief of the Guild.”
“Sir King,” Duke Mahieran said, “remember the assassinations. We thought we had secured the palace then.”
“If he has allied with my surviving relatives,” Dorrin said, “he may have powers through them.”
“True. You had not mentioned Alured before.”
“No, my lord. I thought his menace confined to Aarenis and his domain large enough to keep him busy longer.”
“Have you heard from Arcolin?”
“No, my lord.” She wondered at that, since Arcolin had been writing to the king, but those messages would have been carried from Valdaire to Vérella by royal courier; his to her would be by private messenger and no doubt slower.
The king nodded as if satisfied. “Is there any way we can interdict the spies’ report?”
“No, my lord. If they deemed the information important—and I’m sure they would have—they will have sent it ahead already. Those rumors about the crown were circulating before your coronation.”
Duke Serrostin spoke up. “It’s possible that the Thieves’ Guild could be convinced to cooperate with the Crown, after the scouring we gave them.”
“For a price,” Count Kostvan said.
“You would pay thieves not to steal?” asked the Marshal-Judicar, raising his brows.
“Isn’t there a master thief the Marshal-General has invited to Fin Panir?” Serrostin asked, with a glance her way.
“Yes,” the Marshal-General said, “Arvid Semminson, to tell what he knows of Paksenarrion.”
“Well, it’s my understanding he now stands high in the local Guild. I see no harm in asking him to report any offer he gets from this Alured.”
“Indeed,” the king said with a sidelong glance at the Marshal-Judicar, who had clamped his lips together as if to hold back something he might say later.
That first Council meeting lasted well into the afternoon, and Dorrin left it feeling even more that she had been caught up in a whirlwind. She knew less of Tsaia as a whole than any of the others; they talked of agriculture, industry, and trade in terms that confused her. But when the topic of defense came up, everyone looked at her.
“Duke Verrakai, I wish you to assess our readiness,” the king said. “Review our resources and our training methods.