The Jester: Hide and Seek (1)
Episode 34: "The Steward-Heir"
Mardans and Lirens, wearing their formal military uniforms, rode up to the gate in front of the Steward’s Mansion, the finest estate on the Second Level. Once they passed under its arch and to the steps leading to the house’s entrance, a groom met them and took their horses under his care. A liveried footman hurried down the steps, greeting them formally and informing them that the Steward-Heir awaited them on the rear terrace. He led them through the house and onto the massive stone terrace that extended most of the mansion’s width.
Standing at the cast-stone railing deep in thought, Amancuse, also formally attired, turned when the footman announced their arrival. The eldest Tilanta came forward and bowed to the prince. “My lord, your presence honors our house. When I received your note asking for a meeting, I immediately desired it. You are well aware that my father and I are deeply ashamed of what has happened, but I wished to express it to you personally.”
Lirens smiled at him with affection, looking at the moment much like his brother. “Alfons and I do know you well, Amancuse. We know you are an honorable man—your father as well. When we asked ourselves if we thought either of you were involved in Formosis’ schemes, we immediately dismissed the idea. No rumor of treachery concerning you has ever reached our ears. Besides, you both are far too busy to involve yourself in treason! So, have no fear in that regard.”
“Thank you, my lord,” the Steward-Heir said, visibly relaxing. “I was a little apprehensive about what you desired to speak to me about.”
The prince gestured to Mardans, saying, “It is not so much I but the lieutenant who wishes to ask you a few questions.”
“Ah, the new Palace Guard lieutenant investigating the theft of Margonne’s dagger,” Amancuse said, grinning and extending a hand. “Hello, Mardans! It’s been a long time since we’ve spoken.”
Mardans chuckled, shaking the proffered hand. “I should have guessed you would have seen through our charade.”
“I just put two and two together,” Amancuse said, shrugging. “I asked myself, ‘Who would the king and prince trust to help in a time like this?’ I remember how close you three were as children, and I knew you and your mother still lived in Palisade.” He waved to some seats nearby. “Come, sit down! The staff will bring us refreshments shortly.”
They did as he asked, sitting under a large umbrella in plush outdoor chairs that faced the grand vista before them. Sitting high on a bluff just slightly lower than the palace, the Steward’s Mansion overlooked the southern half of the city, with views of the sun-baked southern plain and the White River. Mardans spied the roof of the temporary Tanjari embassy almost directly below.
Servants arrived with a few trays of food and drink, serving them hastily but professionally and withdrawing out of earshot. The men saluted one another, the brothers with ale, while Amancuse had decided on a light red wine. As was his wont, Lirens helped himself to a full plate of finger foods. He would mostly be listening.
After a minute or two of appreciating the view, Mardans cleared his throat. “Spear has been dead just under two weeks, and even with a few possible leads, we have no idea where your brother and sister are hiding. They’ve completely disappeared.”
Amancuse sighed and took a sip of his wine. “That doesn’t surprise me. Those two learned to disappear as children. My mother often sent me to find them, and I failed her more times than not. I would not be surprised if they have some underground lair here in the city, and they won’t be found without a great deal of digging, if you will.”
“Something or someone will have to draw them out, I suspect,” Lirens said, still chewing, half his plate visible once again. “Boredom or a chance to flee elsewhere is my guess for what does it.”
The Steward-Heir grunted. “You don’t know my siblings as well as I do, my lord. I hate to speak ill of them, but the time for being considerate has passed. They are not normal. Désira is completely self-absorbed. She looks with contempt upon all. Everyone is below her. Where she got the idea she was so exalted, I’ll never know. Father and mother did not pamper her excessively. I’m sure she thinks she is above the king’s justice, so she will never bow to authority. She will claim she has done nothing wrong. She’ll go to the gallows disparaging her judges and claiming they have no right to judge her.”
He took another drink from his wineglass, finding he had reached its bottom. At a sign from Amancuse, a servant hustled forward and refilled it and the brothers’ glasses. When the young man had returned to his post, he continued, sighing again. “And then there’s Formosis. He’s brilliant, you know. Brilliant and utterly stupid. He would have been better off being born the son of a poor teacher than the second son of a duke! He believes he is entitled to whatever he wants—that’s the stupid part. The brilliant part is that he can work out in fine detail how to get it and justify the means to himself.” He shook his head.
“Over the course of the investigation, I discovered another of his flaws,” Mardans said. “Perhaps it will turn out to be a fatal flaw: He’s impatient. He may be a magnificent schemer, but he tries to speed things up or cuts corners or gives up on parts of his plan that need more time to develop. I wager he might have been successful if he had just been more restrained.”
“Don’t forget his temper,” Lirens interjected, shaking his forefinger. “That’s what put him on the road to murder Gemena Luven.”
“Are you sure he did that and not Spear?” Amancuse asked, a small hope rising in his eyes.
Mardans nodded. “A number of Spear’s men verified it. Because of his Tanjari upbringing, Spear believed in some taboo against killing women or children in peacetime or something like that. His men said he brought Gemma to Formosis just for questioning. But your brother became enraged and killed her because he didn’t believe her terrified claims that she hadn’t heard what he and Désira had been arguing about.”
“What an idiot,” Amancuse said grimly, sinking back into his seat. “I wish he had believed the same taboo.”
The men sipped their drinks for a short while, each lost in his own thoughts. Finally, Mardans set down his glass on a side table and spoke. “Tell me about Prytan Verus. He’s been guarding your family for a long time. Why do you think he went along with Formosis’ plan? Wasn’t he assigned to guard Formosis at least partially to prevent him from making trouble?”
“Yes, he was,” the Steward-Heir said, sitting up and leaning forward. He rubbed his face with both hands. “My father and I discussed this prior to appearing before the king, and it still baffles us. His family has been linked to ours for generations, and they’ve always been loyal and lawful. Prytan is a steady man, not given to sudden changes, and he’s a family man, too. He has a wife and a couple of children—a son and a daughter, I think. His support of Formosis makes little sense.”
“I hate to be the cynical one,” Lirens said, “but it sounds like your brother has something on him. But what would be so bad that he’d commit treason to keep it quiet?”
“My bet’s on infidelity,” Mardans offered. “Many men don’t prize their marriages so highly, but if he’s a family man who made a mistake and regretted it, shame and guilt might make him do anything to keep his wife from finding out.”
“Perhaps,” Amancuse said. “He is somewhat of a straight arrow. It’s what made him an excellent captain.”
“And to a man, Spear’s men said Verus argued against just about everything Formosis and Spear were up to after the theft,” Lirens added. “According to them, he wanted nothing to do with the Leitani attack near Bridgeton, and he was furious when he heard about the murder and then the kidnapping. He evidently told Formosis he was out of control and would get them all killed.”
“It sounds like he had few options,” Mardans said. “And once he started going along with Formosis’ crimes, he figured he was stuck and played out his losing hand. What a shame.” He drank the rest of his ale before speaking again. “I would like to speak with his wife, if I may. Is the Verus’ house nearby?”
Amancuse nodded. “On the Fourth Level on the north end. A modest home with a large yard for a garden and overlooking the north gate. Tell them I sent you, and they will probably be cooperative. Her mother was my nurse when I was a babe.”
“Thank you, Amancuse,” Mardans said, rising and bowing. “I have a feeling that speaking with her will be most enlightening.”
A note:
The Tanjari taboo that Spear would not break was not quite what Spear’s men related to Mardans and Lirens. While Spear had blustered a great deal about his prowess with the sword, almost all of his fighting had been in controlled conditions while under the tutelage of his martial arts master. His wins were not actual kills but duels or sparring matches stopped before a mortal blow was struck. This is all to say that, despite the rumors swirling about him and his self-promotion, he had never killed an opponent. The Tanjari considered it dishonorable and bad luck if a warrior’s first kill was a woman or a child, and technically, Gemena Luvens was both. As a Tanjari at heart, Spear did not want to begin his career with shame and misfortune.
Very sad for Amancuse.