“Gramos,” said Rob. He was surprised and puzzled. “He lives in Thalangia. Why is he here?”
“Gram White,” I said. “He lives here too, Rob.”
“Venables! I know you’re there! Answer me!” White yelled. “I shan’t go away until you do!”
“Answer him. Get rid of him,” Will muttered.
I projected my voice back, pretending to be sleepy. “Hello. What is it?”
“You’ve got Nick Mallory in there, haven’t you?” White shouted.
“No I haven’t,” I replied, with some truth. “Why?”
“His mother’s worried about him,” yelled White.
I shouted back, again with some truth, “I don’t know where Nick is. Why the hell should I know? But tell Janine I’ll tell Nick she wants him if I see him.”
White did not believe me. He made some kind of threat, in a lower voice, about what he would do if I was lying. Then he stood outside the door muttering for a bit. After that he seemed to go away. I felt through the warding after him, and it seemed to me that he did genuinely walk away down the corridor. But I didn’t speak until I was sure.
“Rob,” I said, “was it Gram White your uncle was expecting this afternoon? The kids at the gate were waiting for someone. And Knarros didn’t come and speak to me until he’d had time to take the magework off the path.”
“Yes,” said Rob, beginning to look alarmed. “Gramos was expected.”
“And Janine too – Nick’s mother?” I asked.
Rob gave me one of his limpidly honest looks. “It was the Empress Jaleila who was expected,” he said. “She is my aunt. Gramos is her brother.”
“But this Empress is Nick’s mother,” I insisted.
“Yes,” Rob admitted.
“Hang on. I don’t get this!” Will said. “The Koryfonic Empire doesn’t ever have an Empress.”
“The title is taken, in the event of the Emperor’s demise, by the Emperor’s sole surviving consort,” Rob told him, evidently reciting a law.
“Then I think the title should be taken by the High Lady Alexandra,” I told Rob. “Janine – Jaleila – is merely a Lesser Consort, isn’t she?”
“I had no idea the High Lady had survived!” Rob prevaricated.
“Isn’t she?” I insisted. “Jaleila, Nick’s mother, a Lesser Consort?”
“Yes,” he said. “But—”
“Rob,” I said. “Please. Listen to the rest. These two came into the compound and one of them promptly cut the throats of the two lads and then shot the little girl, while the other tried to shoot me and then shot your uncle. Then—”
“Was Kris all right?” Rob asked urgently.
“They sent him away,” I said. Rob visibly relaxed. I went on, “And after he and I discovered the bodies, Kris went off down through the wood, where he seems to have come upon Gram and Janine a moment or so after they stripped Maree. I gather Kris raised an outcry…”
Rob all but smiled. “Yes, Kris is very honest. Nobody told him anyth—” He stopped and looked anxiously at my face. “What else happened?”
“Kris was next seen,” I said, “running for his life, with Janine chasing him in Maree’s car, while Gram fired at him out of its window.”
“What?” Rob’s front hooves hit the floor and he was half upright before the pain of his side checked him. “What?” Tears welled from his eyes again. “But Gramos is Kris’s father! Gramos shot him?”
“It’s all right,” I said. “We think Kris escaped. Stan – the witness – says Kris jumped like a bird into the nearest vineyard.”
Rob subsided slowly back on to the bed. “Well, thank all the gods for that!”