Page 22 of The Tainted Cup

“My masters’ business is their own,” said Gennadios. “I…I have no need to tell you more.”

“You do, though,” said Ana. “As this is an official Iudex summons. But I am impatient, so let me cut to it. I will conject that awomanwas arriving to visit the commander. Possibly more than one. A very courtly retinue, perhaps. After all, it seems like the commander liked women a great deal. He certainly couldn’t keep his hands off the servant girls, for example.”

Gennadios turned to glare at Ephinas, who was resolutely staring at the floor, and hissed, “What did you tell them?”

“Theyalltold Din,” said Ana. “Not just her. Perhaps they all hated the commander that much. Allow me to make a conjecture about Blas’s relationship to the Hazas…The Hazas treat the commander to a good time and provide the girls—even at a critical time like this, the start of the wet season. What I’m wondering is…what did the Hazas get out of the relationship?”

Uxos started rocking back and forth on his stack of books.

“I…I have nothing to say to you!” Gennadios spat. I saw gaps in the paint on her face. Evidently she didn’t often make such hysterical expressions.

“You don’t need to,” said Ana. “Din here is an engraver and actsas a living legal embodiment of my work. His testimony is considered sacrosanct. As you’ve said many things in front of him, that’s enough.”

“Nothing wrong has been done!” Gennadios said. “Amorous arrangements are not illegal in the Empire!”

“But theydohave political implications,” said Ana. “Who is in bed with who—literally or otherwise—can ruin a man’s career.”

“Then…then what reason could I have had for killing the commander?” Gennadios said. “Or any of us? Andhowcould we have killed him, anyway? Even the Apoths can’t understand it!”

“I’m not suggesting you did,” said Ana. “None of the staff, I think, was the true killer.” She sat back in her chair, and for a moment the shadows fell across her blindfolded face. “But it is also my job, Gennadios, to figure outwhyhe might have been killed. And I must admit, I ammightycurious as to why such a powerful family would everbotherhaving an estate in the godless backwaters of the Outer Rim. One they don’t even visit. Yet…I am far more curious to see what will happen when the Hazas find out that their housekeeper not only let a commander get murdered on their property, but then went and chatted about it to the Iudex.”

Gennadios now looked positively ill. “You…you made me come here! I waslegallyobliged to…to…to come here, to…”

“As anyone who’s been past the third-ring wall knows,” said Ana, “the Haza clan is not terribly interested in the boundaries of the law.”

The three servants sat before Ana, bewildered and terrified. Uxos had stopped rocking and was now frozen on the pile of books.

“What did Commander Blas provide to the Hazas?” Ana asked, every word as percussive as the blow from a hammer.

“I don’t know,” whispered Gennadios.

“Was it some act? Information?”

“I don’t know!” she said. She was panicking now. “I don’t! I really don’t!”

“I see. Then you, Madam Gennadios, are going to tell me all of the commander’s movements before he arrived at the estate,” said Ana. “And the timing of all of his previous visits. I very stronglysuspect you know this—it would beveryuseful to have records of when and where a powerful man had been playing about with prostitutes, no matter how legal it may be. If you don’t give me this, I will make it known to the Hazas that you have given me far, far worse things. This would be a lie, but it would be one they’d believe.”

Gennadios was trembling. “You wouldn’t.”

“Of course I would.” Again, the predatory grin. “I’m not at all as morally upstanding as Din here. You give me that, and I’ll stay quiet.”

“But…but just being here,” said Gennadios. “Just this happening at all…I might be doomed already.”

“I think the Hazas may likely forget about that,” said Ana. “After the revelation of how Blas was killed.”

A pause.

“Youknowhow he was killed?” asked Gennadios.

“Of course I do. He was killed by an assassin.” Ana turned her blindfolded face to Uxos, the groundskeeper. “And you helped them do it, sir.”

—

“WHAT?” SAID GENNADIOS.“You’re suggesting that…that Uxos here…”

Uxos shook his head, his beard mopping his collar like a paintbrush. “N-no. No, I…”

“Dappleglass is what killed the commander,” said Ana. “A verypowerfulcontagion. After all, it killed a whole canton. But besides its murderous, infestatious qualities, it is also known for its odd effect on fernpaper, causing moldy splotches to grow on its surface—notable, as fernpaper is so resistant to other blights. This is what Din saw in the bathing closet—dappleglass stains on the interior of the fernpaper walls and concentrated at the top. Because, you see, the contagion was delivered to Blas in thebath.I suspect a small length of the grass was placed in the shootstraw pipes. Blas arrived, bathed first thing in the evening…and as the water steamed, he inhaled it, lining his lungs with the spores. Yet it also floatedup,staining thefernpaper walls.”