my place. Anyway, Logan and Serah will grow out of it. What appears to be the problem?”
“Catrinna Gyre.”
“Careful,” the count said.
“Did the duke give you letters that declared his son Lord Gyre in his absence?”
“He spoke of it, but he had to leave quickly. He said his steward would bring them.”
“Lady Gyre has stolen the letters and destroyed them. Then she went to the queen.”
“She went to whom?” The count was astonished.
“Is that unusual?”
“They have no love for each other. What happened?” Count Drake asked.
“Lady Gyre asked to be made Logan’s guardian. The king overheard them. He came in and said he would take it under advisement. What does that mean?”
Count Drake removed his pince nez and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “It means that if he acts quickly, he can appoint a guardian for Logan.”
“Will Catrinna Gyre do such a poor job?” Solon asked.
Count Drake sighed. “Legally, the king can put anyone in Logan’s place that he wants so long as they’re related to him, which means almost anyone in the nobility. And once he’s got a guardian in place, even Regnus won’t be able to rescind the appointment. Catrinna has just delivered House Gyre to the king.”
“But you’re Duke Gyre’s solicitor—and he told you his wishes. Doesn’t that carry any weight?” Solon asked.
“If the king were interested in the truth, yes. As is, to save the Gyres, we’d need the Gyre family parchment, the duke’s Great Seal, and a reckless willingness to forge a state document. The king holds court in half an hour. I’d guess this will be the first item on the agenda. There’s just no time.”
Solon cleared his throat and produced a roll of heavy parchment and a large seal.
Count Drake grinned and snatched the parchment. “I think I suddenly like you, Master Tofusin.”
“Wendel North helped me with the wording,” Solon said. “I thought I’d leave the signature and the seal to you.”
Count Drake rummaged through his desk, found a letter from the duke, and laid it on top of the writ of guardianship. With quick, sure strokes, he forged the duke’s signature flawlessly. Count Drake looked up guiltily and said, “Let’s just call it an artifact of a misspent youth.”
Solon dribbled sealing wax on the parchment. “Then here’s to misspent youth.”
“Next time you’ll move,” Blint said as Azoth groaned his way back into consciousness.
“I don’t think I’ll ever move again. My head feels like someone threw it against a wall.”
Blint laughed, the second time Azoth had heard him do that recently. He was sitting on the edge of Azoth’s bed. “You did well. They thought you were embarrassed because you got knocked down in front of Drake’s daughter, so they decided it was all harmless kid stuff. The young lord Gyre was mortified that he hit you—apparently he’s a real big friendly giant, never loses his temper. The fact you’re about a quarter his size and Serah was furious with him also helps. They were all quite impressed.”
“Impressed? That’s stupid.”
“In their world fighting has rules, so fighting means risking embarrassment and pain and at worst risking your looks if you get a broken nose or an unfortunate scar. It doesn’t mean dying or killing. In their world, you can fight a man and then become his friend. In fact, you’re going to play it so Logan does become your friend, because with a man like him, you can only come out of this as a great friend or a terrible enemy. Do you understand that, Kylar? We’ll work together on your new identity soon.”
“Yes, sir. Sir, why didn’t you want Master Tofusin to see you? That’s why you made me fight Logan, isn’t it? To be a distraction?”
“Solon Tofusin is a magus. Most magi—that’s male mages—can’t tell if you’re Talented just by looking at you. On the other hand, most magae—female mages—can. There are disguises against their sight that I’ll teach you later, but I didn’t have the time to do it and I didn’t feel like going upstairs and jumping out a window.”
Azoth was confused. “But he doesn’t act like a mage.”
“And how would you know?” Durzo asked.
“Uh . . .” Azoth didn’t think saying, “He isn’t like the mages in stories” was going to please Durzo.
“The truth is,” Durzo said, “Solon hasn’t told Logan or anyone else that he’s a mage, and you won’t tell anyone either. When you know a man’s secrets, you have power over him. A man’s secret is his weakness. Every man has a weakness, no matter