To distract herself by the first means to mind, she said, 'Why did he tell youall this ... ? Ah, I'm an idiot. He didn't.'

'Correct.' Melilot looked smug. 'For that you deserve a taste of lobster. Here!'He tossed over a lump that by his standards was generous, and a chunk of breadalso; she caught both in mid-air with stammered thanks and wolfed them down.

'You need to have your strength built up,' the portly scribe went on. 'I have avery responsible errand for you to undertake tonight.'

'Errand?'

'Yes. The imperial officer who lost the scroll is called Commander Nizharu. Heand his men are billeted in pavilions in the courtyard of the governor's palace;seemingly he's afraid of contamination if they have to go into barracks with thelocal soldiery.

'After dark this evening you are to steal in and wait on him, and inquirewhether he will pay more for the return of his scroll and the name of the manwho filched it, or for a convincing but fraudulent translation which willprovoke the unlawful possessor into some rash action. For all I can guess,' heconcluded sanctimoniously, 'he may have let it fall deliberately. HmV

3

It was far from the first time since her arrival that Jarveena had been outafter curfew. It was not even the first time she had had to scamper in shadowacross the broad expanse of Governor's Walk in order to reach and scramble overthe palace wall, nimble as a monkey despite the mass of scar-tissue where herright breast would never grow. Much practice enabled her to whip off her cloak,roll it into a cylinder not much thicker than a money-belt, fasten it aroundher, and rush up the convenient hand- and toeholds in the outer wall which werecarefully not repaired, and for a fat consideration, when the chief masonundertook his annual re-pointing.

But it was definitely the first time she had had to contend with crack soldiers