“Bah,” the first constable said. “Even if all these buggers saythey never saw her, we both know she’s around here somewhere.”

After King Mezentio’s men took Gromheort, Ealstan’s home town ineastern Forthweg, they’d made academy students start learning Algarvian insteadof classical Kaunian. That no doubt helped make the students better subjects.It also sometimes had other uses. Ealstan made a point of looking as dull anduninterested as he could.

“Digging her out is more trouble than it’s worth,” the secondconstable insisted. “And if we try digging her out and don’t come up with her,we’ll be walking the beat around the city dump till the end of time. Come on,let’s go.”

Though he kept grumbling, the constable who’d spoken Forthwegianlet himself be persuaded. Off he went with his pal. Ealstan stared after them.If they were talking about anyone but Vanai, he would have been amazed.

But they weren’t going to call in their pals and try to unearthher. Ealstan clung to that. As he walked upstairs, he wondered if he ought tomention what he’d overheard. He decided that was a bad idea.

When Vanai let him in after his coded knock, she clicked hertongue between her teeth in dismay. “Sit down,” she said in tones that brookedno argument. “You’re worn to a nub. Let me get you some wine. You shouldn’thave gone out.”

“I have to keep my business going, or else we won’t be able to buyfood,” he said, but he was glad to sit down on the shabby sofa and stretch hisfeet out in front of him. Vanai fetched him the wine, clucking all the while,and sat down beside him. He cocked his head to one side. “You don’t need tomake such a fuss over me.”

“No?” She raised an eyebrow. “If I don’t, who will?”

Ealstan opened his mouth, then closed it again. He had no goodanswer, and was smart enough to realize as much. If they didn’t take care ofeach other here in Eoforwic, no one else would. Things weren’t as they had beenback in Gromheort for him, with his mother and father and sister to worry abouthim and his big brother to flatten any nuisances he couldn’t handle himself.