It wasa good thing Nelia did most of the actual preparations for Fenris’s and Mina’s wedding, as I was soon involved in some very unpleasant business. The chief suspect of the aborted Resistance plot, a construction tycoon called Moredo, turned up dead in his cell in the Enforcers Guild. I was called down to investigate whether it had really been suicide, as the enforcers claimed—and even if it was true, why had they left the man his belt to do the deed? That seemed pretty suspicious, and since Iannis was busy with the Convention, the responsibility to find out what had really happened fell on myshoulders.
“Enforcer Baine,” Captain Skonel said calmly as I entered his office. His deputy was standing by his side, stiff-backed and stern-faced, but the captain himself seemed relaxed. “I’m happy to see you’re back here in onepiece.”
“As am I.” I gave Skonel a smile of my own as I sat down, ignoring the lie. He was certainlynothappy to see me—I could tell by his change of scent—but he was diplomatic enough not to say so, and since I didn’t actually think he wished me dead, I didn’t see a need to press the issue. “Do you have the report I askedfor?”
“Of course.” Skonel gestured to his deputy, who handed me a file. I flipped open the manila folder and perused the contents, which included Moreno’s arrest report, notes from several interviews, and the suicide report, which was accompanied by some grislyphotographs.
“So,” I said slowly, closing the file, “the guardsreallydidn’t seeanything?”
Captain Skonel’s expression didn’t change. “They’d been checking on him every hour, as instructed,” he said. “We don’t know how he managed to get hold of the belt he hanged himselfwith.”
“If he didn’t have any visitors, then one of the guards must have slipped it to him,” I said, pointing out the obvious. “Did you interrogate everyone who was on duty at thetime?”
“Of course,” Skonel said, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice. “I know how to do myjob.”
“Right.” I stood up, tucking the file beneath my arm. “I’ll need to see the cell, and speak to the guards aswell.”
Skonel nodded. “My deputy will escort youdownstairs.”
I held in a snort. Once upon a time, I wouldn’t have needed an escort. But times were changing, and though I still had my enforcer license, I was too important to be allowed to wander around without any sort of protection.Not that I needed help from the likes of the deputy, I mused as we rode down the rickety elevator. After everything I’d been through recently, I was practically bullet-proof.
I spent the next hour examining the cell and questioning the guards who were on rotation. The cell turned up nothing—there were so many different smells down there it was impossible to isolate which didn’t belong—and the guards were equally unhelpful. None of them had seen or done a damn thing, and my nose told me they were truthful. The only idea I could come up with was that an imposter had slipped down here to do the deed…but with no witnesses, it was impossible to pin down who it might havebeen.
Frustrated, I returned to the captain’s office. He looked a little too smug for my taste, clearly happy I hadn’t been able to find anything incriminating against hisstaff.
“What’s this Fenris told me about you imprisoning him?” I demanded, determined to findsomethingto nail Captain Skonel with. I hid a smug look of my own when he flinched, the reaction barely detectable even to someone with my discerning shiftergaze.
“That was an unfortunate misunderstanding,” he said, leaning back in his chair. “One that has beencorrected.”
“You’ve got that right.” I folded my arms. “How did this ‘misunderstanding’arise?”
The captain scowled. “Fenris did not reveal his identity to us,” he said. “He was magically disguised, and there was no way for any of us to guess who he truly was until after his illusion failed. Once his identity was revealed, Director Toring vouched for him, and he wasreleased.”
“Hmm.” I searched his face. “Without your permission, Iimagine.”
“My permission was irrelevant,” the captain said stiffly. “Fenris is not acriminal.”
“Damn right he’s not.” I leaned forward. “How exactly did he come to be in thatcell?”
“Enforcer Galid Meltin, from the third crew, brought him in unconscious,” Skonel said. “He’d been charged with destroying property and refusing to pay for services at a brothel, though the charges were later discovered to be fraudulent.” The captain pressed his lips together. “Once we discovered the deception, we brought in Meltin, who confessed that he arrested Fenris as a favor to a brothel owner, with whom Meltin is close friends. We’ll need to look into all his previous bounties from that area.” He rummaged in a drawer for a moment and brought out a well-worn leather pouch. “Please return this to Fenris with my apologies that I did not believe him at first. Of course, if he had not tried to disguise himself, this whole thing would not have happened in the firstplace.”
“What’s going to happen to Meltin?” I asked, ignoring the captain’s excuses. “This seems like an excellent test case for those disciplinary commissions we are settingup.”
“True,” Skonel admitted grudgingly. “He is in cell eighteen now, and the commission will meet once we have completed the investigation. It turns out that Meltin was not the only rotten apple in the barrel.” From the stiffness of his neck, I could tell how much it cost Captain Skonel to admit this. “All of his crew knew what he was up to and turned a blindeye.”
I suppressed the urge to say “Told you so” and tucked the pouch in my magic sleeve. “Let me know how things turn out—after my honeymoon.” I didn’t want to hear about any of this crap until I got back. After dealing with Ta’sradala, I deserved a week or two ofpeace.
“Very well.” Captain Skonel relaxed, and from the change in his scent, I knew he was relieved to have gotten off lightly. “And my best wishes for the forthcoming festivities. I look forward to attending your weddingreception.”
The most notableevent of that week was Fenris and Mina’s wedding—a beautiful ceremony held at Solantha Temple. It was the first time I had seen Fenris in robes, though from his memories, I knew he had worn them every day for most of his long life. Now that he was acknowledged as a mage-shifter hybrid, like me, with magic of his own, he could wear them openly once more, though I had a feeling he’d stick to his tunics as a habit. Mina was absolutely lovely in the wedding gown I’d helped her choose, with those blonde curls and blue eyes, and everyone could tell how much they loved each other as they recited their vows. Her pregnancy was not yet showing but nevertheless lent a special glow to her fair skin. Watching them get married made me look forward even more to my own wedding, which was almost uponus.
After the wedding, we all retreated to the palace for an intimate reception. Since Fenris and Mina didn’t want a lot of fuss, and weren’t politically prominent, only the close friends and family who’d attended the ceremony wereinvited.
“Two weddings in one week,” Comenius said as he gazed fondly at Rusalia, who was flitting from person to person like an eager butterfly. “It’s no wonder she’s soexcited.”
I nodded. “It looks like you’re all getting along well these days,” I said. Rusalia had made a rough start of it with Comenius and Elania—her mother had just died, and the little girl was rebellious and belligerent. She still had a bit of that wild streak in her, but ever since her near-death experience in the quake, she’d become much more manageable andaffectionate.
“Oh, absolutely,” Elania agreed. “She is a darling. She has already promised to help look after her little brother and sister, when the time comes.” She placed a hand over her belly, which was barely beginning toshow.
