“Of course, ma’am.”
She gripped my arm, and we stood.
* * *
—
ONCE THE DOOR was shut, Vashta let Ana have it. Her lungs were in fine form, and she seemed to have both an enthusiasm and talent for bellowing. I had no doubt that one reason she was being so loud was that she wanted Fayazi to hear the dressing-down that Ana was getting.
Finally, she began to finish: “Was I not clear, Immunis, that all of Talagray depends upon those people?” she said. “That we need them about as much as they need us?”
“You were,” said Ana. “But she is lying, ma’am. Obviously so. Blatantly so. Preposterously so! And when someone lies to the Iudex, they get looked at.”
Vashta fumed for a moment, thinking about this. “Do you believe, Immunis, that Fayazi Haza killed her father, and Blas, and those Engineers?”
“I…think that unlikely, ma’am,” admitted Ana.
“And you still think this Jolgalgan is the more likely perpetrator?”
“At the moment, yes, ma’am.”
“But to prove any of this, we would need to gain access to the Haza estate to see if Jolgalgan has been present, and in hopes that there is something there that could indicate her current whereabouts. Yes?”
Ana said nothing.
“I do not know why Fayazi is lying,” said Vashta. “I do not know her business whatsoever. But I do know that there is someone out there who has killed many Engineers and imperiled all of Talagray, and they could do more damage yet. Finding them is the priority. Not digging up any of your grudges with old enemies!”
Still Ana said nothing.
“You both stay here,” said Vashta, “while I try to salvage the situation out there, and engineer a way for you to continue your investigation!”
“Understood, ma’am,” said Ana.
With one last glare, Vashta turned, flung open the door, charged through, and slammed it behind her.
* * *
—
“WELL, DIN,” SAID Ana with a sigh, “I must admit, this…is not going well.”
“Agreed, ma’am,” I said.
“No doubt you would have counseled me to keep my mouth shut.”
“Very true, ma’am.”
“But I couldn’t bear it. I simply could not bear the absurd amount of bullshit being poured at our feet.”
My eyes fluttered as I recalled Fayazi’s story. “Her explanation seems…at least somewhat plausible, yes?”
Ana’s face slowly swiveled to me, her mouth open in outrage. “Did you catch a fucking blow to the head during your murderous scuffle, boy? If your father’s chest suddenly explodes with greenery, you get up and run screaming for help! What you don’t do is sit in total silence—unless, of course, you’re hoping nobody notices your father’s dead, because if they do, then people are going to start wondering why he died the exact same way as this other dumb bastard the next canton over! No doubt she hoped we’d never track the poisoning to her home. But then we did, and someone on the investigation must have just happened to mention to a friend, ‘Fucking hell, chum, d’you know I almost died at this Haza party?’ Then word got back to the Hazas, and that tipped them off that we knew the poisoning had taken place in their damned house. And if you can’t evade an investigation, you instead work to influence it. And here we are. The noble, famous gentryclan of the Hazas comes clean—but only to muddy the waters.”
“What happens now, ma’am?” I asked.
“No idea. None at fucking all. But I do feel somewhat satisfied. After all, I predicted another murder had occurred before we came here. Don’t you recall, engraver?”
My eyes fluttered. I recalled that first night here in Talagray, when Ana had said—What if they’ve murdered someone besides Engineers, so no one ever noticed?
“Yes, but…did you predict the murder of a Haza, ma’am?” I said.
“Oh, hell no. I figured it was likely that the poisoner had killed someone that would connect the dead Engineers to Commander Blas. But I didn’t think it would be one of the prime sons of the goddamned Haza clan!”
I shot her a glare. “Why not? You knew where the poisoning had taken place, after all. You knew from the start.”
“Ohh,” she said. “So. You’ve noticed.”
“I have, ma’am.”
She sighed and flopped down on the floor. “I wouldn’t say I knew where the Engineers had been poisoned, Din. I would say I simply possessed a high degree of certainty that this would all eventually lead back to the Hazas. If you want to figure out where everyone got fleas, look no further than the biggest pack of wild cats. Even if they do prowl behind high walls and fancy gates.”