Lady Lure (37 page)

“Tell us what you know, Vedyr,” she said.

“Woman.” Vedyr spoke in the scornful tone
that Regulan men ordinarily used with females. “You are every bit
as stupid as Elyr always said you were. Not Captain Jyrit, nor Lady
Kalina, nor even Leader Almaric can touch Elyr now. You haven’t
heard the latest news from Regula, have you?”

“What news?” Perri demanded. She was aware of
Halvo’s rising annoyance with Vedyr’s manner toward her. She just
hoped she could make Vedyr say something important before Halvo
cautioned him to be more polite, an order that would effectively
silence Vedyr out of sheer outrage at the idea that a woman’s
feelings ought to be considered.

“Your former betrothed,” Vedyr said to Perri
with malicious relish, “cannot be punished by the
Jurisdiction.”

“Why not?” Perri expected Vedyr to say that
Elyr was dead. It was the only reason she could think of for such a
declaration. Vedyr’s actual response was the last thing she
expected to hear.

“Because Elyr is the Chief Hierarch.”

“What?” Perri stared at him in disbelief. “It
cannot be. Where is the real Chief Hierarch?”

“That old man?” Vedyr’s voice dripped
contempt. “We have removed him.”

“But he is Elyr’s father-in-law,” Perri
said.

“What does that signify? Women never
understand these governmental matters,” Vedyr said to Halvo,
“certainly not one as stupid as Perri.”

“This interview is over.” His mouth hard with
anger, Halvo turned off the recorder. Without another word he
stalked out of the ship’s brig, his companions following him.

* * * * *

In Jyrit’s conference room Perri, Halvo,
Kalina, Dysia, and Jyrit were gathered. While the others listened
to the recording of the interview with Vedyr, Perri glanced about
the room, which was decorated in Jugarian style. The walls were
stark white, there was a grass mat of some kind on the floor, and
the dark wood chairs were cushioned in bright red and gold. A tall
gold vase containing two red flowers and a swirl of bare branches
stood in one corner. Four tall windows showed the wide vista of
space. Perri found the very sparse décor relaxing and peculiarly
elegant, perhaps because it was so different from Regulan decor. At
the moment, she was not feeling charitable toward anything, or
anyone, with the slightest claim to being Regulan.

“So Elyr has made himself Chief Hierarch,”
Jyrit said. “I wonder how he did it.”

“Marriage to the old Chief Hierarch’s
daughter would give him a claim to become a member of the
Hierarchy.” Perri tore her gaze from contemplation of the red
flowers to respond to Jyrit’s remarks. “Ascension to the Hierarchy
by right of marriage has occurred in the past. But the men who
reach the Hierarchy by such means do not usually aspire to the
foremost position of power.”

“I wonder what Vedyr meant by saying that the
former Chief Hierarch has been removed,” Kalina said. “Is the old
man still alive or have they killed him?”

“In a legal sense, it hardly matters,” Halvo
said, “since Jurisdiction law forbids interference in the internal
affairs of any Member Planet. So Vedyr is right when he claims that
Elyr cannot be touched.”

“Except by other Regulans,” Perri said. “Elyr
must have made enemies among the six men who have been members of
the Hierarchy for years, each of whom will no doubt think he had a
greater right than Elyr to become Chief Hierarch.” Perri fell
silent under Kalina’s intense gaze.

“Whatever your complicity in this matter may
be,” Kalina said to her, “it is clear to me that you are not the
witless creature those men believe you to be. However, Elyr is a
fool.”

“At the moment, he appears to be a successful
one,” Dysia said.

“Not for long.” Kalina’s lips curled into a
smile that Perri was sure must have made many a miscreant tremble.
She was glad Kalina had not turned that smile on her. “As Halvo has
rightly noted, so long as Regulan intrigues were confined to
Regula, the Jurisdiction government could not legally take action
against the Hierarchy. But no planetary government, whether it is a
Member of the Jurisdiction or not, can order the kidnapping of the
Admiral of the Jurisdiction Fleet without expecting
retribution.”

“Never mind how useless to the Jurisdiction
that admiral may have become,” Halvo muttered.

“You are not useless, Halvo. Not at all.”
Kalina gave her son a long look before she turned to Jyrit. “Before
he left his ship, did Vedyr send a message to Regula?”

“No,” Jyrit said. “My communications officer
was monitoring all messages from that ship. The only ones sent were
to the
Krontar.”

“Still,” Kalina said, “when Elyr does not
hear from his friend, Vedyr, he may send another vessel to
intercept us. Jyrit, I suggest you have your communications officer
send a full report of this incident to Capital and also request an
escort to see us safely there. This is no slur on your honor or on
your determination to protect us to your last breath, my friend. It
is merely a realization of the great distance that lies between us
and Capital, and of the ceaseless treachery of the Regulans.”

“I agree with you,” Jyrit said. “I shall give
the orders you wish.”

“Before we proceed to Capital,” Halvo said,
“we ought to make a stop at Regula.”

“No!” Perri cried in dismay. “I never want to
see Regula again.”

“In the name of all the stars, why should we
go there?” Kalina asked.

“For two reasons,” Halvo said. “First, to
confront Elyr and try to unravel the mystery of why I was kidnapped
and why Perri was used as the Chief Hierarch’s agent. And second,
to discover what has happened to the former Chief Hierarch. We will
need to know whether he is dead or still alive before the
Jurisdiction can bring charges against the Hierarchy. If the old
man is dead and Elyr claims that he was in some way a victim of the
old Chief Hierarch, then the Jurisdiction may not have a case
against him.”

“I see your point,” Jyrit said. “I also have
personal reasons for wanting this mystery solved. My honor was
blemished by the scheme that old Chief Hierarch set in motion.”

“Jyrit,” Kalina said, “any stain you imagine
upon your honor has been wiped out by your bravery in rescuing
Halvo. My dear friend, you were nearly killed for your efforts in
Halvo’s behalf. Not even your sacred honor could require more of
you.”

“But Halvo is right,” Jyrit said. “Before we
travel to Capital, we stop at Regula.”

“Ah, Perri, you are wonderful.” Drawing her
nearer on the bed they shared, Halvo buried his face in her hair.
“You are everything a man could want. Beautiful, intelligent—”

“You are the only man who thinks so,” she
said. “You heard Vedyr call me stupid, just as Elyr always
did.”

“They are blinded by their distorted Regulan
attitudes toward women,” Halvo said.

His hands caressed Perri’s body, his mouth
was on her throat, her shoulders, her breasts. Perri felt herself
warming to him as she always did when they lay together, but this
time a portion of her mind was separate from what they were doing.
A small corner of her brain was mulling over a problem, considering
something she had seen … or heard … something she ought to be able
to put together

Halvo moved over her, his mouth on hers
again, making her dizzy with sensual pleasure. His thigh slid
between hers. She was aware of his masculine weight pushing against
her, seeking entrance. She slipped a notch closer to ecstasy,
toward acceptance of his desire and the sweet oblivion of throbbing
passion. Then that odd, busy, little corner of her mind opened wide
with comprehension.

“Pirates!” she said, trying to push Halvo
away. “Halvo, wait.”

“I can’t.” He pressed more firmly against
her. “Not even for another pirate attack.”

“No, please listen to me. I have just put the
pieces together.”

“It is what I am trying to do, too. Now, if
you will only—”

“No, Halvo, you must stop. This is so
important.” She tried to wriggle away from under him, and she
pushed at his shoulders as hard as she could. She saw his face go
dark with frustration before he controlled himself and pulled back
to kneel between her thighs.

“What is it?” he asked. “I know you would not
stop me at such a moment for some trifle.”

“You asked me once if I could remember seeing
or hearing anything during my interview with the Chief Hierarch
that might cast some light on why I was sent to abduct you or why
the Chief Hierarch wanted you kidnapped.”

“And?” He was watching her intently and she
could tell he was intrigued rather than angered by the way in which
she had stopped him at the height of his passion.

Blessed Halvo.
She did not think any
other man would take her insistence on waiting quite as well as he
was. She wanted to touch him and whisper a promise that she would
make the delay up to him because his consideration of her wishes
warmed her heart as few other gestures could have done. However,
she decided it would be best not to stir that particular fire at
the moment. Passion would have to be postponed, at least for a
little while.

“Perri, you are going to explain, aren’t
you?” Halvo cocked an inquiring eyebrow at her.

“The Regulan spiral was the key,” she
said.

“The one we noticed on the bulkhead of
Vedyr’s ship, the sign that was covered up?” he asked when she
paused.

“Yes. That disguised sign reminded me of the
two Regulan spirals in the Chief Hierarch’s private office. I mean,
in the office of the former Chief Hierarch. Who knows what changes
Elyr has made to that chamber?”

“Since the spiral is the Sign of Regula, it
would not be unusual for the design to be in the Chief Hierarch’s
office,” Halvo said.

“It was the combination of elements in the
office that I found so unusual,” Perri said. “The silver spiral on
the wall and a second spiral inlaid on the Chief Hierarch’s desk. A
Cetan sword on another wall. And a gold Styxian lizard sitting on
the desk. I understood why the sword was there, because Regula has
a commercial treaty with the Cetans. I could recall watching on the
telscan the grand diplomatic ceremony when the treaty was signed
and the sword was presented. I remember that I wanted to ask the
Chief Hierarch why he also had a Styxian lizard, but I was too much
in awe of him when I first saw him. By the time I had recovered
enough to ask questions, I was so stunned by what he was telling me
that I forgot all about the lizard.”

“Regula has always been on cool terms with
Styxia,” Halvo said. “The two planetary systems are on opposite
sides of the Jurisdiction, a distance that does not make for
neighborly familiarity. And then, like many warm-blooded people,
Regulans find the Styxians difficult to deal with since Styxians
are descended from reptilian life-forms. Many of the humanoid Races
of the Jurisdiction consider the Styxians untrustworthy, though I
have never found them so. They were certainly honest and
cooperative in the matter of the pirates whom we chased away from
their border.”

“Chased where?” Perri asked.

Halvo stared at her for a moment and she saw
understanding come into his eyes.

“Are you suggesting that the Hierarchy gave
the surviving pirates shelter after they fled the Styxian border?”
he asked. “Perri, this is what I suspect, too, but so far I have
not been able to put the whole story together.”

“The entire Hierarchy may not be involved in
the scheme,” Perri said. “You will remember that Captain Mirar had
also been told a false tale to explain his mission. Perhaps it was
only the Chief Hierarch who was directing the plot. He alone holds
the power to grant dispensation from punishment in criminal cases.
That is why I went to plead with him about Elyr’s supposed death
sentence. If the Chief Hierarch was in league with pirates, it
would explain why he wanted me to abduct you.”

“Because I led the force that defeated the
pirates at Styxia,” Halvo said. “The pirates must want revenge
against me for that battle. Personal vengeance is a
well-established custom with them.”

“I can imagine an exchange of a different
kind from the one the Chief Hierarch suggested to me during my
interview with him,” Perri said. “An exchange of a priceless piece
of loot, the golden Styxian lizard I saw sitting on the Chief
Hierarch’s desk, plus a share of the profits from the pirates’
raids, paid to the Chief Hierarch by the pirates in return for
sheltering them in the Regulan sector, and for turning you over to
them to do with as they liked. Any pirate would consider that a
fair bargain. And so would the old Chief Hierarch from what I know
of him. He liked money and power, but he loved intrigue even more.
It would be a constant source of pleasure to him to know he was
keeping the double secret of your disappearance and the location of
the pirates’ hideaway.”

“Two dangerous secrets, and not entirely
secure ones either,” Halvo said, smiling as they worked their way
through the maze of intrigue. “Just suppose that Elyr found out
what the Chief Hierarch was up to and tried to blackmail him. And
was paid off with a promise of marriage to the Chief Hierarch’s
daughter, which would guarantee Elyr a claim to a seat on the
Hierarchy the next time one fell vacant.”

“But Elyr was already betrothed to me,” Perri
said, taking up the story. “By Regulan law a betrothal can only be
broken by death, which was why Rolli was programmed to blow up the
Space Dragon
– but only after you had left it, because they
wanted you alive to hand over to the pirates. How furious those two
conspirators must have been when you would not accept their false
story that I was acting alone. And then you refused to leave the
Space Dragon!”