“It’s a lie,” Maya said fiercely. “I know Jaedia better than anyone. She would rather die than turn against the Order.”
“You’re not the only one who thinks so,” Beq said, lowering her voice. She glanced over her shoulder at the guards outside and continued in a whisper. “There’s been serious accusations on the Council. The Dogmatics are accusing Baselanthus and the others of plotting against the Order, and the Pragmatics say that Jaedia must have been set up.”
“Obviously she was set up,” Maya said. Her heart pounded in her chest, and her insides felt stretched. She touched the Thing absently. “I have to get out of here. She needs my help.”
“I have …” Beq paused, then leaned in even closer, until her forehead rested against Maya’s. Startled, Maya froze. Beq’s skin was warm against hers, and her lips were almost close enough to kiss. “There’s something I have to tell you.”
Maya swallowed. “What?”
“I found something. In the Spike, before we left.”
“Found what?”
“Correspondence between Nicomidi and Raskos,” Beq said. “I think. It’s all in cipher, like the letter you found. Tanax had us search Raskos’ office after he fled the city, and I … um … took it.” She shook her head, forehead rolling against Maya’s. “ If I handed it over, I was worried Tanax might … misplace it. It was wrong, but I was so mad at him—”
“Can you read them?”
“Not easily. But I checked the archives to see who was allocated those codes in particular. They definitely all came from Nicomidi.”
“If Nicomidi was working with Raskos all along—”
“Shhhh,” Beq said frantically.
There was a long silence.
“So what are you going to do?” Maya said.
“I don’t know,” Beq said. “I should burn the things, or find a way to turn them over to the Council. But …” She swallowed. “I want to help you, Maya. It’s wrong that they’re keeping you in here. Even if you disobeyed Tanax. Raskos was corrupt, and Tanax wasn’t going to do anything about it! And—”
“Shhhh.” Maya let out a deep breath. “Thank you, Beq.”
“I feel stupid,” Beq said. “You’re the one in a cell for treason, and I come to you for help. But I don’t know what to do.”
“Is there any chance you can decode the letters?”
“It’s possible,” Beq said. “The codes should be on file in the master archive. It’ll take time to track them all down, though.”
“That’s the first thing we need to do, then,” Maya said.
“You don’t want me to go to Baselanthus?”
“I’m not sure how much Basel can do,” Maya said. “If we know what Nicomidi and Raskos were talking about, we’ll have more leverage.”
“Okay.” Beq pulled away from Maya and took a deep breath. “I’ll do it as fast as I can.”
“Will you be able to get in and see me again?”
“Not for a while,” Beq said. “But I should be able to send a note. I have a friend on the kitchen staff.”
Maya perked up. “Could you send me a book?”
“I can try,” Beq said. “What do you need?”
“A copy of the Inheritance, to begin with.”
“Really?” Beq stuck out her tongue. “Haven’t you studied it enough? I certainly have.”
“The basic rules of the Order are in there,” Maya said. “I want to see if there’s anything about … treason, I guess, and how the trial might go.” She shook her head. “I need to get out of here, one way or another.”
“I’ll try,” Beq said. She got to her feet, looking over her shoulder at the guards. “I’d better go.”
“Beq—” Maya stood up, a little too fast. Beq paused, her beautiful eyes too big through her golden spectacles, wisps of green hair escaping her braid. She looked worried and harried and achingly beautiful.
“What?”
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do any of this.”
“Oh.” Beq looked down, flushing a little. “I … when we were on the mission, I thought …”
Maya waited, hardly daring to breathe.
“Never mind,” Beq said, her voice rising to a squeak. “I’ll be back. As soon as I can. And I’ll get those books. If I can. And—”
Maya glanced at the waiting guards, and Beq paused, then nodded fiercely. Maya didn’t move until the door closed behind her.
Focus, Maya. She sat down by the meal Beq had brought and ate every scrap, dutifully chewing the too-tough meat. Get out of here first. Jaedia needs your help.
Nevertheless, when she fell asleep again, she found her dreams considerably more pleasant.
*
Days passed. The last of Maya’s fever vanished, and her mind felt like her own for the first time since she’d left Deepfire.
A copy of the Inheritance arrived with one of Maya’s meals, and not long after, a thick tome detailing Council precedents in serious judicial matters involving centarchs, going all the way back to the founding of the Order after the Plague War. Maya finished her report of the events of the mission, then threw herself into reading. It wasn’t her favorite activity at the best of times, and the judicial book made for exceptionally slow going, but there wasn’t much else to distract her. She took to pacing quickly while she read, trying to work up a sweat, or putting the book on the floor and doing a handstand.
It was the latter exercise she was engaged in when she heard voices outside the door. She held her pose, arms beginning to ache and sweat trickling down her nose, but stopped trying to focus on the technical merits of the argument made by a century-dead Kyriliarch and listened. Someone snapped an order, and she heard the stamp of boots. Then the door lock clicked open.
Beq? It didn’t seem likely. Maya tensed, then sprang back to her feet, breathing hard. The door opened, and she found herself face-to-face with Nicomidi. The Kyriliarch was alone, without even the usual pair of door guards in sight.
“Agathios,” he said with the hint of a smile. “I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“Just trying to keep busy,” Maya said carelessly. “How can I help you, Kyriliarch?”
He stepped into the room, glancing around curiously. “I’m told your health has recovered.”
“It has.” In truth, Maya still didn’t know what to make of the fever and nightmares. Shock, maybe. But they seemed to have passed. “Thank you for asking.”
“I have been looking into your case, as you might imagine,” Nicomidi said. “And I have reviewed Tanax’s reports of your conduct. I am starting to believe that I may have been … overhasty in my judgment.”
Maya hesitated, sensing a trap. “How so?”
“The picture that Tanax paints of you is a young woman dedicated to the highest principles of the Twilight Order.” He coughed. “If, perhaps, somewhat impulsive and inclined to disrespect authority. It seems out of character for you to have been involved in a plot with Jaedia against the Order.”