"I am not sure I find it so," Illyanov said thoughtfully. "As I told
Joan, I believe contact will be to our ultimate benefit, though it may
be difficult at first."
"Even if one of them turns out to be the Protector?"
"Perhaps especially then."
"Do you think Shayan would permit contact if that were the case?" Chang
asked.
Illyanov chuckled. "I doubt he will have any choice in the matter.
The Protector will manifest, that promise is definite; the questions
are only when, and in what form."
"Yeah." Odeon shook his head, rubbing the scar across his mouth, and
stood. "I'm sorry, Joanie, folks--I need to be alone for a bit."
"Go ahead, then." Cortin watched him leave, frowning. "Sis--is that a
good idea?"
"I believe so, for him. I would be happier if I could be sure he would
be doing something other than brooding over his mishandling--but I
think it likely he will be; Ivan's speculation could well be providing
him that distraction."
"I can distract him further," Illyanov said with a smile. "I received
word late yesterday that my resignation has been accepted; with Your
Grace's permission, I will ask Michael's help in setting up the High
Teton Enforcement Service. Although I do not as yet belong to it,
since it has not been officially established."
Startled, Cortin looked at him more closely. He was in uniform, but
now she saw he wasn't wearing any rank or territory insigne. "That can
be remedied easily enough. As of right now, there is a High Teton
Enforcement Service, commanded by Colonel Ivan Petrovich Illyanov.
You're out of uniform, Colonel--would somebody please get him an eagle
from my room?"
A grinning Powell left on that errand while Illyanov stared at her. "I
had not expected to be put in charge, Joan. To the best of my
knowledge, no Enforcement Service has ever been headed by an
Inquisitor, due to the public opinion of our profession."
"You're the only qualified candidate," Cortin said, grinning. "High
Teton's not going to be a normal fief, Ivan; all of the top people are
going to be Sealed. And I think the public perception of a Sealed
Inquisitor is going to be different from that of a non-Sealed one. So
you're it."
"Yes, Your Grace." Illyanov managed a seated bow. "I will, of course,
do my best."
"Prince Edward's going to administer it for the present; get in touch
with him for what you need. And coordinate with Brad and his Strike
Force people." Cortin grinned again. "I don't think you'll have much
trouble finding recruits, in spite of the climate. Just make sure you
find a good-sized house for your Family, and let me know when the
wedding's to be."
"Of course. If you are free at the time, I would be honored to have
you perform the ceremony."
"I'll make a point of it," Cortin assured him. "Oh, thanks, Chuck."
She took the silver eagle from her aide and pinned it on Illyanov's
collar. "There, that's better. Not quite complete yet, but that'll
have to wait till you can have territorial insigne made. Go to it,
Colonel."
"As Your Grace commands." Illyanov rose, smiling. "If I may be
excused, I shall find Michael and discuss the details with him."
* * * * *
Odeon had gone to his room, made himself a cup of herb tea, and settled
into his seldom-used armchair to do some thinking. First Shayan's
torture, now Ivan studying the Empire and speculating that the
Protector might be one of them--maybe not even human!
He stared at the circled-triangle marks on the backs of his hands,
deeply disturbed. Maybe he shouldn't be--the idea of the Protector
coming from the Empire didn't seem to bother anyone else, though Joanie
seemed troubled by the prospect of contact itself. He couldn't
pinpoint why it bothered him, since the Protector was by definition
divine rather than human, loaning Joanie some of His or Her powers; why
should he be disturbed if the physical body was non-human as well?
After several minutes' thought, he still couldn't come up with a
reason; all he knew was that he didn't like it. He finished his tea
and was going over to the prie-dieu when there was a knock on his door.
He swore briefly under his breath--the last thing he wanted right now
was a visitor!--but went to answer it, grinning despite himself when he
saw Ivan's new collar insignia. "Come in, Colonel sir.
Congratulations."
Illyanov bowed, smiling. "Thank you, Michael. May I ask your
professional assistance?"
"Of course. What can I do for you?"
"Assist me in setting up the Enforcement Service Her Grace has just
established, with me as its head."
"Gladly. Want some tea?" Odeon put his problems out of his mind, more
than ready to exchange them for some practical work.
* * * * *