“He did. Although you should address him as Centarch Tanax Brokenedge now.” Nicomidi gave his thin smile again. “His cognomen ceremony was yesterday.”

“Congratulations to him,” Maya said, a bit sourly. She knew Brokenedge was an ancient, honorable cognomen, indicating the favor of the Council. “I’m … glad he speaks well of me.”

“He is an honorable young man, and attentive to his duty. He will make an excellent centarch.” Nicomidi fixed her with a careful stare. “In any event, his testimony has convinced me that we need not be enemies. I am respected among the Dogmatics. If I were to speak on your behalf, I am certain your release could be arranged.”

“I see.” Maya hesitated again, then said, “And what would you want from me, in exchange for this favor?”

“I see you grasp the nub of the issue,” Nicomidi said. “Your testimony would be … informative to our discussions of Jaedia. You would only need tell the truth, of course.”

“Of course,” Maya murmured. I’ll bet I would, you snake. “And if I refuse?”

Nicomidi’s smile became more strained. “If you refuse, matters might be more difficult. You could be here for some time.”

“You can’t hold me forever.” Maya put her foot on the thick book of judicial proceedings. “I’ll demand a Council hearing, and you don’t have any evidence of treason.”

Now the smile was gone entirely. “You think you’re very clever, don’t you?”

“Not really. Just persistent.”

“Perhaps you should consider this, then. Council members do not require evidence to, say, make recommendations for postings. Your next assignment could bury you away on the northern frontier, where you will have nothing to do but write reports and check your toes for frostbite. You’ll lose your teeth before you get your cognomen.”

“If that’s the judgment of the Council, then I would accept it.” She said it with a straight face, because it seemed to annoy him.

“Or there’s your arcanist friend.”

“Leave her out of this.”

“I hope she’s careful in her work. Arcana are dangerous, after all. We don’t want any … accidents.”

There was a long pause.

“You’d go that far?” Maya said. Her voice was small. “Really?”

“You don’t know the stakes you’re playing for,” Nicomidi said. “Now. Will you be a good girl and tell the Council the truth about Jaedia? Or do we have to go over other potential mishaps?”

Maya looked down at the law book again, then back up at Nicomidi. “I’ll speak to the Council.”

*

The next morning, the guards opened the cell door, and one of the Legionaries motioned for Maya to follow. The white-armored soldiers brought her to a residential level that it took her a moment to recognize as her own. They stopped in front of her door, which she’d left only a couple of weeks before.