“Some rich bastard.” The man struggled against the Truth Spell, trying not to reveal the name, speaking what was literally the truth, but obviously not the whole truth.

Stev, however, was a veteran at this sort of interrogation, working methodically through questions designed to get the most information in the least amount of time. “And what was the rich bastard’s name?” he persisted.

The Mage’s eyes bulged and his face reddened as he did his utmost to foil the spell. But Stev’s Mind-magic was too strong, and finally he burst out with, “I only heard it once! I’m probably wrong!”

“What was the name?” Stev leaned over the man. “You know, I’m going to find it out one way or another. You might as well make this easier on both of us.”

Does my father do this? Silly question. Her father dealt with the worst of the worst. Of course he did. Meanwhile, the man was weeping in agony, hand hovering over the dagger he didn’t dare remove, or he’d probably bleed to death. “The name,” Stev repeated.

“Kemp! Lemp! Hemp! That’s all I remember!” the Mage cried.

“Was it ‘Remp’?” Stev asked, cold as ice in Midwinter. “Dudley Remp?”

That startled Abi out of her nausea. Dudley Remp? What on earth was he up to, here? What could he possibly gain from meddling with the politics of a few small cities on the Menmellith Border?

“Yes!” the man shrieked.

“And why did he want Valdemar discredited here?” Stev asked.

The smell of blood and even worse things made her dizzy, but this was an answer she needed to hear.

“He wants his own kingdom where he can do what he wants. Please, please, help me,” the Mage blubbered, pawing at Stev’s foot.

Stev glanced over at her, finally. She swallowed down the sour taste of bile in her mouth, winced at the taste of blood on her mouth, and looked the Herald straight in the eye. “You know Remp better than I do,” he said. “Does that sound logical?”

She thought it over, but not for too long. “Completely,” she replied. “He’s always thought he should be allowed to do whatever he wants because he’s rich. I can see him sending these Mages in to discredit Valdemar, hiring a mercenary company, and coming in to offer himself as the new king.”

Stev’s lip curled in contempt. “As in, ‘this is a lovely city you have, it would be terrible if anything happened to it while your defenses are down. But of course, I have the men to prevent that’?”

She nodded.

Stev turned his attention back to the Mage. “Is Remp still on this side of the Border?”

“Yes,” the Mage moaned. “He’s waiting for us in Carnsbridge, near the Karsite Border.”