General Marcum checked that the seal had not been tampered with, and then opened the letter from the colonel. As he read, his brows rose higher and higher. At one point his attention flicked to Rezkin’s swords, and his hands shook slightly before he steadied them. Once he finished reading the letter, he read it again. Afterward, he took his time folding the parchment, cleared his throat and, without looking up, quietly said, “You may be at ease lieutenant.” Lieutenant Jimson relaxed but remained standing in place.

The general’s anger had clearly dissipated, and the Lady Adelina was concerned by his reaction. “What is it dear? Are you unwell?”

Marcum looked at her as though he did not really comprehend what she asked, and then he finally turned his attention to the warrior he had just been berating for the last twenty minutes. Rezkin’s icy stare was arresting. The young man reached into a pouch at his waist and pulled out a small silver tube, which he held out for the general. General Marcum realized that Rezkin knew exactly what was in the letter.

Marcum took the silver tube and carefully removed the cap and contents. He unfolded the parchment and read. Even without the enchanted seal, he would have known Bordran’s hand. He lowered himself into a chair as he studied the familiar script of his old friend. To Marcum, Bordran had been more than a king. He had been his closest friend and confidant. Marcum, being quite a bit older, had known Bordran all of the man’s life. He truly missed the man, and he missed the king. Bordran had been a king Marcum was proud to serve. When Bordran gave an order, Marcum felt confident he could follow it without reserve. Things had not been the same since Bordran died. Things were not the same with Caydean on the throne.

The general finally was able to focus his attention on the content of the parchment and was shocked that not only did the Certificate of Authority bequeath the warrior with two Sheyalin blades, but it also did not specify or limit the young man’s authority in any way. The fact that Rezkin’s name and description had been written in by a different hand was odd. It seemed absurd that the king would compose a nonretractable certificate of unlimited authority and leave the name of the recipient blank. Anyone could have written any name in the blank and had the authority to do whatever he wanted in the kingdom. No, that was impossible. The mage seal would have prevented it.

The other oddity was that Rezkin’s name lacked not only a family name and place of origin, but also a title of any sort. By kingdom law, he truly was just Rezkin. He was not lying about that. A sobering thought crossed the general’s mind.