Morgan raised an eyebrow in surprise and turned wide, guileless eyes on the venerable lady. “My lady, I certainly do not. If I am not mistaken, your ancient customs were at work last fall when our Lord King fought the Lady Charissa. Without the tempering force that I am led to believe that this Council wields, His Majesty might not have gained the time to discover his talents. There is good reason to be proud of him.”

“Certainly there is,” Vivienne said irritably. “Young Haldane is a worthy descendant of our race. On his mother’s side is pure Deryni ancestry, though hidden for many years. On his father’s side, he descends from the great Haldanes whom the Blessed Camber chose to restore to glory, inheritor of the fruits of the Great Discoveries. By combination of his birth, we count him as one of us. He has always had the benefit of challenge protection, even if he did not know it. He shall have it again, as shall Lord Arilan. The Council stands by these two.”

“And myself? Duncan?”

Vivienne’s reply was somewhat tempered by regret. “Thou art both born of Deryni mothers, of full sisters in the blood, and as such shouldst be dear to us. But thy fathers were human—which makes thee outcast.”

“But what of their powers?” Tiercel asked eagerly, breaking in on Vivienne without hesitation. “Morgan, is it true that you and McLain can heal?”

The question elicited immediate silence as every face turned toward Morgan. He looked long into the eyes of Tiercel de Claron, then let his gaze slip across the others of the Council. There was anticipation there, some eager and some dread, and Morgan suddenly became uncertain just how much he wished to disclose about his newly discovered talent just yet. He glanced to Arilan for guidance, but the bishop gave no sign.

Very well. He would take the initiative on his own, try to put the Council on the defensive, let them know that, half-breed or not, Alaric Morgan was a man to be reckoned with.

“Can we heal?” he repeated softly. “Perhaps later I shall tell you about that. For now, I would ask again of my and Duncan’s status. If, as we have been led to believe, the two of us are subject to full challenge, by right of our maternal inheritance, may we not also claim the right to challenge protection? If I and my kinsman are liable only for the peril, and not the protection, of our blood heritage, where is the much-vaunted Deryni justice?”

“Do you presume to question our authority?” Coram asked carefully.

“I question your authority to place our lives in jeopardy because of circumstances which are outside our control, sir,” Morgan replied. Coram sat back and nodded slowly as Morgan continued. “I do not pretend to understand all the ramifications of my inheritance, but His Majesty will assure you, I think, that I have a fair idea what justice is all about. If you bar us from the protection of our birthright and force us to stand against full Deryni who are formally trained in the use of their powers, it may be that you decree our deaths. Surely we have done nothing to warrant that.”