“Talk to my groom in the stables. He can take Mercury. I shall have to make do with one of the old plodders.” He pulled open the balcony doors violently, as if fresh air could blow away such madness. In the west, the sun was beginning to sink on the old country. When it rose again, what would they have set in motion? “I shortly have a meeting with Quercus concerning security arrangements for the Harvest Festival,” Grasp continued, his jawline rigid. “I shall play my part and reassure our wise king that all is well.” Then he walked out onto the balcony. As far as he was concerned, they were both dismissed.

Lady Fenestra smiled slyly at Petronio. “That’s settled. There is much to do and little time. Follow me!”

“Err … yes.”

As Petronio left his father sulking in his study, Lady Fenestra pulled back into the shadows of the hallway and hissed at him.

“Wait! The guards can be trusted, but my face will cause gossip if seen by other servants. Listen carefully. The man you are looking for has the name of Flint.”

“Julius Flint?” Petronio looked suitably awed. Who hadn’t heard of him?

Lady Fenestra arched her eyebrows. “I was right about you.”

Petronio was desperate to impress her. “When I was younger and ready for bed, my nurse used to tell me to close my eyes or Flint would pluck them out. I always thought it was a far tale until my father told me how Julius Flint, a young second-in-command of the armories in his twenties, put down a civil uprising when Quercus was challenged for the throne.”

“Yes?”

“Once the protesters were rounded up, he grabbed one of them out of the crowd and dangled him over the edge of the branch, offering to drop him unless he informed Flint who the ringleaders were. The man was only too happy to oblige. In thanks, Flint let go.”

“Brutal but effective!” commented Lady Fenestra.

Petronio was on a roll now. The story beat any far tale. “That’s only the half of it,” he continued. “The leaders were dispatched in the same way, one by one. The rest of the crowd awaited their punishment, thinking about docked wages, fines maybe. Guess what he did?”

“It’s hardly difficult.”