‘Don’t screw things up, Valentin,’ she said. ‘They’re offering you an off-world ticket. The thing you’ve always wanted.’

‘Well…’ he began. ‘I’ve done my part. I’ve done what I can.’

‘Tell me about this man you met,’ she said.

‘It was just a man. Out for a walk.’

‘And he vanished.’

‘No, of course he didn’t. He must have walked off. It was nothing.’

‘What did you talk about?’ she asked.

‘I don’t know. The countryside. He was a local man. I think he said he was in the logging industry.’

‘Did he have a name?’

Before he could answer, the kitchen door opened, and Voriet and Betancore walked in.

‘We’d like to have a word with the magos,’ Voriet said to Macks. She nodded, then realised it meant they were asking her to leave.

Macks got up, shot a look at Drusher and walked out.

Voriet sat down facing Drusher. Betancore stood, leaning against the larder cupboards.

‘Let’s start with instructions,’ said Voriet. ‘You follow them, magos. You don’t come and go as you please.’

‘I didn’t know that,’ said Drusher.

‘You do now,’ said Voriet. ‘So that won’t happen again, will it? Not now you know.’

‘It’s for your safety, Valentin,’ said Betancore.

Drusher shrugged grudgingly.

‘All right,’ he said. ‘But I don’t like this very much at all.’

‘Now, about this man you met,’ said Voriet, ignoring the remark. ‘Tell me about him.’

‘I just went over this with Macks,’ Drusher said. ‘He was just a… a… He said he lived locally. He knew the area. The way he talked, he knew the history. He ran a timber business. Or his father did. I get the feeling he’d taken it over. That was it, really.’

‘But you thought it was odd,’ said Betancore.

Drusher turned to look at her.

‘Just in hindsight, really, mam,’ he said. ‘I didn’t see him approach in the first place. I just looked up, and there he was. And I didn’t see him leave. But I’m sure that was just me.’

‘You’re a very observant man,’ said Voriet. He put Drusher’s notebook on the table and opened it. ‘You’re a magos biologis. It’s part of the training. These notes you took today, they are testament to an acute level of observation. Details of plant and bird and insect that I would have missed.’

‘I’m not very good with people,’ said Drusher. ‘If he’d been a little hill-hawk, I could have probably told you which direction he flew off in, how fast and where his roost was.’

‘Did he tell you his name?’ asked Betancore.

‘Uh, yes. I think he said it was Esic.’

Voriet and Betancore exchanged glances. Betancore stepped forwards and put a data-slate on the table in front of Drusher.

‘Is this him?’ she asked.

‘No. No, that’s a much older man. Much older.’