The horse-faced man hesitated, his shoulders slowly straightening up. He closed his toothy grimace and blinked. Tiphaine relaxed the least little bit, and Sir Stratson never knew how her hand had ghosted towards the hilt of her long sword.

I’m no witch, but I can see this man’s come back from whatever corner of the void he was sitting in.

The guards were quieting down too, watching their commander and the Grand Constable approach Fen House. A few of them looked around, and began shouting or pushing the others into ranks.

Tiphaine spoke in a quiet voice, easily drowned by the hiss of the rain at a few paces:. “Something happened to you, Stratson. You had your men set up in positions that were an invitation to friendly fire, and I saw some of the guard talking with your more dangerous prisoners. Do you remember anything?”

He shook his head dolefully. “Not a thing, Grand Constable. I was talking with Mary Liu, and then suddenly I was outside trying to make sure that the men were . . . it sounds bad, doesn’t it? And then you.”

“Talking?” asked Tiphaine. “You wrote me you drugged her with laudanum. Did she wake up?” She shook the arm a little. “Focus, focus . . . I need you all here. We’re going to be in trouble pretty soon.”

Stratson turned his face from the door and said, “Scared; I’m right scared of that place. Never liked it. Now it scares me.”

Tiphaine thought hard for a moment. You can’t muscle this, you have to finesse it.

“Stratson, listen, what did your mother call you?”

The wandering, watery brown eyes suddenly stilled. He looked at her intently. “Stanley. It’s been a long time since somebody called me Stanley.”

Tiphaine frowned. “No wife? No kids? No friends?”

“I’m the warden. Just never seemed right for me.” He shook his head for a few minutes. “Was going to marry. Nice girl. Had the date all set, planned everything, hotel, judge, invitations . . . all set up for May 10th, 1998. And then the Change happened. I never did find my Mary. And I figured I’d never get that kind of a chance again.”

He did go crazy after the Change, just in an inconspicuous, relatively functional way like a lot of other people. But it left him vulnerable.

“Once we’ve got this situation under control, you’re going to take a long vacation and come east with us. POW guard duty is one of the hardest to do well. See some new landscapes. And then I think the Lady Regent might have something long-term for you, a nice little manor not too far from town. You’ve served long and faithfully and it won’t be forgotten.”

She looked at the man, his jaw hanging slightly. “We on?” she asked, in the vernacular of her childhood.