“If there is evidence against my wife…” Leo spoke the words slowly and precisely. “The nation must judge her. I agree to your terms.”

There was a long, nervous silence. Then Judge started to laugh. “Oh, Young Lion, that’s beautiful.” She slapped her tattooed thigh. “Love can bring folk together in fair weather, but it won’t bind ’em when the chill sets in. Hate’s better, in my experience. A common enemy gets folk moving together. But enemies get beaten, and put behind you, like the Breakers beat the king, like the magi beat Kanedias, and then what happens? Folk get used to enemies. They always need more. They turn on each other.”

Someone had wandered in from the room next door. A short, heavyset man wearing a vest and nothing else. “Wha’ fuck?” he muttered, squinting into the daylight.

“Put some bloody clothes on, you animal.” Judge’s eyes flickered back to Leo. “Love and hate, they’re luxuries. Poets might say they’re from the heart, but I say no. They’re lies we tell ourselves. They’re choices made. But fear,” and she lifted her trembling fist, “that’s an instinct. Fear and lust and hunger, they’re universal. The lowest insects have ’em. Fear is in the gut. It’s in the bones. It’s in the balls and the arse and the cunt. Fear and lust and hunger are what’ll bind us together and keep us on the right path. The people don’t need love or hate, Young Lion, but they always have to fear. Bear that in mind.”

Leo thought it over, and nodded. “Sage advice,” he said, and he didn’t even have to lie. “So…” With an effort he lifted his good foot, used the heel to slide some rubbish out of the way and propped it on the stained table beside Judge’s. “Shall I put my riding boot on?”

“At once if not sooner, General Brock! The Young Lion, back in the saddle!” And she threw her arms up, and one of the two men at the window gave a brief round of applause. “Here’s the irony! On behalf of

the king we’ve got a commoner who was made a lord marshal, and on behalf of the people we’ve got a lord governor who made himself a commoner. Life can be horrible,” she said, jabbing her thumb at dead Juvens. “But life can be delightful, too,” pointing up at Kanedias and his sea of fire. “There’s its real beauty, eh? In its range. Daresay you’ve an old uniform lying about somewhere. Might need to take it in around the knee, I suppose.”

“The Representatives will agree to it?”

“Well, I haven’t noticed anyone disagreeing with me lately. Have you?” Judge jerked her head towards the man with the broken nose. “Sparks? You’ll be going along.”

He looked as unhappy about it as Leo felt, but he hid it a lot less well. “Me?”

“Are you fucking disagreeing?”

Broad shifted, his free fist clenching, and Sparks took a cautious step back. “’Course not, Judge. ’Course not.”