“The Andermani are as shocked by what happened as we were. No one outside the Republic of Haven so much as guessed this was coming, or would have believed how completely their initial offensive would succeed even if they’d seen it coming. The Andermani certainly never anticipated anything like it. And, to be honest, I think it frightened them. Badly, in fact. You know how little Emperor Gustav trusts ‘Republican’ forms of government in the first place. I think that predisposed him to believe our side when we explained that Pritchart and Giancola manufactured the diplomatic correspondence they’re busy publishing to the galaxy. In addition, he’s admitted to us that Pritchart deliberately encouraged them to pursue an aggressive policy in Silesia at the same time she was turning up the heat on us at the truce negotiations. My impression from what Willie’s said is that the Peeps’ obvious willingness to use the Empire as one more cat’s paw in what was obviously a very carefully planned policy of deception has had a profound effect on the Emperor’s view of the galactic balance of power.”

“At any rate, it looks very much as if the Andermani Navy is about to come in on our side.”

Honor stared at him in disbelief.

“Hamish, we were shooting at each other less than two months ago!” she protested.

“And your point is?” he asked, and chortled at her expression. Then he sobered. “Honor, ‘real politik’ is the guiding deity of the Anderman Dynasty. What Gustav Anderman is seeing right this minute is that the Peeps are unpredictable, that they attempted to use him, and that they’re lying to the entire galaxy. Oh, and that they once again have the biggest Navy this side of the Solarian League.” He shrugged. “On that basis, they’re obviously a much greater danger to him than we are. Remember, the Andermani never really thought of us as a threat to their own security. What they resented was our interference in their efforts to secure what they regarded as their ‘natural frontiers’ in Silesia. Everybody, on the other hand, regarded the old People’s Republic as a threat. And now that the new Republic has demonstrated that it has the same leopard spots as the old one, the Andermani see it in very much the same light.

“So since they never had anything personally against us in the first place, they’re suddenly much more receptive to the notion that their enemy’s enemy is their friend. Especially when Willie and Elizabeth agreed to sweeten the pot just a bit.”

“How?” Honor asked, regarding him suspiciously now, rather than disbelievingly.

“With a little real politik of our own,” White Haven told her. “The Conservative Association and the Liberal Party are effectively nonexistent at the moment. You haven’t been to the Lords recently, so you can’t begin to appreciate just how completely the entire Parliament is supporting Willie’s new government right now. To give you some idea, the Lords have already agreed to take up a bill to transfer the power of the purse to the Commons over a five-T-year transition period. Unless something very drastic happens, it will be passed on third reading next week.”