Quint laughed. “The greater good of Amaria Baltacco. I’m going to file my own report on this trip,” Quint said. “I’m not into fiction like you are.”
Amaria blushed. “I wrote the report the way my father wanted it,” she said. “That makes it the truth.”
“In your dreams,” Quint said.
“I see you have found each other. I read Senior Lieutenant’s report, Captain Tirolo. You two should work wonderfully together in Nornotta,” a white-haired man said. Quint remembered him from his meeting with Pacci Colleto.
“Captain?” Amaria said. “You?” She looked at his uniform collar and finally spotted Quint’s captain badges. “How did that happen?”
“How did you get your promotion?” Quint asked.
“I earned it.”
“So did I,” Quint said.
The man introduced himself. “I am Henricco Lucheccia. I am the foreign secretary. General Obellia reports to me for non-military matters.” He smiled at Quint. “Your observations find their way to me from time to time. I’m impressed that someone as young as you are, and with your, uh, rural background has such insight.”
Quint was generally surprised. “I am humbled by your compliment, sir,” he said.
“Observations?” Amaria said, obviously not knowing what Quint did at the diplomatic corps.
“Captain Tirolo is an analyst for the Military Diplomatic Corps.”
“I thought you were stuck in a basement, somewhere,” Amaria said.
“It’s easier to concentrate that way,” Quint said, enjoying the little lie.
“I came over to tell you personally, that you will be riding behind the coaches on our trip. It is your background. I hope you understand.”
Quint smiled at Lucheccia. The secretary was honest about his compliment and under other circumstances, Quint felt he could be rational, but others in the entourage weren’t.
“I do understand. May I ride in the front instead?” Quint didn’t want to eat dust all the way to the Gussellian capital.
“Whatever you wish. Colonel Gerocie sent the horse to us for your use,” the leader said.
“Perhaps some of my bags can be carried on the coach,” Quint said.
“A reasonable request and one that I will personally make sure is fulfilled. It looks like everyone has arrived. We will be leaving in a few minutes.”
Quint carried his string book that he hid in a hidden compartment in his bags. Marena helped him with it. She was convinced it would be detected. He kept a change of clothes, some dried food, maps, and a canteen, as well as a few personal items. The rest of his clothes and an analysis he had made of Gussellia a few months ago after his meeting with the Gussellian wizard were in the heavier bag carried on the roof of one of the coaches along with the rest of the luggage.
Quint brought up the rear while they clattered through the morning traffic in the Racellian capital. Once they departed from a cobbled road, Quint moved to the side of the front coach whose coachman grudgingly had revealed their route to Nornotta where Pacci Colleto waited for them.
When the coaches rested at roadside stops, Quint was ignored other than a nod from Henricco Lucheccia. The nod was enough to get Quint served if the staff at the rest stop ignored him. Amaria noticed him, but her recognition consisted of dirty looks and lifting her chin with disdain on her face.
The first night was repeated every time. Quint was given a room in servant quarters. He shared his room with those drivers and attendants that didn’t walk out when they saw him in the room.
The last night was a little better as the attendants and drivers could see that Quint wasn’t a threat.
Once inside the castle at Nornotta, Quint was shown to a decent room. He ate his first meal in the dining hall with the rest of the delegation, although he was directed to the far end of the table, sitting ahead of Amaria.
When he went to his room, a servant was waiting at his door.
“Dictator Colleto would like an audience,” the servant said.
Quint followed the servant to an upper floor and into a large study. The wizard officer, now wearing an ornate uniform with gold epaulets stood to greet him.
“Sit over here,” the wizard said. “We should get a few things out of the way before the others meet.”
“I’m only an observer,” Quint said.
“I see you were given a promotion to make you an official member of the delegation. Congratulations, if that is in order.”
“Thank you, but I think it is a rank given for my commanding officer’s convenience.”
“It is unfortunate that you come from a hubite background. You would go far in any South Fenolan country with your facility for strings.”
“You overestimate my capabilities, sir. I require years of practice before I’ll be truly proficient at all the strings that I know.”
Colleto raised his hand. “I know all that. I was a young master, myself, but not as young as you. You should know that I wasn’t trying to capture and kill you, Captain. I wanted to offer you a position in the Gussellian army, once I was told that you used a portent string during the battle.”
“How did you know?” Quint said.
“I have an associate who can sense psychic strings. It is a rare gift. Once one of my magicians noticed two wizard corps officers leaving the battle, I did some quick checking and discovered your names. The girl had a tracking string on a uniform tunic she stuffed in her bags.”
Amaria still had the tunic with the tracking string. Another one of her lies, Quint thought.
“We followed it to the village pub. We couldn’t penetrate farther into Racellian territory and had to give up the chase.”
