‘Why not let him be our messenger to Belgarion then.’

‘You’re moving a little fast for me, Urgit,’ Oskatat confessed.

‘What’s the nearest town occupied by the Malloreans?’

‘They still have a reduced garrison at Rak Cthaka. We could overwhelm them in a few hours, but we haven’t wanted to give Zakath any reason to return to Cthol Murgos in force.’

Urgit shuddered. ‘I’m very strongly inclined toward that line of thinking myself,’ he admitted, ‘but I owe Belgarion several favors, and I want to protect my brother as much as I can. I’ll tell you what you do, Oskatat. Take about three army corps and run on down to Rak Cthaka. Malloreans out in the countryside will run off to Rak Hagga to pass the word on to Kal Zakath that we’re beginning to attack his cities. That should get his attention. Mill around outside the city for a while, then surround the place. Ask for a parlay with the garrison commander. Explain the situation to him. I’ll compose a letter to Kal Zakath pointing out a certain community of interest in this affair. I’m sure he doesn’t want Agachak in Mallorea any more than I want the old magician here in Cthol Murgos. I’ll suggest in the strongest terms that he pass the word on to Belgarion. The word he’ll have already received about our hostile actions will guarantee that he’ll at least look at my letter. He’ll get in touch with Belgarion, and then we can both sit back and watch the Godslayer solve our problem for us.’ He grinned suddenly. ‘Who knows? This might even be the first step toward a reconciliation between his Imperial Implacableness and me. I really think it’s time for Angaraks to stop killing each other.’

‘Can’t you squeeze any more speed out of her?’ King Anheg demanded of Captain Greldik.

‘Of course, Anheg,’ Greldik growled. ‘I could crowd on more sail, and we’ll be as swift as an arrow – for about five minutes. Then the masts will break, and we’ll go back to rowing. Which shift should I put you down for?’

‘Greldik, have you ever heard the term “lèsé majesty”?’

‘You’ve mentioned it frequently, Anheg, but you should take a look at maritime law sometime. When we’re on board this ship and at sea, I have even more absolute authority than you’ve got in Val Alorn. If I tell you to row, you’ll row – or swim.’

Anheg walked away, muttering curses under his breath.

‘Any luck?’ Emperor Varana asked as the Alorn king approached the bow.

‘He told me to mind my own business,’ Anheg grunted. ‘Then he offered to let me man an oar if I was in such a hurry.’

‘Have you ever manned an oar before?’

‘Once. Chereks are a sea going people, and my father thought it would be educational for me to make a voyage as a deckhand. I didn’t mind the rowing so much. It was the flogging that irritated me.’

‘They actually flogged the crown prince?’ Varana asked incredulously.

‘It’s very hard to see an oarsman’s face when you’re coming up behind him,’ Anheg shrugged. ‘The oarsmaster was trying to get more speed out of us. We were pursuing a Tolnedran merchantman at the time, and we didn’t want her to reach the safety of Tolnedran territorial waters.’

‘Anheg!’ Varana exclaimed.

‘That was years ago, Varana. I’ve given orders now that Tolnedran vessels are not to be molested – at least not in the sight of witnesses. The whole point of this is that Greldik’s probably right. If he puts on all sail, the wind will uproot his masts, and you and I’ll both wind up rowing.’

‘We don’t have much chance of catching up with Barak, then, do we?’

‘I’m not so sure. Barak’s not nearly as good a sailor as Greldik is, and that oversized tub of his isn’t very responsive to the helm. We’re gaining on him every day. When he gets to Mallorea, he’s going to have to stop in every port to ask questions. Most Malloreans wouldn’t recognize Garion if he walked up and spat in their eyes. Kheldar’s another matter, though. I understand that the little thief has branch offices in most of the cities and towns in Mallorea. I know how Barak thinks. As soon as he gets to Mallorea, he’s going to go looking for Silk, since Silk and Garion are obviously going to be together. I don’t have to ask about Silk, though. All I’ve got to do is describe the Seabird to waterfront loafers in just a few towns. For the price of a few tankards of ale, I’ll be able to follow Barak wherever he goes. Hopefully, we’ll catch up with him before he finds Garion and ruins everything. I just wish that blind girl hadn’t told him he couldn’t go along. The fastest way I know of to get Barak to do something is to forbid him to do it. If he were with Garion, at least Belgarath would be there to keep him under control.’

‘How do you propose to stop him even if we do catch up with him? His ship may be slower than this one, but it’s also bigger, and it carries more men.’

‘Greldik and I have worked that out,’ Anheg replied. ‘Greldik’s got a special piece of equipment in his forward hold. It bolts to the bow of this ship. If Barak refuses to come about when I order him to, Greldik’s going to ram him. He won’t go very fast in a sinking ship.’

‘Anheg, that’s monstrous!’

‘So’s what Barak’s trying to do. If he succeeds in breaking through to Garion, Zandramas will win, and we’ll all end up under the heel of somebody worse than Torak was. If I have to sink Seabird to avoid that, I’ll do it ten times over.’ He sighed. ‘I’ll miss my cousin, though, in case he gets drowned,’ he admitted.

Queen Porenn of Drasnia had summoned Margrave Khendon, the chief of her intelligence service, to her private chambers that morning and issued her commands in no uncertain terms. ‘Every one of them, Javelin,’ she had said in a peremptory tone. ‘I want every single spy out of this wing of the palace for the rest of the day.’

‘Porenn!’ Javelin had gasped. ‘That’s unheard of!’

‘Not really. You just heard it – from me. Tell your people to sweep all the unofficial spies out as well. I want this wing of the palace totally unpopulated within the hour. I have spies of my own, Javelin, and I know where all the usual hiding places are. Clean out every one of them.’

‘I’m bitterly disappointed in you, Porenn. Monarchs simply don’t treat the intelligence service in this fashion. Have you any idea of what this is going to do to my people’s morale?’