Chapter 7
“Finally, we’ve got one quick kill in Almont.” Ragal looked across the council table. “Eleanor? You haven’t been out since you got back, you must have itchy fingers.”
“Okay.” She held out her hand for the instruction. “Yeah, looks like I could do that in one easy evening. Who’s this Princess Sofia, anyway?”
“She’s the daughter of the Empress’s younger brother,” Nathaniel said. “And she’s pregnant, which is what the Empress sees as a threat.”
“So why do we even need to kill her? If it’s the baby that needs removing, Daniel invented a potion that will just make her bleed.”
“A dead woman can’t get pregnant again next week,” Laban said flatly, giving Eleanor a look that suggested she shouldn’t argue.
She considered arguing anyway, but it hardly seemed a worthwhile fight to pick. “Fine. Do we have a deadline?”
“Soon,” Ragal said. “Before the pregnancy starts to show. But that shouldn’t be a problem.”
“No, it’s a quick job,” Eleanor agreed. “I can go tomorrow night.”
“The husband is expendable,” Ragal added. “It doesn’t matter if you have to kill him, but you don’t have to go looking for him.”
After the meeting split up, Eleanor hurried to catch up with Laban as he walked towards his rooms.
“What was that all about?”
He raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“You’re not usually one to advocate unnecessary kills.”
“What I said was perfectly true,” he said, not slowing his pace as they turned onto the stairs.
“But that’s not why you said it.”
“So Daniel invented some drug for ending a pregnancy, which I assume is how you two have avoided such inconvenience yourselves.”
Eleanor felt a blush rise in her cheeks, wondering how he’d guessed, but he wasn’t looking at her. “Yes.”
“And why do you think everyone doesn’t use it?”
“Daniel invented it. I don’t think he’s told many people.”
“Yes – but that isn’t the reason.” Laban held open the door to his rooms, and waved her through ahead of him. “Any apothecary could invent such a thing but they don’t. Why? Because it’s illegal. Every child of the Empire has a duty to produce more children, you remember.”
“I remember, but–”
“Preventing children is illegal.”
Eleanor flopped onto the sofa and put her feet up on the low table.
“How can something like that be against the law?”
“Why wouldn’t it be? The Empire needs children to fill its schools.”
“But I’ve never heard of it. If nobody knows it’s the law...”
“There’s no reason for them to know. Why would you want anyone to know how many laws they live under? People are happier if they think they’re free.”
“It’s nonsense. You can’t have laws that people don’t know they have to follow.”
“Think about it another way: if you’re not assigned to make this substance, why would you try? If it needed doing, someone would be doing it. We’re constantly told that we have everything we need, so why would it cross anyone’s mind to want something that isn’t available?”
“Daniel invents new stuff all the time.”
“Of course. Daniel’s an inventive young man, and we should all be thankful for that, but his inventions aren’t always strictly within the law.”
“That’s because he mostly invents poisons. And killing people is illegal – isn’t it? So we do illegal things all the time.”
“Technically, of course. But the Association has a privileged position. Our transgressions are tolerated, within reason. The question is only what the Empress deems reasonable.”
“And she’d find this unreasonable. I see.” She studied the floor for a moment. “Have I caused trouble for Daniel?”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m sure you haven’t done any damage this time, but you should be careful.”
“Okay.” Eleanor got to her feet. “I’ll remember that.”
“Do you want to stay for tea?”
“No, thanks. This might be a quick job, but I still need to plan it.”
She paced around the lawns, her thoughts so preoccupied that she didn’t even notice for the first half-circuit that Raf came to walk alongside her.
“You look a bit down,” he said at last, and she started.
“How long have you been there?”
“Not that long. What’s up?”
“Oh, nothing. I was thinking about a job I’ve just picked up. Making plans in my head – you know how it is.”
He nodded.
“Hey, do you want to come and spot for me? It’s just a quickie over at the palace.”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to trust academy kids like me with real work.”
“Oh, suit yourself.”
“I’m not saying I won’t come!”
She grinned at his enthusiasm. “Well, I know you’ll do as good a job as anyone, and it’ll be more fun this way. Tomorrow night, okay?”
“Sure.”
“I’m going to scout it out tonight. Come round straight after dinner tomorrow and I’ll talk you through it.”
“And you’ll definitely be there this time? Not down at Daniel’s?”
She blushed. “Daniel’s away. Come tomorrow, and dress for the dark.”
Revolution (Chronicles of Charanthe #2) Page 17