by C. R. Daems
"Well, did you enjoy yourself? Someday, you are going to have to learn how to deal with influential nobles. Although I have to admit, Romano did invite the deception."
"I had a wonderful time. Good food and good company. What about you, my sister?" Jola asked.
"The food was good, but the company was boring. What trial did you commit to?"
"I know I acted on my own without consulting you, and I'm sorry. I hope I didn't do anything to embarrass you or the other sisters. You could hear the case. In truth, they wanted you, not me." Jola rambled on, feeling like a little girl caught doing something... Jola realized she didn't know what normal little girls got caught doing that made them feel guilty. But she felt guilty anyway.
"You did nothing wrong. I'm the senior judicator, here to guide you for your first year or two. Although the sisters consider you an apprentice, you're officially a judicator and have the legal right to hear any case you see fit. I find it interesting that Marquess Romano didn't mention it to me, and that the group at your end of the table seemed to think he didn't want us hearing the case. Very interesting."
* * *
As Jola walked toward the judicator's platform in the middle of the town square, Romano intercepted her. "Good morn, Judicator Jola. I'm sorry about the misunderstanding last night."
"Good morn, Marquess Romano. There was no harm done. Your guests were very congenial, the food excellent, and the evening enjoyable," Jola said with a smile.
"I hear you are determined to sit in judgment on the case involving the theft of some vases. I believe it's a waste of your time. The city guard caught the thief, who had motive, opportunity, and was found with part of the stolen property. The guard has a merchant's statement that the thief sold one of the stolen vases to him." He paused, and then added in a burst, "You're new, and I wouldn't want people to perceive that you're too inexperienced to try more complex cases."
"It's all right, Lord Romano. I'm inexperienced, and there's no reason to pretend otherwise. I'm sure Judicator Tenzen would prefer that I start with easy cases. But thank you for your concern." Jola continued up onto the platform. Very interesting that a noble's concerned about my time and image. She sat down, arranging her robe, and waited for the prisoner to be brought forward.
The crowd, with a few more plainly dressed commoners than nobles, looked a little larger than she'd have expected, considering the lack of notice-and people continued to trickle in. The platform appeared to be a permanent structure, unlike the makeshift one at Iron Hills. Two steps led up to the chair and table, which put the floor at least six hands above ground level. It wasn't covered with a rug, like in Lappin, but was painted a nice wood-like brown. Carved with a vine pattern, the table and canopied chair looked expensive.
"In the name of King Nicolas, I, Judicator Jola, do hereby call this judgment in session. Captain, would you please read the charges?" Jola said, after it appeared that everyone was in place. And let the story begin, she murmured to herself and her friend, who was currently wound into her hair like a golden headpiece.
"Sergeant Alviss is accused of having stolen eight gold-inlaid vases from the Merchant Kgosi while at the East Gate checkpoint," the captain read from the parchment he held.
The accused stood at the foot of the platform with a guard on each side. He was dressed in clean clothing and had recently washed, but he looked haggard.
"Captain, did Sergeant Alviss resist arrest?"
"No, Mistress."
"Has he caused trouble since his arrest?" Jola asked as she continued to assess the sergeant's appearance. The answers she heard didn't match how he looked.
"No, not that I'm aware of."
Knowing the captain spoke the truth, Jola rose from her chair, stepped down from the platform, and walked to within a meter of Alviss.
"Please remove Sergeant Alviss's jacket and shirt." She nodded to the two guards holding Alviss and waited while they followed her instructions. When his clothing had been removed, Jola walked slowly around Alviss. When she returned and stood in front of him again, she stretched out her hand to touch one of the purple bruises on his chest. However, the guards and the prisoner jerked back. The people in the crowd murmured as they pressed away from her. Surprised, she realized that her golden viper had wound itself around her arm and had its head lying on the back of her hand. She sometimes forgot how much it frightened people, the viper was so much a part of her.
"Come forward. My friend will not hurt you. It's just curious, as am I." She reached forward and touched one of the bruises gently. Alviss grimaced with pain but said nothing.
"I see prison life doesn't agree with you, Sergeant Alviss." Jola looked over to the captain, who had raised his eyebrows and frowned at her discovery.
"Thank you for your concern, Mistress," Alviss said. His face was beaded with sweat.
Jola strolled to her seat and settled down before asking, "Sergeant, did you steal the vase on display to my left?"
"No, Mistress."
"Did you steal any objects from the Merchant Kgosi?"
"No."
"Did you conspire with anyone else to steal the Merchant Kgosi's property?"
"No."
All three answers felt true, and were therefore intriguing. Not such a simple case as Romano indicated, but an interesting story, no doubt.
"Sergeant Alviss, would you tell me how you came to have this vase, and to sell it to the Merchant Swiff?" Jola pointed to the vase sitting on the table.
"Mistress, an eightday ago, I had watch duty at the East Gate, issuing merchant licenses and collecting tolls. It was almost noon before I finished. I returned to the gatehouse and found a vase on the floor near my desk. I asked the other guard if he knew who it belonged to. He didn't know. We decided to sell it, if no one claimed it by the end of the day. No one claimed it, so I sold it to Merchant Swiff. Before I could split the money with the other guard, I was arrested."
Jola knew Alviss told the truth. She turned toward Merchant Swiff, a short, stocky man with a beard that covered most of his round, pudgy face. As she did, her viper disappeared between her breasts into her blouse and exited her sleeve onto her lap, where it coiled itself facing the Merchant Swiff.
"Merchant Swiff, you purchased this vase from Sergeant Alviss?" Jola asked, pointing to the vase.
"Yes, Mistress."
"And how did you determine that it was stolen?"
"I knew the Merchant Kgosi specialized in such vases, so I attempted to sell it to him. He told me it had been stolen." Jola sensed the truth of his statement. Interesting that Kgosi didn't know it was missing, she mused. She and her viper fixed their attention on the Merchant Kgosi. He was another short, stocky man with a bushy beard. She wondered if Swiff and Kgosi were related somehow. The crowd snickered as her viper uncoiled and recoiled so that its head faced Kgosi.
Jola stroked the viper. "Merchant Kgosi, when did you discover that the vase was missing?"
"When I unloaded the horses, about an hour before Merchant Swiff appeared, Mistress. I-" Kgosi stammered to silence when Jola raised her hand.
"Answer my questions only." She wouldn't allow him to sidetrack her while she tried to follow the story. "When was the last time you saw that vase, prior to unpacking your horses?"
"When I packed them in Manito for the trip to Northgate. They were guarded night and day," Kgosi said in a slow and thoughtful manner.
But maybe not guarded so well after all. Jola chuckled silently. "Captain, we'll be in recess until you can find Merchant Kgosi's guards and have them brought before me. I think one of them may be running up the street right now." Jola pointed in the direction of the fleeing man.
A chuckle emerged from the crowd as they turned to watch the man.
"And when we reconvene, please return Sergeant Alviss in better condition than he is in now." Jola cocked her head to watch as the captain motioned to his men and they sprinted in pursuit of the fleeing man. Tenzen climbed the steps to join her.
"Well, Jola,
that was an interesting session. Judging from the comments I overheard, you and your golden viper are very popular. I suspect the crowds will be bigger tomorrow. I also suspect you have made several people very nervous. Have you formed an opinion as to how this will end?" Tenzen grinned.
"I try not to form opinions on how the story will end. It tends to ruin the story," Jola said. "But you have to admit, my sister, it has all the elements of an exciting ending."
* * *
"Congratulations, Captain, the prisoner looks much better," Jola said as she sat down.
"Thank you, Mistress. I was unaware of his condition. I apologize, since I should have known."
"We shall have an accounting today. Captain, who are our new witnesses?" Jola studied the four men standing with the captain. They looked tough and in good condition for their ages, which Jola judged to be in the early to middle thirties.
"They are the four guards you asked to be present today." The captain smiled.
"Well, did you steal the merchant's vases?" Jola asked, as her viper slid out of her sleeve and coiled in her lap, its tongue flickering in their direction.
One of the men stepped forward. "Yes, Mistress."
Jola suppressed a smile as a few gasps of surprise went up from the large crowd. The man knew he couldn't lie to her successfully, which her viper had emphasized with its little display. Besides, lying would make it worse for him.
Jola pointed to the other three and cocked her head in obvious question.
"Yes, Mistress," each said in turn.
"Thank you for not drawing it out. Captain, please hold these men in custody until sentencing. They will tell you where the Merchant Kgosi's property is hidden, as I doubt they intended to sell it in this town. They cleverly planted the vase Alviss found to cast suspicion away from themselves. Have you identified the men that beat Sergeant Alviss?" Jola asked, pulling at the next thread in this tangled story.
"Yes. They are in custody, awaiting your judgment." The captain waved the two guards forward.
"Corporal, why did you beat Sergeant Alviss?" Jola asked as she leaned forward, giving him her full attention. Before he could answer, the golden viper rose up a full hand in Jola's lap, and hissed. That caused the crowd to gasp, and seemed to cause the corporal to reconsider his response.
"We were paid to find out where Sergeant Alviss had hidden the other vases. That isn't uncommon, Mistress," he said, as his eyes followed the slowly weaving viper and a bead of sweat trickled down his face.
She and her viper turned to the second guard. "Were you also paid to extract information from Sergeant Alviss?" Jola asked.
"Yes, Mistress. We are-" He snapped his mouth shut mid-sentence as Jola raised a hand.
"Who paid you, Corporal?" Jola rapped out. In the meantime, her viper disappeared, and reappeared wrapped around her ankle looking at the corporal, a mere three meters away.
"Marquess Romano, Mistress. He paid us five silvers each," he said, licking his lips as he stared at the viper. He gasped with relief when it disappeared back into Jola's robe.
Jola stopped to consider why Romano would pay someone to beat the prisoner, and why he didn't want a trial. He must have something to gain, but what?
"Merchant Kgosi, come forward," Jola said. He had the most to lose. She bit the inside of her lip as she thought the events over. When Kgosi stood in front of her, staring up, she continued. "Did you pay Marquess Romano to have the prisoner tortured?"
"Yes, Mistress, fifty silvers," Kgosi said. "My property is worth over five hundred silvers."
Jola turned to Romano. "Marquess Romano, did you accept fifty silvers from Merchant Kgosi and pay the guards to beat Sergeant Alviss?" Jola asked. She shook her head in amazement at the stupidity of the situation. Why? She wondered. Because he could? To prove something? Certainly not for the money; fifty silvers means nothing to a marquess.
"Yes, Judicator Jola, as is my right," Romano said, as Jola's viper poked its head out of her hair. If a viper could have an expression, her viper looked to be questioning the man's sanity. She heard a low mutter go through the crowd.
Then, a hand pressed on her shoulder. A quick glance over her shoulder, and she saw that Tenzen stood behind her, a hand lightly resting near the viper. Even Romano paled at the gesture. Well, that certainly completes a story about abuse of power, and greed's triumph over justice. But she had done her job, and today justice would triumph. She rose to give her verdict.
"Let it be known to all citizens of Pyxus that Judicator Jola has resolved beyond any man's right to question the issue before her involving the theft of the Merchant Kgosi's eight vases," Jola chanted. "I decree the following:
"First, Sergeant Alviss is innocent of the charges of stealing the Merchant Kgosi's eight vases. He is, however, guilty of selling one vase that wasn't his property. For that crime, he's to receive five strokes of the cane."
With that announcement, the crowd gasped and Alviss paled.
"Second, the beating Sergeant Alviss received while imprisoned is to be considered the equivalent of five strokes of the cane. He has therefore paid his debt.
"Third, the actual thieves will reimburse Merchant Kgosi for any property that isn't recovered. They will also receive five strokes of the cane and be held in custody until Merchant Kgosi has been paid in full, but for not less than one year.
"Fourth, the Merchant Kgosi is fined fifty silvers for bribing an official, and will receive five strokes of the cane."
"I was only trying to get my-" Kgosi shouted, but stopped with Jola's raised hand, which her viper had coiled around. She narrowed her eyes and he paled.
"Fifth, Merchant Kgosi's fined an additional ten silvers for interrupting the proceedings."
This brought a collective laugh from the crowd, until Jola raised her hand.
"Sixth, the guards who beat Sergeant Alviss are fined five silvers each, and are to receive five strokes of the cane. Marquess Romano will repay fifty silvers to the Merchant Kgosi, and is fined an additional fifty silvers for accepting a bribe to subvert the law. In addition, Marquess Romano is sentenced to twenty strokes of the cane for bribing the city guard to commit a crime, and for accepting a bribe." Jola felt Sister Tenzen's hand tighten on her shoulder.
"I decree the shame and humiliation Lord Romano will suffer because of this trial and the subsequent caning is equivalent to fifteen strokes. Therefore, the city guard will deliver only five strokes of the cane." With that pronouncement, Tenzen's hand relaxed.
"Lord Romano has the right to appeal my decree to the king, as he was not represented by the Duchess of Rador, his liege.
"So say the Judicators of Pyxus." Jola rose to her feet.
"So say the Judicators of Pyxus." Tenzen repeated.
CHAPTER FIVE
Rador Province
Jola and Tenzen rode away from Northgate the next day, for Rador's capital, Stag Bluff, by way of Redwood.
"Did I make a lifetime enemy of Marquess Romano? Will I no longer be welcome in Northgate?" Jola said as they were exiting the city gates. Not that she doubted that Romano deserved the punishment she had ordered, but the idea of making enemies, especially influential nobles, worried her.
Tenzen shrugged. "It's unfortunately one of the consequences of being a judicator. You'll hurt some and help others. Subcaptain Earleek will suffer by your verdict, while the prisoners will benefit. Some of those you punish will feel you owe them. Some of those you benefit will feel they're in your debt. Sergeant Alviss feels he owes you for saving his life, while Marquess Romano feels you owe him for embarrassing him and causing him to forfeit his position."
"But... I didn't make any judgment concerning his position. I only punished him for what he did." Judgments were so complicated. She shook her head. Would she ever get used to having so much power? "I didn't even realize I could."
"But you can. As you know, anytime a judicator sentences a noble, she's required to report the circumstances to the king. He'll have Romano replaced because of th
e seriousness of your findings. And Romano will probably blame you for his misfortune, and want revenge. Few are foolish enough to try, though, since they would suffer a far worse punishment."
Oh, great. I'm less than two seasons out of the monastery, still in training, and I've upset three nobles already. Jola sighed.
"I'm beginning to understand now how important it is to be mentored, my first few years. And I'm grateful it's you. There's so much more to being a judicator than just knowing the law. In the classroom, I thought all I had to do to please everyone was to find the truth and provide a fair verdict." Jola laughed at her naivete. "I never realized that my idea of what is 'fair' and that of the person being sentenced may not agree. At the rate I'm going, it won't be safe for you to travel with me."
"Things aren't quite that bad, Jola. You're learning that there are things we can't teach you. They must be experienced. The thirst for revenge is the reason every student learns how to defend herself. We aren't attacked often, but you must expect that it'll happen several times during your life. Some, like Lord Kedge, think they've done nothing wrong and blame the judicator for their punishment. Even when they don't, they have spouses, parents, relatives, and friends who may. Fortunately, most realize that revenge would cost them more than it would gain them. After all, we are in the service of the king and the God."
* * *
After they had set up camp and tended their horses that night, Tenzen continued weapons training, indirectly reinforcing her warning about the need to be prepared. It fascinated Jola that Tenzen, who was thirty years her senior, could practice without seeming to tire, while she felt exhausted by the end of each session. She had never asked why, afraid that she would offend Tenzen.
That night she collapsed panting by the campfire, fanning her face with her hand. She could contain her curiosity no longer.
"Why don't you get as tired as I do? I'm still in my teens, and I end up exhausted." Jola wiped the sweat from her forehead. They had been working out for an hour and the weather was warm.