by Robin Roseau
“Ambassador,” she said. “Do you believe we have hurt a single person?”
“That isn’t the point.”
“It’s a very fair question. Do you?”
“I’m fairly sure the men you’ve taken would have strong opinions on that.”
Her eyes narrowed. “We have returned every man who was not engaged in banditry or other more despicable acts. Would you like to discuss those acts?”
“I believe, Duchess, that we have a legitimate complaint when our citizens simply disappear without any word from your government. If they were engaged in illegal acts, don’t you think you owe your good neighbors to the south any notice at all, and perhaps the opportunity to intercede before you do whatever you choose to do?”
“That is a fair point of discussion,” she said. “Is it your top priority?”
“No.”
“All right,” she said. She poured a glass of water and then slid it across the table to me. I stared at it then picked it up and took a drink. She waited then said, “Allium, perhaps you should start with something easy.”
“Easy,” I said. “All right. I would like a list of every Flarvorian citizen who is currently a guest of Ressaline, or who has been shipped elsewhere without due notice to us.”
“I have a slightly different list,” she replied. “Two lists, actually.” Jessla handed a sheet of paper to her, and she slid it to me. “This is the list of men who were engaged in blatantly illegal behavior on our side of the border. It lists the crimes we confirmed and indicates what we did with them.”
I looked through the list. Halfway down, I whispered, “No.”
“Ultimately, everyone on the list confessed.”
I looked up. “You tortured them?”
“Of course not. We drugged them and demanded the truth.”
“The truth, or told them what to say?”
“We asked questions,” Jessla said. “If someone said, ‘no,’ then it was no.” She gestured. “That list is probably not a complete list of crimes, but at some point, we don’t need more.”
“What does ‘permanently pacified’ mean?”
“A sufficient dose of the same drug is permanent,” Olivia replied. “It makes the person docile.”
“And then you sold them.”
“Yes,” Olivia said. “They are judged guilty by our laws. Would you like to experience the drug for yourself to understand the effects?”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No, Ambassador. I am making an offer, if it would help you to understand. It would last for a few hours to as long as two or three days, and there is a period of adjustment afterwards that is uncomfortable.”
I looked back down at the list. Finally, I looked back up. “I see six people we would have executed, assuming these charges are all true.”
“Do you doubt me?”
I stared for a minute then closed my eyes. “I have no business being here,” I whispered.
“Allium,” Olivia said gently. “Your king doesn’t know the particulars, but he knows we return men who stray to our side of the border. We use the pacification tonic on repeat offenders. The worst we would do if someone didn’t get the hint is use increasing doses. Your king knows this. What did he tell you about this?”
I opened my eyes and set the paper down. “Lady Olivia, I would like to know where this questioning occurred.”
“Here,” she said.
“Did they arrive already under the effects of this tonic?”
“Yes.”
“In the future, I would prefer that either myself or someone I designate be present for these questioning sessions. Furthermore, I would also prefer you notify the embassy whenever a Flarvorian male has received this tonic.”
She inclined her head. “Of course, Ambassador.” She gestured. “Allium, we should resolve this before we move to harder topics.”
“Are you sure they were guilty, Olivia? Are you absolutely sure?”
“Yes, Allium. There is no doubt at all.”
“How dangerous is this tonic?”
“Are you considering my offer?”
“Yes.”
“It is quite safe,” she said. “And rather pleasant, although the next day is uncomfortable.”
“Similar to being released from my first time?”
“Similar but different at the same time. You would feel somewhat ill. It passes.”
I nodded. “I don’t know how to do this part.”
“Which part is that?”
“It is not sufficient for me to experience the tonic.”
“Ah. You wish to experience questioning?”
“And you cannot ask me things the ambassador should not tell you.”
“Jessla, what do you recommend?”
“You could make it a challenge,” Jessla said. “Someone gives her information. If she gives up the information under questioning, then there are personal implications.”
“It wouldn’t be possible to make those as severe as these men faced.” I tapped the paper.
“Allium, we understand your position, but I believe the phrase is ‘sing like a canary’. You’ll tell us anything we ask you, if we don’t over drug you to the point of catatonia.”
“How is it you have such a powerful tonic, and we have nothing remotely like that?”
“It’s tied to the same magic that makes our slaves,” Olivia said. “It’s not the same, but it’s related.”
I nodded. “All right.” I tapped the paper. “May I have this?”
“Of course,” she said. “Do you need a minute?”
I looked down, staring at the paper, but not reading it. “You have our apologies.”
“We do not blame Flarvor for this,” Olivia said. “We blame the individuals involved. But thank you for the apology. It is appreciated.”
“Would Ressaline consider exporting this tonic.”
“Not a chance,” she said. “We would, on a rare case-by-case basis, be willing to assist with the interrogation of a prisoner. We have very strict laws on that, and we would insist on doing the questioning ourselves with no interference. Furthermore, if you ever witness an interrogation, you will remain silent and not interfere. If you want to fight with me, you will do it away from the prisoner.”
“May I make that offer to my king?”
“Yes,” Olivia said.
“Could you review the laws for me?”
“I’ll prepare a draft,” Jessla said. “It will cover things at a high level.”
“In exchange, Ambassador,” said Olivia. “This is for the king only. We do not want him discussing it with anyone else,”
“Of course, Lady Olivia,” I said. “However, that is a personal promise and not a promise from my country. I can ask the king to hold this in confidence, but I am not promising he will.”
“Then I ask you to promise to be your most convincing.”
“I will be my most convincing,” I promised.
“Thank you, Allium,” she said. “Is this resolved.”
“I’ll need to experience the tonic,” I said. “But perhaps not today.”
“Not today,” she agreed.
“You have a second list,” I prompted.
Jessla passed Olivia a sheet of paper. Olivia turned it around and slid it to me. I skimmed it, verifying one particularly important name, and checking the final count. There were more names than expected, although not egregiously more. The list indicated where they had been found and their disposition. I stared at the list for what felt like a long time.
“It is your claim six of these women requested this.”
“We have their signed papers,” Jessla said. “Do you doubt us?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I do not know where all these places are. Your list is different from mine.”
“No doubt,” Olivia said. “How many specific names did you look for?”
“Only one,” I said.
“There are two others of note, but you may not reco
gnize them.”
I skimmed the list. “Tell me.”
“Ms. Rennda Gyrolite is the daughter of the mayor of Bilarkeet.”
I searched the list. “You’ve had her for two months.”
Olivia tapped the paper. “Ms. Holiday Gyrolite is same mayor’s young wife.”
“You have got to be kidding me! Lady Olivia!”
“Do not bark at me, Ambassador,” she said firmly.
“I shouldn’t be the one dealing with this, and everyone knows it.”
“And yet, you’re here. Are you going to return to Barrish and tell your king to send someone else?”
I stared at her. “No,” I muttered.
“All right. Ambassador, we have been exceedingly clear. Ms. Gyrolite the elder was repeatedly returned to her side of the border. She insisted her family has for generations picked berries in a particular marsh that is clearly on our side of the border, and she had no intention of stopping now. Frankly, she is a spoiled child. Her daughter was more mature about it than the mother. What do you want us to do, Ambassador?”
“You let her be sold.”
“She is well over twenty-one,” Olivia pointed out.
“So you sold her for a year. And I’m supposed to do nothing about that?”
Olivia smiled but didn’t answer. I lowered my gaze and reviewed the list again. Without looking up, I said, “I am deeply hampered. I was depending upon my staff’s help.” I looked up. “I fully expected some of these to be more egregious than others, but I don’t even have a map. Furthermore, how do I know all of these were taken on your side of the border.”
“Are you accusing us of crossing the border?”
“Let me ask this, Lady Olivia? What is the going price for someone on her twenty-first birthday?”
“You’re not seriously asking that.”
“Yes, Lady Olivia, I am. You fetched quite a price for yourself.”
“Times were different,” she said.
“What is the going price?”
“There is a floor of five hundred crowns,” she said.
“This sheet does not indicate who was sold, and what the price was,” I said. “But five hundred crowns seems like an incentive to me.”
“Are you seriously making that accusation, Ambassador?” For the first time, Olivia’s voice held emotion.
“I am asking how you know it hasn’t happened. How do you know, Duchess, that not one single name on this list was taken from the south side of the border?”
“I cannot believe you are making this accusation.”
“I have made no accusation. I asked a question. Why aren’t you answering it?” She stared at me then turned to Jessla. “Oh, please,” I said. “Skip the theatrics. You’re incompetent if you don’t already know the answer. There’s no way you haven’t considered that.”
“You’re right,” she said. “It has happened.” I sat back, stunned. I didn’t think she’d admit it. “It’s illegal,” she continued. “In each case, we have investigated and then paid the affected women reparations and returned them home.”
“How do you know none of these women deserve the same consideration?”
“Because we ask them,” Jessla said. “We ask them what side of the border they were on. Some aren’t sure. Most are quite aware, but they think we’re kidding.”
“And the ones who aren’t sure?”
“We pacify the people who turned them in, and we ask them. In all cases, we reach agreement on the location, and then we make an effort to acertain the truth.”
“I don’t quite understand,” I said.
“People may not know what side of the border they were on, but they know they were, for instance, at the well in Three Greens.” Olivia leaned forward and tapped a name on the list. “And so we only need to determine where that is.”
“If there is reasonable doubt,” Jessla said. “We return them to Flarvor, although without reparations.”
Olivia tapped the list. “Every single one of these women was on our side of the border. Most, if not all of them knew it, and the ones who didn’t know it were rather cavalier about their location, but there is no doubt.”
“Do they come here before you enslave them?”
“Yes,” Jessla said. “I handled each of these cases myself.”
“Jessla is the least corruptible judge in our entire country,” Olivia said. “I’m lucky she is here instead of Ressaline City. I trust her judgment completely.”
I thought about it then asked, “Were any of these women engaging in activities that would be illegal in Flarvor?”
“The worst would be various forms of trespassing,” Jessla said. “Or minor theft.”
“Theft?”
“Picking fruits and berries that don’t belong to them, or in one case, harvesting firewood. Another woman had a bow and admitted she was hunting, although when she was caught, she had taken no game. We didn’t ask if she’d hunted our land previously. Note also that we do not actively patrol, so we’re quite sure others are crossing the border for similar reasons; they simply haven’t been caught since we became less tolerant.”
“All right,” I said.
Olivia smiled. “What is it you want, Ambassador?”
“I want you to give them back.”
“Of course,” she said.
“Just like that?”
“As soon as their first time is over.” Then she pointed a finger at me, forestalling my protest.
“Now,” I said. “We are unable to discuss other issues until this is resolved. If I cannot negotiate a satisfactory agreement, I am ordered to return to Barrish. I really don’t want that to happen, Olivia, as if it does, it is unlikely I would ever be back.”
“No one wants that, Allium,” she replied. “So you kindly request the immediate return of every woman on that list?”
“And we will then discuss the disposition of future transgressions.”
“That will be a good conversation,” she said. “So you are demanding we return everyone, including those who asked for their First?”
I sighed. “No. Not them.”
“And the one hunting? The mayor’s wife who repeatedly and wittingly crossed the border?”
“A year, Olivia? And I would like to know why I didn't know to look for her name.”
“I have no idea,” she said. “Perhaps the mayor realizes she is a shrew and is happy to be free of her.”
“Are you attempting humor?”
“Allium, it’s not like I know how to judge the motivations of men,” she replied.
I offered a snort. “Fair enough. Olivia, have all these women been enslaved?”
“Yes, according to our laws, Allium. Excepting the volunteers, none were given any choices.”
“All for a year?”
“Those who are twenty-one or older. Allium, this is another reason we insist the woman in your position has experienced her first, and for as long as we required. You know we aren’t hurting anyone. You also know something else, but you haven’t put it together yet.”
“Help me out, then.”
“If you were one of these women, would you want to go home?”
I stared at her then closed my eyes and slowly began counting my breaths. “Olivia, if we can’t reach agreement, this probably means the end of my career. Why did you do this to me?” I opened my eyes. “I thought we were friends. You manipulated the situation so I would be the one sitting on this side of the table. Do you think anyone in Barrish is going to understand what you just asked me?”
She looked at me, and I thought it was with sadness. I waved a finger at her. “Don’t give me that look. I told everyone I’m not qualified for this position. So don’t be surprised when it turns out I’m right.”
“You’re doing fine,” she said. “Your biggest problem is your lack of confidence.”
“You’re sending me home with nothing,” I said.
“You’re still sitting in that chair,” she said. “We’re still talking
.”
I had no idea what to do. Finally, in a very small voice, and feeling even less confident than I had since first being summoned back to Barrish, I asked, “What do you want?”
Olivia leaned forward and tapped the page. “This is the hardest to solve,” she said. “So back off from it. Do we have related issues?”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Undoubtedly, as we sit there, there is a citizen of Flarvor who is on the wrong side of the border. Maybe she is bringing goods to market, or returning from market. Maybe she is picking flowers. Who knows?”
“And when you catch her, you’re going to sell her into slavery for a year.”
“What do you think we should do instead, Ambassador?” I stared, not answering. “You have experienced that, Allium,” she said. “Last night, you in effect offered a challenge to me, one you’ll know you’re going to lose.”
“Lady Olivia, are you using this as part of your ‘cultural exchange, one woman at a time’?”
“In part, yes.”
“This is going from bad to worse,” I whined. I climbed from the chair and turned my back on her. We were in an inner room, or I would have moved to look out a window. I wondered if that was intentional.
“No, Allium,” she said gently. “It is not. Turn around and look at me and tell me what you think you would do, if you were on my side of the table.”
I didn’t turn around, not immediately. Finally, I muttered, “I don’t know.”
“All right,” she said. “Turn around and tell me what you want me to do when we find that woman.”
“Send her home.”
“Turn around and tell me.”
So I did. “You should send her home, Duchess. Although frankly, I don’t know why you expect us to give your citizens free run of our country, and you don’t offer the same.”
“How many Ressalines have been in Flarvor without invitation?”
“Your farmers and guards do the equivalent of crossing the border to visit the market,” I pointed out.
“To the best of my knowledge, not one Ressaline has gone any further than a border town, except for my delegation, under invitation from King Leander, and Jessla, whom you escorted. Do you know of other examples?”