Such a bond was dormant for the most part,a function of the imprinting process. It only became active whenthere was an attempt at intimacy with an imprinted Deir by someoneother than his patron lover. When Rohyr reversed virathaonLassen, their immediate connection was broken. But there werepowerfulmentaladepts to whom even the weak traces of a former bond were visible.Keosqe knew Rohyr was one of them.Hewondered however if even his cousin had the power to read thosetraces given the distance involved and the length of time from theseverance of their bond. What if it took more mental energy thanRohyr possessed to uncover those traces?Haveyou the strength for it?Rohyrsexpression darkened. That remains to be seen.** * *Theywere back in the capital by midday. While Keosqe proceeded to hisoffice to arrange for the interception of the Idanascorrespondence, Rohyr returned to the Citadel. He did not confrontTyrde but his demeanor toward his consort was distinctly chilly fromthereon.Itwas obvious his lemans disappearance had much to do with Rohyrsdour mood. And going by his behavior toward Tyrde, it was alsoapparent he had discovered the latters role in it. Given Rohyrssometimes maverick disposition, there was no telling what he would doabout the situation. But Tyrde was fairly certain Rohyr would not beabove subtly venting his displeasure on him by marginalizing him atcourt for instance or keeping him in cloistered, useless splendor.Tyrdehad not anticipated such an adverse repercussion. Now that there wasno risk of being accused of favoring his paramour over his consort,Rohyr could radically reduce Tyrdes political visibility andinfluence. And with his main bargaining chip gone, Tyrde had noleverage to demand a greater say in the rule of the land. Nor couldhe employ the threat he had held over Lassens head that he woulddivorce Rohyr if his leman continued to hold more sway with him thanhis legal spouse.Withsaid leman out of the picture, neither could he demand dissolution oftheir union due to almost non-existent relations. After all, nearlyhalf the arranged marriages in Ylandre languished in just such astate. So long as Rohyr fulfilled his duty of tumblingTyrdereasonably often enough, it mattered little if he spent next to notime with him outside of their conjugal bed. Besides, if Rohyr wereto retaliate by letting it be known that it was Imcael who hadbrokered the marriage andthat Tyrde had willfully entered into it fully aware that Rohyrsassent had been coerced out of him, the loss of face to Tyrdesfamily and his sire in particular would be enormous. Not to mentionthe general outrage were he to contract a Cattanian marriage afterusing so flimsy an excuse to force a divorce.Stilland all, he had achieved his desire. His rival was gone. Rohyrsattention would no longer be divided. And Rohyr dared not divorceTyrde either since that would lead back to the original problem of aCattanian alliance.Yes,his relationship with Rohyr was badly fractured. But with Lassen outof the way, Tyrde was confident he could woo his spouse and win hisesteem and trust if not his affection. As far as Tyrde was concerned,with his path to more power nicely cleared of obstacles, love was oflittle consequence.** * *Rohyrperused the