concealing something. Or someone.Rohyrfeigned weariness of searching for his leman and gave the appearanceof having given up altogether. Only those whom he trusted utterly didhe take into his confidence. And if Tyrde harbored resentment of thefrequency of Rohyrs absences, he did not voice it. To do so wouldonly call attention to the lack of rapport between them and feed thespeculations about the state of his fecundity.TheDeiran reproductive cycle spanned the decades from the mid thirtiesto the early eighties. But the peak conceiving period ran from theforties to the sixties. Tyrdes age of four and forty years waswhen most wedded bearers had their firstborns. Yet, more than a yearinto marriage, Tyrde had not conceived.Hecould not attribute it to a dearth of sexual contact with Rohyr forhis spouse did his duty and visited him frequently enough to ensureno one could accuse him of negligence. Tyrde had considered shiftingthe blame onto Rohyr by spreading rumors that he might not be thefertile producer of seed most thought him. But he discarded the ployin the face of his sires indignant objections. Imcael remainedmindful of the Royal Houses reputation and would not countenancethe airing of such a detrimental piece of hearsay for personal gain.Youare Ardis of the land,he wrote Tyrde.It is beneath you to besmirch the Essendri name and for no betterreason than to counter mere gossip. Remember, when you present Rohyrwith his heir, no one will dare demean or gainsay you again.SoTyrde stayed his hand and concentrated instead on promoting thecommon belief that Rohyr left him in charge during his absences fromthe capital. Never mind that the various government heads remained incontrol of their ministries and consulted with Yovan and Keosqe whena problem arose. Or that foreign correspondence meant for Rohyrseyes alone was quietly redirected either to Jareth or Gilmael andthat the Citadel core staff and security officers, while alwayscareful to outwardly obey his orders, discreetly abided Dylensinstructions instead. Whatever the truth of his situation, Tyrde keptup appearances.Theordinary citizenry knew nothing of this. Nor would they haveparticularly cared so long as everything was in working order andlife could proceed with as few hitches as possible. But among thegrowing faction of Tyrdes supporters, such knowledge couldcompromise his bid for power. They would abandon him if he did notsoon show more for their efforts beyond the occasional invitation tocourt or the rare privilege of a private audience with the king.** * *Bylate afternoon, the others arrived. Taking advantage of the fineweather, a rarity during the wet season that came on the tail end ofsummer, Rohyr summoned everyone to an outdoor supper in the longopen-sided hut the Mithanis had erected on one of the bluffsoverlooking the bay. A fair distance from the house, it wascompletely out of earshot of anyone. Rohyr was not about to let hisplans go awry due to an inquisitive servant eavesdropping andstripping away the secrecy that had thus far protected Lassen andtheir unborn child.Pelmorthwas so out of the way, the gossip about the disappearance of thekings leman had yet to reach it. No news of his arrival in anadvanced state of breeding had gotten back to