Page 40 of The King of Koraha
“Not if she didn’t have her eyeglasses on,” Shyla said. “She needs them to see close up, so as long as the coins were the right color and weight, she wouldn’t see the details. Blocks of Polvein salt are very heavy before they’re ground down. How long has she been wearing glasses?” she asked Hakana.
“Four or five circuits, I think. But she never liked them and would leave them places. I’ve fetched them for her dozens of times.” She smiled at the memory. “The new King bought her that eyeglass necklace as one of her retirement gifts after she complained about giving up the vault keys. She said the keys have been around her neck for fifty-some circuits and she felt like she was going to float away without the weight.”
“If the coins were fakes, then we need to talk to the Nintri monks,” Rendor said. “Either they’re in on it or someone switched out the chests of coins while in their possession.”
It was hard to imagine either one of those scenarios. Monks wouldn’t steal and they were diligent and wouldn’t allow anyone to swap out the chests on their watch. Unless all the cities were in on it and sent fake coins instead of real ones when they paid their taxes. That seemed very unlikely.
Najib had speculated that the theft had been an inside job. If the coins were fakes, then the insider had provided information but didn’t participate in the theft. So focused on finding the guilty party, she and Rendor hadn’t asked the guards questions about passing along details of how the taxes were collected to the thieves. It even could have been inadvertent.
“Hakana, can you take us to Najib’s office?” she asked.
Rendor gave her a questioning look but didn’t say anything.
“Yes, but I don’t know if he’ll be there.”
They followed Hakana to the advisor’s office. If they spent any more time in the castle, they soon wouldn’t need a guide. The room was empty so Hakana left to search for the man. Shyla explained her thoughts to Rendor while they waited.
“They lost a number of guards and staff while the King was sick,” he said. “The informant could be any of them. Plus all those elite soldiers who left.”
“It’s possible, but I don’t think so.” She tapped her chest. “Something tells me that the informant is still here. I think the thieves would want to know what’s going on and what steps the new King is taking to find the coins.”
“That would be a smart move. Plus there would be less suspicion on the informant if they remained.”
“If who remained?” Najib asked as he entered with Hakana right behind him.
Rendor turned to the page. “Hakana, please get us something to eat.”
Figuring out that Rendor wanted her gone, the young woman frowned before she left.
Once the door closed, Najib asked Shyla, “Haven’t you read her? Hakana is trustworthy.”
“I did when she snuck inside our rooms, but I don’t like to invade people’s privacy. Only when I have a good reason to dig deeper into a person’s thoughts and emotions will I do it.”
“I don’t know how you can resist the temptation,” Najib said. “If it were me, I’d be digging away.” He gestured for them to sit on the cushions around the table. “How can I help you?”
“I wanted to establish the timeline for the old king’s deteriorating health and find out who was aware of his condition.”
“Ah, I see.” He hummed as he gathered his thoughts. “Let me give you some background. As the old king aged, he tended to spend the taxes on more…frivolous things and not the most critical or needed. He sent his elite soldiers on treasure hunting expeditions. Complaints came from the various cities, but he ignored them. He also spent the taxes right away and paid all the soldiers, guards, and staff one large sum. Everyone thought it was wonderful until they failed to ration out their coins over the entire circuit, then they grumbled until the next tax delivery. Everyone knew he was getting old, but when he fell seriously ill, only a few were aware of his true condition.”
“Who were they?” Rendor asked.
“Advisor Yiesha, the king’s physician, the captain of the guard, Qulsary’s Water Princess, and the commander of the elite squads.”
“How soon after he became seriously ill did the taxes arrive?”
“A hundred and fifty sun jumps. The physician took excellent care of him despite the king’s deteriorating state of mind. It was only when no one was paid that the news about his health was told to me, the king-in-training, the officers, and the higher-level staff members. It didn’t take long for everyone else to know.”
“And over the next two circuits, people left, right?” Shyla asked.
“Yes. The elite squads right away, but a few of the others had some sense of loyalty. And again their basic needs were met by the loan from the Water Princess.”
“Do you know where the commander of the squads has gone?” Rendor asked.
“There have been rumors that Commander Xerxes went to Nintri,” Najib said.
Nintri—that city kept coming up. Shyla and Rendor exchanged a look.
“Does Xerxes have friends or family here?” Shyla asked.
