me.'
'I am sorry, Captain,' Lytton said, placing the medallion back onto the desk top and pushing it across the table towards Winterburne, 'you have lost me. I fear that you may have had a wasted journey.'
'Arch Chancellor,' Winterburne said, 'may I see the records of all the guild members for the Province of Westmoreland?'
The Arch Chancellor laughed. 'There are no such records, Captain.' He shook his head, still chuckling at the question.
'And when I've seen those, I want to see their client lists, too.'
Lytton still smiled. 'Even if there were such things as members lists, then I would not be able to show them to you. There would need to be a consideration of member confidentiality, you understand. And as for client records,' Lytton said, 'we do not require of our members that they share with us the names of their patrons, surely you must appreciate that?'
Winterburne stood and walked over to one of the portraits on the wall. He made a point of looking around the gilt frame, before passing on to inspect the fine wallpaper, up around the rich moulded cornices, and then down to his feet which stood firmly on a beautiful woven woollen rug.
'A splendid building you have here, Arch Chancellor,' he said. 'It has been very well looked after.'
The Arch Chancellor watched Winterburne intently but said nothing.
'Forgive me for asking,' Winterburne looked over at Lytton, 'but would I be right to assume that you are fully paid up with your taxes to the Empire's coffers?'
'Naturally.'
'And would I be correct in thinking that the main income for the guild is through subscription from its members?'
'Yes, you would.'
'And all the members are fully paid up to date, I suppose?' If Winterburne had played his move correctly then he should have out manoeuvred the man.
'Yes, of course, Captain,' Lytton replied, 'but I don't understand the relevance of these questions.'
'If there are no records, Arch Chancellor,' Winterburne smirked, 'then how do you know that all of your members are up to date? ' He walked back to his chair and sat.
Lytton remained silent.
'Arch Chancellor,' Winterburne said, 'I know what this object is. What I would like to know is why this young girl even came close to one.'
'Close to one?'
'It was found near her body.' Winterburne paused. 'What I would like to know is whether you think she may have been the subject of a contract.'
'A contract?' Lytton raised his eyebrows. 'Now that would be an interesting scenario. Whether that is true or not remains somewhat of a mystery, Captain. It is also a mystery that unfortunately I am unable to explain.'
'A pity,' Winterburne said. 'I had hoped that you might have some suggestions.' He watched the man, but there was still no trace of any emotion. 'Arch Chancellor,' he said, 'with regards to subscriptions, I am interested. Can you tell me what might happen if an assassin tried to operate in the city, but without having the necessary membership of the guild?'
'That would not be permissible.' Lytton stared back at Winterburne. 'The members would, of course, expect us to take some form of punitive action.'
'Such as?'
'We would most likely have to terminate his or her membership of the profession.'
Winterburne raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'Terminate?'
'Yes,' Lytton said. 'In either the metaphorical or the literal sense, depending on the nature of the transgression.'
'I'm sorry?' Winterburne was shocked. 'I wonder if I heard you correctly. Are you actually suggesting that you would have them killed?'
Lytton chuckled. 'Oh, Captain,' he said, clearly amused. 'You make it sound so...dramatic. Let's just say that we would prefer to make an official statement. I really do think that you may have the wrong idea of the purpose of our Guild.'
'Oh, really?' Winterburne felt his view was somewhat the exact opposite to that.
'Captain, we only exist to provide some some guidance and professionalism in what we do. No more.'
Winterburne smiled at the Arch Chancellor. The man obviously completely believed what he was saying and had been totally convinced by all his own arguments, no matter how repugnant they would be to normal people. He shook his head as he considered the arrogance of the man. 'Guidance and professionalism?' he said. 'For murderers?'
'I do understand your response,' Lytton replied. 'Many people feel the same, but it is after all, just a service.' He smiled at Winterburne. It was a look that was devoid of warmth or compassion. 'And, whether you like it or not, it is one which is in more demand than most would care to acknowledge. You would be surprised at the clientèle this licensed Guild has serviced over the centuries. If people were not prepared to pay for said service, then there would be no need for us to exist. As it is, they are, and as a consequence we are here to provide some structure and organisation. To level the field, as it were.'
Winterburne tapped his fingers on the arm of the chair. 'It's just a simple business transaction to you, isn't it?'
Lytton gestured with his hands, and nodded. 'Call it what you may, Captain. It is what it is.'
Winterburne suddenly felt claustrophobic and just wanted to get this done so that he could get out of the office. His eyes wandered to the chain around the man's neck.
'Arch Chancellor,' he said. 'I couldn't help noticing that you are wearing a chain of office.' If appearances were correct it had the look of gold and the centrepiece, which he could see even from this distance, bore the same image of the Angel, was much larger than the exhibit on the desk. 'It must be valuable, mustn't it?'
'I imagine so,' Lytton replied. 'Priceless, I would have thought. A privilege of authority, I'm afraid, but who am I to argue,' he glanced down at the chain. 'It comes with the job, as it were, I have never given the matter much thought.'
Winterburne found himself disliking the man more and more as the meeting went on. His feelings had reached a level that he found increasingly difficult to hide.
'You know,' Lytton said, 'I really am not your enemy, Captain. I too value structure and rules and the following of them. If, as I suspect you think from your questions, there is a rogue player out there, then it is in the interest of the guild, as well as the people of this city, that he or she is stopped. I will therefore share this with you. For the girl's sake.'
Winterburne leaned forward in his chair.
'There are four versions of these medallions,' Lytton said. 'Iron for Guild Acolytes, Bronze for Ordinary Members, Silver for Senior Members, and finally my Gold. The Gold is unique, and you are quite right, it is quite valuable.'
Winterburne pointed at the medallion on the table. 'So this one belonged to an Ordinary Member.'
The Arch Chancellor nodded in confirmation. 'It is mostly only usual for Ordinary Members to take commissions to be honest, Captain. Silvers very rarely, as it were, get their hands dirty. Sometimes a particularly capable Acolyte may be encouraged to receive an instruction, for the experience, of course, but that is not common.'
'The precious metals I can understand,' Winterburne said, 'but why iron?'
The Arch Chancellor smirked. 'To be honest, Captain, it is purely a matter of economics.' He paused. 'We lose a lot of Acolytes, perhaps six or seven in ten, in the training, and iron is relatively inexpensive these days.'
'You lose them? How so?'
'Some will fail to pass one of the trials, others, well, end their apprenticeships in more dramatic fashion.'
'You mean they die?'
Lytton shrugged. 'They know the dangers when they sign up, Captain, and let's face it, you cannot say that this is a profession without significant risk.' He smiled.
Winterburne was still being surprised by the clinical nature of the man, but when all was considered he supposed that it would have been part of the training; the removal of all emotion from the transaction would be most logical. 'Please,' he said, 'may I inspect your chain of office?' He approached the desk.
'Of course,' Lytton said. He looked down slowly
lifted the chain over his head, offering it to Winterburne.
Winterburne noticed that except for the size and type of metal it seemed to be identical to the bronze version also lying before him. Winterburne noted that the script was also the same. ' ''Vengeance Restores Balance'',' he said.
Lytton seemed surprised. 'Very good, Captain. I am impressed.' He leaned back in his chair, a smile on his face. 'I did not expect your knowledge of our profession to extend so far.'
'No, Arch Chancellor, I don't expect you did.' Winterburne returned the chain of office to the Arch Chancellor and he placed it carefully over his head. 'I must admit,' he said, 'that I have grave concerns and suspicions about the activities of this Guild, and, if I had my way, I would have it closed.'
'Thankfully,' Lytton replied, 'only the Emperor has that power. He takes a more...pragmatic view.'
'As it is, I am inclined to have the premises searched for any clues as to the owner of this pendant.'
The Arch Chancellor stood. 'May I remind you Captain,' he said, with a tone that was cold and defensive, 'that under Imperial law only the Emperor can command that a private guild building be searched. And, as far as I can tell from where I am standing, you do not carry a document to that effect.'
'No, I do not, Arch Chancellor.'
'In which case I must respectfully decline any such request.' Lytton smiled.
'Then, I have no choice but to accept the decision. For now.' Winterburne knew that his hands had been tied. 'But as far as I am concerned,' he said, 'the Emperor's decree is something that I may yet decide to obtain at some point in the future.'
14
The Twenty-Fifth Day of New Year,
Imperial Year 2332
'I don't see why I have to go back to see him,' Luke Vawdrey said, trying to dig his heels into the cracks between the stones of the street. 'He said he would come when he wanted me.'
Alyssa Vawdrey held on tightly to her son's hand as she dragged him across West Street. 'You will do as you're told, even if it's the last thing you ever do.'
The people around and about watched the pair with suspicion as Alyssa pulled Luke towards the Watch House. She had done her best to make sure that Luke was presentable and had combed him to within an inch of his life. The clothes he wore, whilst torn in places, had been washed, and at least she could say that she had made him as presentable as possible in their circumstances.
Across the road stood the Headquarters and she could feel Luke tensing as they approached. The last thing Alyssa wanted was for him to break free, turn-tail and run headlong back into the alleyways. If that happened, she knew that she would never be able to find him and then, knowing her son, he might not come home for days.
'But I don't want to go,' he said.
'I don't care,' Alyssa replied. 'There's no use in arguing with me. It's not something to be proud of, and if the truth is told, I am thoroughly ashamed of you. I never thought I would see the day when my own offspring was branded a common criminal.'
Luke was still trying to hang back as they neared the covered walkway that formed the porch of the Headquarters. He tried to use his weight against her, but Alyssa was stronger than she looked.
'But he already told me to go,' Luke said. 'I don't need to say thank you to him.'
'You will go in there,' Alyssa gritted her teeth, preparing for one last effort, 'and you will thank the man. Properly.' She pulled him onward but Luke still fought against her. Despite his best efforts Alyssa was slowly winning the battle. 'And,' she added, 'you will look grateful that he didn't have you thrown in prison for the rest of your life.'
Alyssa knocked on the front doors of the Headquarters, stooping to peer through the dirty panes of glass. There were no signs of movement in the hallway beyond so she pushed the door ajar. It opened easily enough, but she found only silence on the other side. The corridor beyond looked dark and dingy and she was reminded of a well used, if not
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