"Sir." The ape managed not to shift on his feet, but, Urko noticed, only barely. "The Simian Dawn was really harsh about how we handled the last protest... called it 'police brutality' and also some other things..."

"So?" Urko had read that editorial, and hadn't been impressed. Just another young Orangutan with delusions of turning the City into a flower garden by the power of his quill.

Now the guard did shift on his feet. "The Dawn has a really large readership. If they can sway public opinion against us—"

Urko scratched his neck. "I don't remember hiring you as my political advisor, Rakon. I do remember that you temporarily fill in for Nelva while he's still on a mission for me."

The sun had come up only an atseht ago, but the air was already shimmering with heat, and Urko's office was soaking it up and turning the room into an oven — mostly because Urko hadn't closed the shades when he had called Rakon to give him his marching orders for today's rally: yet another student protest for the liberation of that hag Zibaya. He'd done so on purpose: people didn't tend to linger in overheated offices.

But Rakon's concerns about public opinion had proved pretty heat-resistant so far. "Sir, I'm only concerned for our continuing ability to protect the peace," he protested. "If the citizens turn against us, we won't stand a chance. And... and some people are worried they might face family members among the protesters—"

That was something to take care of immediately. "Names?" Urko snapped.

Rakon held up his hands. "It's just hypothetical, Sir, if the papers keep agitating against us!"

Urko resisted the urge to drum his fingers on the table. "Rakon, this is way above your pay grade. Leave the scribblers to me, take your orders, and act on them. No creative interpretations, they tell you exactly how I want this to be handled. Are we clear on that?"

Rakon snapped to attention. "Yessir!"

Just as his — temporal — second-in-command reached for the scroll on Urko's desk, the door opened again, and a guard poked his head in. "Sir, there's a visitor for you. She says she brings news about someone called Aboro."

He had been looking forward to closing the shades and having a glass of cold cider. Whoever that visitor was would be wise to make their case quickly. Urko waved his dismissal to Rakon, and growled, "Let her in."

Aboro. Last Urko had heard of him, the fool had gotten himself killed, and his Kobavasa had disbanded. District Chief Voltis was more securely in power again — the work of almost two years destroyed. If Urko hadn't been such a patient ape, he'd have howled in frustration; but he knew that securing his own position in the southern district had priority.

He'd deal with Voltis himself. Eventually.

The Chimp following the guard was the most feral thing Urko had seen in a long time, with a wild glint in her eyes that made him tense in response. She wore a green-and-gray-flecked tunic and trousers, and the smell of the forest clung to her fur.

Her voice was raspy and deep, as if she hadn't used it for a long time. "General Urko. I am honored to meet you."

"Of course." The heat was getting unbearable. "But I'm quite busy, and don't have time for courtesy visits."

"I understand completely." The woman sat down without waiting for his permission, and Urko's irritation grew another fraction. "I, too, don't have time for idle talk. My name is Aelia. I lived with Aboro — perhaps he had mentioned me to you."

Perhaps he had, but Urko didn't bother memorizing his men's hussies. In this case, however, Aboro's love life had caused him to make a number of disastrous strategic decisions, so Aelia had now earned herself a place in Urko's memory. It wasn't a privilege many people were comfortable with.

"He might have," he said noncommittally. "He's dead, I heard. My condolences."

Aelia leaned forward in her seat. The glint in her eyes had intensified. "He was murdered," she hissed. "He was murdered, his work destroyed, his house defamed!"

"And you were exiled," Urko concluded. "How unfortunate for you."

She drew a sharp breath. "Yes, how unfortunate. I want the murderer brought to justice."

Urko raised his brows. "Do you expect me to ride up north and arrest someone?"

Aelia frowned. "No, of course not. But I need your help, General—"

"Well, I'm afraid you're on your own," Urko said curtly. He reached for a scroll and unrolled it demonstratively. "As I said, I'm a busy ape, and I've got no jurisdiction up north."

From the corner of his eye, he saw her rise from her seat. "I see," she said stiffly. "Well, if your wife had been murdered by some roving veterinarian, I'm sure you'd think differently. But I will get my revenge on Kova, with or without your help—"

Kova. A traveling doctor.

Urko rustled with the scroll, pretending to read it. "A veterinarian, you say? How did a cow doctor end up dueling the prefect?"

"He was looking for his human, or something." She waved the question away. "What does it matter? But he has to pay for what he's done!"

"Hm." Urko casually dropped the scroll on the desk. "So why didn't you shoot him?" he said, careful to keep his tone mild. "You're a far way from home for someone who wants to kill her lover's murderer."

She stared at him for a long moment, long enough that Urko began to suspect she wasn't completely right in the head. Grief could do that to people.

Or rage.

"I don't want to kill him," she said at last. "The dead don't suffer. That's for the living."

Urko narrowed his eyes at that. "Then what do you want to do with him?"

Aelia stood very still; a bushcat ready to pounce. "I want him to suffer like I'm suffering. I want him to lose the one he loves the most in all the world, like I did. And I want to be the one to take her from him."

Ah, yes. After he had stolen a book from Zaius' secret collection of blasphemous human artifacts, Galen had added insult to injury by eloping with Councillor Zabek's little girl. Old Zabek had later made a deal with Zaius that let Zana off the hook for consorting with the traitor (not to mention stealing the as-tro-nauts and thus preventing their culling), but she had still refused to come back home to Daddy. And now she was in the crosshairs of that crazy Chimpanzee, again because of her consorting with the traitor. Served her right.

Urko nodded slowly. "I admire your... creativity. And I'm willing to help you, under one condition."

Aelia grabbed the edge of his desk, hard enough to whiten her knuckles. "Anything you want, General."

And now he allowed a small smile to show. "Sit down, Aelia. We have a lot to discuss."