'Actually no, I was wondering about Mistress Florell.

'Edeard has met her, Macsen said with a chortle.

'We all did, while we were on duty, Edeard countered.

'She hit him with her umbrella, Kanseen added dryly.

Dybal and Bijulee laughed at that.

'The old witch tried to get Edeard thrown out of the constables, Salrana said, hot-cheeked. 'At the ceremony today, she told the Mayor to take his epaulettes back.

'How typical, Dybal said. 'Don't worry Edeard; she has no real power, not any more. She's a figurehead for the noble families, that's all. They like to make out she's a much loved grandmother to the whole city. Total bollocks, of course. She was a scheming little bitch when she was younger. Which admittedly is history to all of us now. But she had three husbands before her fiftieth birthday, all first sons of District Masters, which is just about unheard of even today. She gave each of them two sons — and some say there was witchery in that. And by strange coincidence, all three second children went on to marry noble daughters in families where the male lineage had faltered in favour of the girls. By the next generation she'd spread her brood through eleven District Master families. With that kind of power bloc in the Upper Council, she controlled the vote for decades. Our last so-called Golden Age; which saw the rise of the militia at the expense of all other arms of government. You see, she believes there's an actual physical difference between the nobility and those without their obscene wealth. In other words, her offspring are born to rule and bring order to the uncivilized masses such as thee and me. Needless to say, she doesn't believe that we should have anything to do with the city's government. That sort of thing is best left to those whom destiny has blessed with good blood.

'No wonder she didn't like you, Edeard, Macsen grinned. 'You're not even city born. She could probably smell the countryside on you.

'Not everyone in the Upper Council believes in that, do they? Edeard asked, thinking of Finitan. A nephew, he'd said.

'Hopefully not, There are still a few decent noblemen around today. And of course, District Masters' seats on the Upper Council are checked by the Guild Masters. And the Lower Council itself is still directly elected, not that you'd know it in some districts. That makes for a lot of genuine debate in the Grand Council. Rah knew what he was doing when he crafted our constitution.

'But your songs are still popular.

'They are. Dissatisfaction with those who rule is always attractive to the majority; it's an obsession which humans brought with them on the ships which fell to Querencia. As a species we find it as easy as breathing. And it's never helped by old men like me who reminisce on how things were always better in our lost youth.

'You're a rabble-rouser, you mean, Bijulee said fondly as she ran her hand through his ragged braids of hair.

'And proud of it, Dybal raised his glass again. 'To making our masters lives a misery.

The whole table drank to that.

'So what's the story with you and Salrana? Kanseen asked. It was late at night. The celebratory lunch had lasted all afternoon. Edeard hadn't wanted it to end. He was perfectly relaxed, thanks to that lovely wine with bubbles, the company of friends, eating fine food, making happy intelligent conversation. No, today was a day which, if the Lady were kind, should last and last.

But as was the way of all things, they finished the final bottle of wine, ate the last morsel of cheese and bid each other farewell. Dybal winced theatrically when the bill arrived. The sun had set outside, leaving the city's own cold orange lighting to bathe the streets, along with the faint haze of the nebulas overhead. Edeard announced he would walk Salrana back to Millical House in the Lillylight district. As it was directly between Abad and Jeavons, Kanseen offered to walk with them.

The orphanage house was a nice one, close to the Victoria Canal, with its own garden and play yard. Yet he couldn't help noticing, it was the smallest building on the street. Salrana had given him a light peck on the cheek before scooting off through the imposing doors which filled the entrance arch.

Edeard and Kanseen carried on together, using a bridge over Castoff Canal to put them in Drupe district, where the palaces matched anything along the Great Major Canal. It was quiet on those district's narrow streets and broad squares. Bodyguards stood imposingly outside the iron gates of the palaces. Edeard tried not to stare as they passed the alert figures in dark uniforms; he was sure that staying a constable was better than such monotonous duty night after night. That disapproval must have escaped his shielding.

'That's not what I'll be doing, Kanseen said quietly as their footfalls echoed around them in a narrow street high enough to block out all the night sky except for the slim violet thread of Buluku's meandering tail. 'None of them are ex-constables. Estate workers and farm boys who've come to the city in search of a better life. They only last a couple of years before they make their way back home. That or migrate into Sampalok.

'Could have been me, then, Edeard said.

'Somehow I doubt that'

They walked over the third bridge across the Marble Canal, back into the familiar territory of Jeavons. Gondolas slid past quietly underneath them, a small white lantern glowing on the front of each. Their passengers snuggled up under the canopy, enjoying the romance of the ride. By now Edeard could recognize the wind rising from the sea, the moisture it carried. Clouds were scudding overhead, starting to veil the nebulas. It would rain tonight. In another hour, he decided as he smelt the air.

The constables' tenement was two streets away from the Jeavons station, a big ugly building from the outside, but wrapped around a central oval courtyard boasting a pool of warmish water large enough to swim in and overlooked by four levels of walkways. It contained the maisonettes reserved for the constables. Those with families had taken over one end, with the bachelors at the other. Not that it was a fixed divide. Edeard along with the rest of the squad had moved in a couple of days ago. Each morning he'd been woken by children shouting outside his door as they raced along the walkway, playing some exciting game of chase.

Now the children were long in bed as he and Kanseen walked up a set of awkward rounded stairs to the third level where they both had maisonettes.

'No real story, he told her. 'You know Salrana and I travelled here together. I'm sort of like her elder brother.

'She's in love with you.

'What?

'I was watching her this afternoon. It's obvious to anyone with half a brain. Even Macsen fathomed that out. Didn't you notice he'd stopped trying to flirt with her by the time the fish course arrived? There's no point. She's only interested in you.

'She's smart enough to realize how shallow he is. That's all. If they don't fall at his feet in the first five minutes, he moves on. You know what he's like.

'I never thought I'd see you in denial'

'It's not denial. You asked a question and I answered it.

They stopped at the top of the stairs, and looked out over the extensive courtyard. The rim of the pool was a thin intense line of pale-orange. It made the water look very inviting. Edeard knew a lot of the constables went for a night-time dip. His stomach was too heavy from a whole afternoon bingeing, he decided reluctantly.

'Actually, you didn't answer, Kanseen said. 'All you admitted to was knowing her, which doesn't shed any light on your relationship at all.

'Lady save me, you really did take in all of Master Solarin's lectures, didn't you?

'My grades were almost as high as yours, yes. So on that long trip through the mountains and across swamps filled with monsters, did you sleep with her?