Captain Vorpatril's Alliance by Lois McMaster Bujold Page A

the other man, and conceded, “Him, maybe not so much.”
    Tej rubbed her mouth. Ivan Xav had a point. “Is he trustworthy?” she asked him straight out.
    “No, he’s a damned weasel.” Vorpatril hesitated. “But he won’t betray Barrayar. If what you are poses no threat to the Imperium, you have nothing to fear from him. Probably.”
    Byerly cast Vorpatril a look of exasperated disbelief. “Whose side are you on?”
    “You’ve been known to make mistakes. I distinctly recall pulling your, and your Countly cousin’s, feet out of the fire on one of ’em, spectacularly. But do I get respect? Do I get gratitude? Do I get—”
    Byerly, hunching, said, “You got another job.”
    For some reason, this settled him. “Huh.”
    Byerly massaged his neck, looked up, and met Tej’s gaze with a mild smile belied by his intent eyes. “Very well. I will now deal for your name.” He inhaled. “I am an Imperial Security surveillance operative. My specialty is normally the high Vor social milieu centering around Vorbarr Sultana. I am out of my usual venue because the people I am following left there and came here in pursuit of their affairs, which are certainly criminal and potentially treasonous.”
    Tej shook her head. “The ones who are after us are not Barrayarans.”
    “I know. Yours are the people my people are dealing with. Locating you for them was to be a favor, to sweeten a pot presently in process of going sour.”
    Vorpatril’s face scrunched. “Hey. Was finding Tej and Rish one of the little ways you made yourself useful, too?”
    Byerly shrugged.
    “For God’s sake, By! What if those goons had snatched ’em?”
    “I thought the experiment might yield much useful information, whatever way it fell out,” said Byerly, sounding pressed. “In no case would their captors have been allowed to carry them out of the Imperium. But if Tej and Rish can tell me even more about their, ah, foes, then this affair has fallen out better than I might have expected. Although there are other consequences…well.” Very reluctantly, he added, “Thank you, Ivan.”
    “It’s not just my life at risk,” said Tej slowly. “Rish’s is, too.”
    Byerly said, “I am working with two associates. If I—what is that Jacksonian phrase?— get smoked , it is probable that they will be, too. So you see, I am not without my further responsibilities, either.”
    It occurred to Tej that this exchange had just given the Barrayaran agent a very good professional reason to keep her and Rish as far away as possible from kidnappers and hostile interrogators, regardless of his other agendas. Her bluff had won them a very real prize. Or else he’d want them safely dead, but she did not sense the excited tang of such a hidden lethal intent upon him. Tej glanced at Rish, who had been following this with all her attention—and superior senses. Is he telling the truth? Rish returned a cautious nod. Yes, go ahead . With maybe a So far implied.
    Yes. This man’s coin is information. Not…coin . Rish would appreciate the aesthetic clarity, to be sure.
    Tej swallowed. “Very well.” Her throat felt very tight and thick, as if it were closing off in some deathly allergic reaction. “My full name is Akuti Tejaswini Jyoti ghem Estif Arqua. My parents are—were—Shiv and Udine ghem Estif Arqua. Baron and Baronne Cordonah.”
    She looked up, to gauge the effect of this news. Byerly had gone expressionless again, as if not merely processing, but locked up. Vorpatril’s face had fallen into a fixed smile. She had once owned a favorite fur and fabric bear, very huggable, with eyes that glassy, but she felt no urge to hug the Barrayaran now.
         

Chapter Five
    Ivan’s mind had gone so blank, the first thought that arose in it sped out of his mouth wholly without impediment. “How did all that name get stuck on one girl?” And how the devil did she spell it?
    Tej—Ivan could see why the nickname, now—tossed her clouds of curls in