Chapter 19: The Price of a Witness

Rafe Denholm stood in the corridor outside the tribunal chamber with his back to the doors.

'I will enforce whatever order the council hands down,' he said to Caspian. 'Including motion 41 at noon tomorrow.'

He said it flatly, the way he said everything.

'I will stand at that door myself and make sure it is obeyed.'

Alex heard the whole thing from three steps away.

So Gideon's enforcer would be at the door when the vote happened. Good to know. Alex filed it the way he filed everything.

'Rafe,' Alex said.

Rafe turned. His face did not change.

'Step off the hall's security post before the hearing.'

A pause. Rafe looked at him the way a man looks at a bill he did not expect.

'Why.'

'Because I want this corridor clear of anyone who might mistake Caspian's presence for authority over me.'

Rafe's jaw worked once.

'You want me gone,' he said, 'so the alpha's dignity is not bruised.'

'Yes,' Alex said.

He let Rafe have the insulting version. It was cleaner than the truth.

The truth was that Rafe Denholm was reliable, and reliability in Gideon's hands was a weapon. Alex wanted it out of the room before noon.

Rafe pulled the corridor access list from the clip at his belt.

He unsigned his own name. He did it slowly, with a pen from his vest, in front of Caspian, so there would be no confusion about who had chosen it.

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