Memory of Morning (11 page)

"Of course," I answered, not taking the time to consider my words for once.

"Your father profits by the development and production of honeyherb, does he not? You personally profit by honeyherb, do you not?"

"My father is a professor of botany at the College of Kallak, the school dedicated to the goddess of nature, at the University of Avan. His research has been useful in developing the latest and most powerful formula for honeyherb. The combination of herbs with honey as an aid to healing has been used for generations, Admiral. Does my father profit from the formula he has developed? Yes. He receives a fifth of the profits of the sale of his formulation of honeyherb. The other four-fifths of the profits go to the College of Kallak, funding continued medical research and a scholarship program. I do not see how my use of honeyherb - from two cases of the drug my father donated for use on the ship - has any relevance, sir."

I didn't glance up at my father, but I could feel him seething from here. Mother and Bell were likely holding him by the arms to keep him from jumping up and shouting angrily at the admiral. Rassi was probably trying to keep Tennit from exploding as well. My face burned and my fingers were digging into the edges of the lectern. I was very close to being the family member who gave in to the urge to shout at the admiral.

"Are you familiar with the word profiteering?" North asked. "The Navy takes a dim view of tradespeople who engage in the practice."

There was a muffled sound from overhead.

North probably thought calling my father a tradesman was an insult. Or, even worse, he considered anyone below the noble ranks only useful for providing services to his kind. And what is dishonorable about providing services, I ask you?

"I do not understand, sir. How can donating medicine be considered profiteering?" And what does anything you say have to do with a certificate exam? I looked hard at Samel Swan, and each of the other examiners in turn, hoping someone would bring this fiasco under control, bring my world back in to focus.

It was Admiral Glass who slapped his hand onto the table. "Enough. I'm exhausted, as is the young lady, I am sure. This gathering has gone on quite long enough."

The old man rose creakily to his feet. The others followed slowly after him. The tension in the room began to relax.

"Thank you, Dr. Cliff," he said with a nod to me. "You are dismissed."

I didn't wait for anyone to say another word. I didn't run, but I would not say I moved at a dignified pace to get out of the room.

Chapter Fourteen

The spectators came rumbling down from the gallery as I passed the stairway. I wanted to reach the outside, to breathe open air away from the threat and hypocrisy choking me from the examination room. I lifted my skirts to run for the main door, but a hand landed on my shoulder before I could take another step. I whirled, expecting to face Dr. Heron.

What would we do without the training of polite society? I wanted to throw myself into Captain Copper's arms. Instead, I managed a shaky curtsy. "Thank you for coming, Captain." My voice was barely above a strained whisper, but I got the words out. "I did not realize you were in the gallery."

I automatically began to introduce my family to my captain, but my father said, "Excuse us, sir, but I need to speak privately with my daughter just now."

Captain Copper bowed slightly. "Of course, sir." He glanced briefly back at me. "Let us watch each other's backs."

"Always, captain," I answered.

The wall of Cliffs surrounding me parted to let the captain through. My gaze followed him to the building entrance and watched him pause a moment to salute a superior officer. Admiral North was standing by the exit.

Well, I wasn't going out that way.

I gestured toward a hallway leading to a side door.

"What did Captain Copper mean?" Father asked as he and I walked ahead of the others. "About watching each other's backs?"

"It is only a saying we use on board the
Moonrunner.
"

"Um." He took my hand.

Nothing else was said until we were outside. "I heard you up in the gallery," I said as we walked away from the medical buildings.

"That wasn't me," he answered. "Your Dr. Heron is quite a passionate fellow. He might have made quite a scene if your Captain Copper hadn't been rather firm with him."

I'd been trying to break the tension, but it was Father who made me smile.

We came to the wide, curving street that led from the naval section of the port town into the civilian area. Mother moved up to walk beside me. Behind us, a buzz of indignant conversation finally rose among the others.

"We have a celebratory feast laid on at that inn across the way," Mother said, pointing out a three-story building covered in trellises full of climbing roses. The plants were green, but no blossoms were showing yet.

"It looks like a very nice place," I said. I wanted very much to get inside, to get away from the necessity of public normality.

"Why don't you and the others go inside, my dear? I'd like some time alone with my youngest child," Father said. Mother frowned, but nodded at Father's firm look.

She gathered up the others and led them toward the inn. Father and I continued on until we found a small, fenced park in the center of a residential square. We settled onto a bench, away from any possible listening ears. That we both felt the need for some security without even a glance or a word was sad, and disheartening.

I turned to him, and spoke softly. "What is going on? Is this an attack on the family? Does Uncle Eadum know? Has he offended someone important who is now digging to find some scandal to bring the whole family down?"

"We will have a long discussion about all this when the entire family is together in Loudon. In private. With all of our resources in place."

"Thank goodness."

Of course I thought of the family first, since both my parents had been attacked through me. But I also recalled Captain Copper's warning. And Miss Apple and Dr. Heron's explanation of these Gracers hunting out sedition.

Father stroked my hair. "I do not know why you are being singled out for persecution, but you did do well when you were questioned. I have no fear that you will be awarded your surgical certificate."

"May the All agree with you," I said, and sighed. "But I should not feel sorry for myself. I am so angry I could spit, though."

Whether or not I was granted the certificate, whether or not I signed on for ship duty, I still owed the Navy reserve duty for the next five years.

"Well, no spitting in front of me," he said.

"Keep a calm face before the world, then go have a good scream out in the woods," I quoted grandmother Cliff's advice.

Father nodded, then he said, "I have a secret to share with you. You alone. You deserve to know why the Cliffs are under such scrutiny. Your Uncle Eadum has been informed that his name has been submitted to the heraldry lists and forwarded to the Rights and Honors committee."

"He's to become Esquire Cliff?"

This was the next step in the plan for the family we had been working on for so many generations, but I wasn't instantly delighted at the news. My reaction was far more complicated and needed to be thought through. I should want this almost-a-noble connection, but...

A great many cynical comments came to mind. The Cliffs had worked long and hard to obtain wealth and property without any help from the nobility. In fact, the nobility tried to make it ever harder to own the land that was so necessary to join their ranks. We were wealthier than many noble families. The growing wealth of the gentry certainly did not please the nobles that noticed such things - although a growing number of the minor nobility were making marriage alliances with our kind without putting up too much fuss over lowering their standards. Service to the Empire? Well, many Cliffs entered the military. We were proud to defend Ang. Service? We supported a Cliff colony far away in the New Islands. The Cliffs financed schools and charity homes, taught and healed in those places, as well. We set up scholarships. We certainly served the people of the Ang Empire. But were these the reasons Uncle Eadum was suddenly being considered for a knighthood, from which the entire Cliff corporate family would benefit?

Or was this one of the sops to the gentry the nobles gave out occasionally? The promise of one day achieving nobility was still so important in our hearts and minds, even when we tried to believe otherwise. We cherished the belief that someday we would be worthy to be recognized by those above us, that those above us would open the golden doors that separated their greatness from the common kind and we -
We!
- would be invited inside their beautiful garden. And once inside we would defend the exclusive rights and privileges of our new class as fiercely as any other noble.

After this momentary twitch of cynicism, a thought occurred to me. "Service to the Empire - do they mean the vaccine?"

"That is certainly a consideration," he said.

It would certainly be advantageous for the noble class to add a family whose blood held no taint of the plague to their ranks. All right, I couldn't quite stop my current cynical mood. Admirals Glass and North had frightened and angered me. I couldn't think anything nice about my betters at the moment.

"Please do not mention any of this to anyone," Father said. "But do keep it in mind should you have to face more questioning."

"I recall the ones you used to feed in the back garden. Well, neither my generation nor yours will have to decide on a name change. Let us hope that your children choose something appropriate when the time comes. Are you calm enough to join the others without saying anything inappropriate now?"

I nodded. "I will be all smiles and diplomatic when we return to the family, and beyond," I promised. "But I do worry about Dr. Heron."

"I think your mother quite capable of taking that young man in hand." He stood and gave me his hand. "I fact, I believe she may have placed him high in the running to become a son-in-law." He raised an eyebrow in question.

"He has asked. I am thinking about it," was all I would say on the subject.

We went back to the reserved public room at the inn. We dined on sweets, biscuits, and tea, and shared a toast of honey wine. No one mentioned the irony of anything to do with honey. Even Star got to lick up a few drops of spilled wine. Everyone assured me that I would be an official surgeon within the next day. I was ordered to send word as soon as I knew anything.

After the toast, I told people that I needed to look in on my patient from this morning, and the party broke up. The Cliff carriage was drawn up to the inn door and there were a few minutes of settling people into the coach and handing down a case of my things that Belladem had chosen for me. Most of my wardrobe was headed for Loudon, even though I was not. I was left with my bag at my feet, my dog and Dr. Heron beside me as I waved my family on their way to the delights of the capital. I allowed Dr. Heron to carry my bag to the contractor's dormitory where I bespoke a room for myself. I finally was able to send Dr. Heron off to his own duties.

I changed from my blue daydress into the simple blue and brown plaid I'd made myself, covered my hair with a plain cotton coif, and went to the War Casualties Home to look in on the amputee.

Once I was done with my patient, I took myself off to a street beyond the docks I had heard crewmen discuss when talking about the joys of shore leave on board the
Moonrunner.

Chapter Fifteen

I'd brought my knitting bag with me. I took out the stocking I was working on after I found a seat on a low wall in sight of the tavern entrance. I may be a terrible seamstress, but I can knit. Ask anyone on board the
Moonrunner
and they will hike up their trousers to show you my handiwork. I refer to the large number of pairs of stockings I produced during my time on the ship.

Knitting was a soothing occupation. I employed this method of calming down while waiting for a familiar figure to approach or leave the building across the way. Entering the tavern myself was scandalously out of the question so I had to employ patience rather than any direct method.