"Tolnedran politics are disgusting," Polgara declared.
"Our Prince Kheldar appears to be well on his way toward becoming the wealthiest man in the world," Belgarath continued.
"Silk?" Durnik looked a bit amazed. "Has he managed to steal that much already?"
"I gather that what he's doing is sort of legitimate this time," Belgarath said. "He and that rascal Yarblek have somehow managed to gain control of the entire Nadrak fur harvest. I wasn't able to get all the details, but the screams of anguish coming from the major commercial houses in Boktor would seem to indicate that our friends are doing rather well."
"I'm pleased to hear that," Durnik said.
"That's probably because you haven't been in the market for a fur cape lately " Belgarath chuckled. "The price has taken quite a jump, I understand." The old man rocked back in his chair. "In Cthol Murgos, your friend Kal Zakath is methodically butchering his way down the east coast. He's added Rak Cthan and Rak Hagga to the list of cities he's captured and depopulated. I'm not too fond of Murgos, but it's just possible that Zakath is going a little too far."
"Kal Zakath?" Polgara asked with one eyebrow slightly raised.
"An affectation." Belgarath shrugged.
"More likely a symptom," she observed. "Angarak rulers always seem to be unstable in one way or another." She turned to look at her father. "Well?"
"Well what?"
"Have you heard anything from Riva? How are Garion and Ce'Nedra doing?"
"I haven't heard a sound -oh, a few official things. 'The Rivan King is pleased to announce the appointment of Earl what's-his-name as Rivan ambassador to the Kingdom of Drasnia.' That sort of thing, but nothing in the least bit personal."
"We are sure he knows how to write, aren't we?" she demanded exasperatedly. "I'm sure that he's not so busy that he hasn't had the time to write at least one letter in the last two years."
"He did," Errand said quietly. He might not have mentioned the letter, but it seemed very important to Polgara.
She looked at him sharply. "What did you say?" she asked.
"Belgarion wrote to you last winter," Errand said. "The letter got lost, though, when the ship his messenger was aboard sank."
"If the ship sank, then how do you-"
"Pol," Belgarath said in a tone that seemed uncharacteristically firm, "why don't you let me handle this?" He turned to Errand. "You say that Garion wrote a letter to Polgara last winter?"
"Yes," Errand said.
"But that the letter was lost when the messenger's ship sank?"
Errand nodded.
"Why didn't he write another one then?"
"He doesn't know that the ship sank."
"But you do?"
Errand nodded again.
"Do you by any chance know what the letter said?"
"Yes."
"Do you suppose you could recite it for us?"
"I guess I could, if you want. Belgarion's going to write another one in a week or so, though."
Belgarath gave him a strange look. "Why don't you tell us what the first one said? That way we won't miss anything."
"All right," Errand agreed. He frowned, concentrating very hard. "He started out by saying, 'Dear Aunt Pol and Durnik.' I think that's sort of nice, don't you?"
"Just recite the letter, Errand," Belgarath said patiently. "Save the comments for later."
"All right." Errand stared thoughtfully into the fire.
"'I'm sorry I haven't written earlier,"' he recited, "'but I've been terribly busy learning how to be a good king. It's easy enough to be King -all you need is to be born into the right family. To be a good king is harder, though. Brand helps me as much as he can, but I still have to make a lot of decisions about things that I don't really understand.
"Ce'Nedra is well -at least I think so. We're hardly talking to each other any more, so it's kind of hard to say for sure. Brand is a bit concerned that we haven't had any children yet, but I don't think he needs to worry. So far as I can tell, we're never going to have any children, and maybe it's just as well. I really think we should have gotten to know each other a little better before we got married. I'm sure that there's some way that we could have called it off. Now it's too late. We'll just have to make the best of it. If we don't see each other too much, we can usually manage to be civil to each other -at least civil enough to keep up appearances.
" 'Barak came by in that big War boat of his last summer, and we had a very good visit. He told me all about-' "
"Just a moment, Errand." Polgara stopped the recitation. "Does he say any more about the trouble he's having with Ce'Nedra?"
"No, ma'am," Errand replied after a moment during which he quickly ran through the rest of the letter in his mind.
"He wrote about Barak's visit and some news he got from King Anheg and a letter from Mandorallen. That's about all. He said that he loves you and misses you very much. That's how he ended it."
Polgara and Belgarath exchanged a very long look. Errand could feel their perplexity, but he was not sure exactly how to set their minds at rest about the matter.
"You're sure that's the way the letter went?" Belgarath asked him.
Errand nodded. "That's what he wrote."
"And you knew what was in the letter as soon as he wrote it?"
Errand hesitated. "I don't know if it was like that, exactly. It doesn't really work that way, you know. You have to sort of think about it, and I didn't really think about it until the subject came up -when Polgara was talking about it just now."
"Does it matter how far away the other person is?" Belgarath asked curiously.
"No," Errand replied, "I don't think so. It just seems to be there when I want it to be."
"No one can do that, father." Polgara said to the old man. "No one has ever been able to do that."
"Apparently the rules have changed," Belgarath said thoughtfully. "I think we'll have to accept it as genuine, don't you?"
She nodded. "He doesn't have any reason to make it up."
"I think you and I are going to have to have some very long talks together, Errand," the old man said.
"Perhaps," Polgara said, "but not just yet." She turned back to the boy. "Could you repeat what Garion said about Ce'Nedra for me?"
Errand nodded. " 'Ce'Nedra is well -at least I think so. We're hardly talking to each other any more, so it's kind of hard to say for sure. Brand is a bit concerned that-' "