King of The Murgos

out of a scabbard?"
    "What? "
    "Tell the little thief to put away his knife."
    "But—"
    "Don't argue with me, Garion. You have to have Sadi's information about Zandramas, and I can't give it to you."
    "You're not suggesting that we take him along? " Garion was profoundly shocked at the idea.
    "I'm not suggesting anything, Garion. I'm telling you. Sadi goes along. You can't do what you have to do without him. Now tell your grandfather."
    "He's not going to like it."
    "I can face that prospect with enormous fortitude." Then the voice was gone.
    "Grandfather," Garion said in a sick tone.
    "What?" The old man's tone was testy.
    "This isn't my idea, Grandfather, but—" Garion looked at the dreamy-faced eunuch with distaste and then lifted his hands helplessly.
    "You're not serious!" Belgarath exclaimed after a moment.
    "I'm afraid so."
    "Am I missing something?" Sadi asked curiously.
    "Shut up!" Belgarath snapped. Then he turned back to Garion. "Are you absolutely sure?"
    Garion nodded dejectedly.
    "This is sheer idiocy!" The old man turned and glared at Sadi. Then he reached across the table and took the front of the eunuch's iridescent robe in his fist. "Listen to me very carefully, Sadi," he said from between clenched teeth. "You're going with us, but keep your nose out of that flask. Do you understand me?"
    "Of course, Ancient One," the eunuch replied in that same dreamy voice.
    "I don't think you fully grasp what I'm talking about," Belgarath continued in a dreadfully quiet voice. "If I catch you with your brains full of dandelion fluff just once, I'll make you wish that Kheldar had gotten to you with his knife first. Do you follow me?"
    Sadi's eyes grew wide, and his face blanched. "Y—yes, Belgarath," he stammered fearfully.
    "Good. Now start talking. Just exactly what do you know about Zandramas?"

CHAPTER EIGHT
    "It all started last year," Sadi began, still eyeing Belgarath apprehensively. "A Mallorean posing as a jewel merchant came to Sthiss Tor and sought out my chief rival at the palace—a petty schemer named Sariss. It was rather general knowledge that Sariss had long coveted my position, but I hadn't gotten around to having him killed yet." He made a face. "A grave oversight, as it turned out. Anyway, Sariss and the Mallorean negotiated for a bit, and the bargain they struck had nothing to do with gem stones. This so-called jeweler needed something that only someone in a position of authority could provide, so he gave Sariss certain information that Sariss was able to use to discredit me and usurp my position."
    "I just love politics, don't you?" Silk said to no one in particular.
    Sadi grimaced again. "The details of my fall from the queen's favor are tedious," he continued, "and I really don't want to bore you with them. At any rate, Sariss supplanted me as Chief Eunuch, and I barely escaped from the palace with my life. Once Sariss had consolidated his position, he was able to keep his part of the bargain he had reached with his Mallorean friend."
    "And what exactly did the Mallorean want?" Silk asked.
    "This, Prince Kheldar," Sadi said, rising and going to his rumpled cot. He drew a carefully folded parchment from beneath the mattress and handed it to the little man.
    Silk read it quickly and then whistled.
    "Well?" Belgarath said.
    "It's an official document," Silk replied. "At least, it's over the queen's seal. Early last spring, Salmissra dispatched a diplomatic mission to Sendaria."
    "That's fairly routine, Silk."
    "I know, but there are also some secret instructions to the diplomats. She tells them that they will be met at the mouth of the River of the Serpent by a foreigner, and that they are to render this stranger every possible aid. The gist of the whole thing is that these diplomats were to make arrangements to get the foreigner to the port of Halberg on the west coast of Cherek and to have a Nyissan ship standing off the Rivan coast on a certain date about the middle of last summer."
    "Coincidence, perhaps?" Belgarath suggested.
    Silk shook his head and held up the parchment. "It identifies the foreigner by name. The diplomats were supposed to identify their passenger by the name 'Zandramas.'"
    "That explains a few things, doesn't it?" Garion said.
    "May I see that?" Polgara asked.
    Silk handed her the parchment.
    She looked at it briefly and then held it out to Sadi. "Are you positive that this is Salmissra's seal?" she asked him.
    "There's no question about it, Polgara," he replied,