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“It was, and still is, a wonderful opportunity for her. She will be marrying into the ruling caste.”
    “How does she feel about having two husbands?” said Taya. “It’s not her way. She was raised in the artisan caste.”
    “The more fathers, the stronger the heirs,” said Bodhan. “Kana knows this and grieves for the loss of one of the fathers.”
    Taya frowned. She wasn’t getting anywhere with this line of questioning, and she didn’t get the impression Bodhan cared much about either of his daughters. “What were the brothers like? I’ve met Kalbi, but I never had the opportunity to know Hunabi.”
    “Quality men, both of them, but then, they are ruling caste. Kalbi, the elder, is responsible and serious. Hunabi was brave and daring.”
    “Sir, we would like to test your daughter Kana for magical ability,” said Mandir.
    “You cannot possibly think my daughter is your jackal!” said Bodhan.
    Taya blinked, trying not to let her bewilderment show. What was Mandir talking about? There was no test for magical ability. The only way the Coalition could identify new initiates was to watch them perform magic, and if initiates chose not to perform, the magic could not be compelled from them.
    “It’s just a formality,” said Mandir. “Because your daughter has a connection to two of the murder victims, she is naturally a suspect. We need only test her, and once we are assured she has no magic, she won’t be a suspect any longer.”
    “Well,” said Bodhan, looking nervous, “I suppose that makes sense. When do you propose to test her?”
    “Right now,” said Mandir.
    “Very well.” Bodhan rose from the table and led them down a hallway to another room where a young woman sat at a worktable littered with jars and tools and scraps of clay. She was using a small pointed tool to etch designs onto a sculpted figurine. The girl had talent, Taya thought. Perhaps she had made the gazelles in the entryway. Her sculpture, though incomplete, was easy to identify. It was a river dolphin with sleek lines and a frightening array of teeth.
    The girl was neither the jackal nor the witness she’d seen in her vision.
    Mandir picked up Taya’s hand, which startled her until she realized he simply desired her signal. She made a double slash mark on his palm, and he released her.
    “That’s a lovely sculpture,” said Taya. “Your name is Kana?”
    “Yes. Thank you.” Kana’s voice was soft. She seemed a shy, unassuming girl.
    “We’ve come to test you for magical ability,” said Mandir. “Hold out your hand.”
    Kana looked frightened. “I don’t have the Gift.”
    “It’s all right,” said Bodhan. “They just want to eliminate you as a suspect.”
    “Your hand, please,” said Mandir.
    Kana set down the clay-etching tool and held out her hand.
    Mandir took it and positioned it palm down. “Some droplets of water are going to fall on your knuckles. If they fall toward your little finger, then you have nothing to worry about; you’re nonmagical. If they fall toward your thumb, then you have the Gift.”
    Kana nodded, shifting nervously in her seat.
    “Don’t move,” scolded Mandir. “If you move your hand, I shall know you are trying to cheat. But don’t worry. If you’re not the jackal, you have nothing to fear.”
    Again Kana nodded.
    Three water drops materialized from the air and dropped onto Kana’s hand. Taya could see from the angle Mandir was holding Kana’s hand that the drops ought to fall toward her thumb. Kana was trembling; no doubt she could see that too. Yet the drops, defying nature, sat where they were. After several long seconds, the droplets slid down Kana’s hand toward her little finger. Kana sighed in relief.
    Mandir had moved those droplets with magic. Taya was certain of it.
    “Well, we know you’re not the culprit,” said Mandir. “Perhaps you could answer some questions for us?”
     
    ∞
     
    Later, in the privacy of her guesthouse, Taya was finally able to ask