A column of a half-dozen mounted Garda, some fresh-faced youths and other scarred veterans, makes procession from the eastern gates come first light of dawn. They tow behind them a man in shackles, half-dragged in their dusty wake. Some of the townsfolk mark the man's name as Sergei Anton Vadu, recently disgraced member of Burgomaster Svari Ionelus's militia. They ride hard along the Svalich road, and are not seen again come Noapte. When they finally return, Vadu is not in their company. The condemned man is never seen again.