One of the least opulent rooms in Castle Caladan, Leto’s inner sanctum was a place where a leader would not feel overwhelmed by frivolous gaudiness when pondering the business interests of House Atreides.

The windowless stone walls featured no tapestries; the glowglobes were unadorned. A fire in the hearth gave off a sweet, resinous smell, driving back the dampness of cool salt air.

For hours, he sat at his battered teako desk. An ominous message cylinder lay like a time bomb in front of him. He had already read the report his spies had brought him.

Did the Tleilaxu actually think they could keep their crimes secret? Or were they simply hoping to complete their despicable desecration and be gone from the Senasar War Memorial before Leto could respond? The Prime Magistrate of Beakkal must have known that House Atreides would be deeply offended. Or had the Tleilaxu simply paid such a huge bribe that Beakkal could not refuse?

All the Imperium seemed to believe the recent tragedies had broken him, snuffed out his flame. He looked at the ducal signet ring on his finger. Leto had never expected to assume the mantle of leadership at the age of fifteen. Now, after twenty-one years, he felt as if he had worn the heavy ring for centuries.

On the desktop stood a crystalplaz-encased butterfly, its wings bent at an awkward angle. A few years ago, distracted by a document he’d been studying, Leto had accidentally crushed the insect. Now he kept the preserved specimen where he could always be reminded of the consequences of his actions as Duke, and as a man.

Tleilaxu desecrations of war dead, committed with the blessing of the Prime Magistrate, could not be permitted… or forgotten.

Duncan Idaho, in full military regalia, knocked on the half-open wooden door. “You summoned me, Leto?” Tall and proud, the Swordmaster carried a slight air of superiority since his return from Ginaz. He had earned his right to be self-confident after enduring eight years of rigorous Swordmaster training.

“Duncan, I value your advice now more than ever.” Leto rose to his feet. “I face a grim decision, and I must discuss strategy with you, now that Thufir and Gurney have gone to Ix.”

The young man brightened, eager for the opportunity to prove his military worth. “Are we ready to plan our next move on Ix?”

“This is another matter.” Leto held up the message cylinder, then sighed. “As Duke, I’ve found that there is always ‘another matter.’ ”

Jessica stepped silently into the open doorway. Though she had the ability to eavesdrop unnoticed, she stood boldly beside the Swordmaster. “May I hear these concerns as well, my Duke?”

Normally, Leto would not have allowed a concubine to join in strategy sessions, but Jessica had extraordinary training, and he had come to value her perspective. She had given him her strength and her love during his darkest hour, and he would not dismiss her lightly.

Leto summarized how Tleilaxu excavation teams had set up a large encampment on Beakkal. Stone ziggurats, overgrown with vegetation, marked where Atreides troops had fought alongside their Vernius counterparts to rescue the planet from a pirate flotilla. The war dead included thousands of soldiers as well as the fallen patriarchs of both Houses.

Leto’s voice became ominously hushed. “Tleilaxu exhumation teams are removing the bodies of our ancestors, claiming they wish to ‘study them for historical genetics.’ ”

Duncan pounded his fist against the wall. “By the blood of Jool-Noret, we must prevent them.”

Jessica bit her lower lip. “It is obvious what they want, my Duke. I don’t understand the process completely, but it is possible that even with cadavers mummified for centuries, the Tleilaxu can grow gholas from dead cells. They may be able to reproduce a lost Atreides or Vernius genetic line.”

Leto stared at the plaz-encased butterfly. “That’s why they wanted Victor’s body, and Rhombur’s.”

“Precisely.”

“If I take the accepted approach, I must travel to Kaitain and lodge a formal protest in the Landsraad. Investigative committees may be formed, and eventually Beakkal and the Tleilaxu might receive some form of censure.”

“By then it would be too late!” Duncan’s alarm was apparent.

A log popped in the fireplace, startling them all.

“That is why I have decided to take more extreme action.”

Jessica tried to insert the voice of reason. “Would it be possible to send our own troops to seize and remove the rest of the bodies before the Tleilaxu can exhume them?”

“Not good enough,” Leto said. “If we overlook even one, our efforts will be in vain. No, we must eliminate the temptation, erase the problem, and send a clear message. Those who think Duke Leto Atreides has grown weak are about to learn otherwise.”

Leto looked at the strewn documents that summarized his troop strength, the weapons in his armory, the available warcraft, even the family atomics. “Thufir is not here, so this will be your chance to prove yourself, Duncan. We must deliver a lesson that cannot be interpreted in any other way. No warning. No mercy. No ambiguity.”

“I shall be glad to lead such a mission, my Duke.”