"Herrick?" Aurora asked, surprised.  The Old Wolf had been a fixture in her life for so long, that the prospect of removing him had never even occurred to her.  She imagined that she'd be cursed with his overbearing presence until she was married off or (in the dream world she spun in the clouds) when she became Queen, retire him to a distant garrison or outpost.  Balthazar's plan sounded much more immediate, much more. . .permanent.<br/><br/>"He'll never leave of his own will, grandsire.  He's a Brother of the Royal Guard, sworn an oath to serve until his death, and only Father or the Holy Church has the power to remove him from the order.  Grandsire. . .we aren't going to kill him, are we?"  To her credit, she retained enough of a sense of morality to sound horrified by the thought.