“And if these men refuse to give quarter?” the knight asked.
Danielle felt the blood drain from her cheeks. “I expect you’ll do what you must.”
Sir Mannering pursed his lips and rode at her side in silence for a moment before saying, “Begging your pardon, Milady, but it might be best if you let the sergeant and I secure the house completely before you enter?”
“I’m grateful for your concern, Sir, but for reasons I’m not at liberty to speak on, I need to be present. Now if you would relay my instructions to the men, I would be truly grateful.”
He smiled stiffly at his dismissal and slowed his mount to let the column pass, only to say, “Sarenson, Lewis and Breton will accompany you and the lady up the stairs your highness, and Taric and Clyston as well. Five will be safer than three.”
Danielle knew better than to argue and nodded her thanks. She had also noticed the sky lightening above the towering snow capped peaks of the eastern mountains. She glanced at the Lady Winters. “Where is this tavern you spoke of?”
“Burrows Lane.”
Danielle knew the street and how to get there so she kicked her horse up to a canter, increasing the speed of the column.
The further they descended into the wealthy southeastern quarter of Illandia, the statelier and ornate the architecture became. They passed under Olarch’s arch and down Rolton Lane with its wide cobbled street, two-storey limestone buildings, most of which housed the taverns and inns and trade shops and bakeries that the horde of servants that populated the retainers of Arkaelyon’s aristocracy frequented. Then it was through a few tree-lined streets of elegant town houses before they turned onto Burrows Lane.
“Over there,” Lady Winters said, nodding her chin towards a nobleman’s tavern halfway down the street. A lantern hung over the iron-hinged door and threw yellow light onto a sign above that named the establishment, The Yardarm. As the company drew up outside and dismounted, the Lady Winter bid them wait, and slipped inside to make arrangements for their short reside. The innkeeper was delighted to have the king’s daughter under his roof, and happy enough to ask no questions, and in no time at all Danielle and the Lady Winters were following him up the carpeted stairs as Sir Mannering and the men settled around tables in the tavern’s large and comfortably furnished common room to partake of fresh loaves of bread and strong tara tea. With a grateful smile and genial bow the innkeeper led Danielle into a pleasant little room at the far end of the hall. A maid had followed them up the stairs and now she placed a tray with a pot of tea and mugs, and slices of buttered bread on the table before leaving them in peace, and closing the door leaving Danielle and the Lady Winters alone.
Danielle poured tea into two cups and devoured a slice of thick bread; sure she would be sick if she didn’t get something into her stomach. The Lady Winters had turned the lamp down to a soft glow and left it on the table before crossing to the window. She stood in the shadow, peering between the drawn curtain and the windowsill.
“I get the impression you use this place often,” Danielle said, before taking a sip of the tea to wash down the bread.
“Mr Jordan believes I’m a high brow courtesan who services some of the local gentry.”
“You have a residence in the area then?”
“You know I can’t tell you that.”
Danielle handed the lady a cup of tea and then moved to the other side of the window and peeped out past the curtain. In the fresh morning light a coach was rattling by, but there was no one else on the tree-lined street that she could see. Plush stone apartments stretched away in both directions with curtains drawn behind balcony doors and windows, and in the entire block only a half-dozen windows shone dim with lamp or candlelight suggesting most of their occupants were still asleep. This was the poorer part of the southeastern quarter, and most of the nobles who owned these residences were likely lesser gentry, and would have no reason to be rising early for the monthly meeting of the General Council.
“Which house is my brother’s?”
She pointed through the window. “The one directly across from us. His day room opens out onto that balcony behind that tree. The woman stopped and looked at her puzzled. “When you were talking to your knight, how did you know his place was two storied if you have never seen it?”
Danielle let a faint smile touch her lips. “Are you aware there are ten Surlemian mercenaries inside?” She’d seen that in her dream as well.
“How do you know these things?”
“That’s not something I wish to share with you.”
Danielle pulled over a chair from the table and settled at the window to wait for her brother to leave.
Kane’s apartment was one of those where light shone faintly through curtained windows and she suspected they wouldn’t have long to wait.
“You shouldn’t be handling this alone,” the Lady Winters said with quiet urgency. “Your father will be furious with you.”
“You should have thought of that before bringing word of this to my chambers,” Danielle replied. She was trying not to think of her father. Stopping Kane’s bill was all that mattered. If the cost was her political future, then it was a price worth paying.
“Then at the very least take your knight’s advice and wait until the residence is secure before entering. You’ll be putting your men at risk if you enter with them. They’ll want to protect their lady and be distracted because of it”
Danielle frowned as she watched the street. “Why should you care what I do?”
“I might be a twisted monster to you, but I was born a peasant, and I know well enough what you mean to my kind.”
“I’m sure your master would not be pleased to hear you say so.”
“My master is a beast, and you’d do well to fear him more than you do. That goes for your brother as well.”
Somewhat amused that she should have this woman’s sympathy, since they were technically enemies, Danielle said, “Is it true, then, the rumour that you are forced to act on the church’s behalf?”
“How could anyone do what I do, freely?”
“So what does he have over you?” She was genuinely curious.
There was a short silence then the Lady Winters said, “The lives of those who live in a small Arkaelyon village, including the members of my family. At least what is left of my family.”
“That is horrible and I am sorry for it. You are right, that man is a monster. Is there anything I can do to help you? You know I could have your family secreted out of the realm and made comfortable in a place where the archbishop could not find them?”
“They are watched constantly. Besides, you need to look to your own and with a great deal more care than you are showing this morning.”
Danielle frowned. “Is that a warning?”
“Just talk to your Lord Protector; he’ll know of what I speak.”
“Or you could tell me yourself?”
“Do you want the blood of my family on your head?”
Danielle saw her point. “No, of course not.”
A servant emerged from the front door of Kane’s town house and out into the early morning light. He descending the stone steps to the street and then walked down the pavement and opened the gates to the small cobbled alley that led to the courtyard and stables at the rear of the building.
Danielle felt her throat go dry. She had seen this in her dream, right down to the man’s braided, bottle green waistcoat.
A moment later, as she knew he would, Kane rode out under the stone archway on a grey stallion, accompanied by three mounted servants. Immaculately attired he sat tall and straight-backed in the saddle and guided his horse up the street with a commanding hand.
“Are you ready,” the Lady Winters said, closing the curtain.
The old fear had suddenly returned and Danielle got up more reluctantly than her guest had, her heart pounding in her chest.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Danielle waited in a narrow alleyway across the
street from her brother’s residence. The Lady Winters, Sir Mannering and ten men of the palace guard were crouched behind her in the deep shadow of the alley. Sergeant Belich and the rest of their company were crossing the cobbled street, weapons drawn and moving at a quick walk. As she watched, they slipped in through the open gate to the rear of Kane’s apartment. As soon as they were gone from view, Danielle pulled up the hood of her riding coat, drew her sword and made a beeline for her brother’s front door. Hurried footfalls followed her across the cobbled lane and up the steps and as she knocked at the door, Sir Mannering and the Lady Winters appeared at either side of her, their eyes tense with anticipation and weapons at the ready.
After a moment there were footfalls inside. The locks were shot back and the door opened to reveal a maid standing there in a nightgown. The woman’s genial expression vanished when she saw who was calling, but before she could scream, Sir Mannering lunged forward, grabbed her and clamped a hand over her mouth.
Danielle slipped past the broad shouldered knight and his struggling captive and dashed up the stairs. The Lady Winters and the five soldiers Sir Mannering had appointed to protect her followed on her heels. Below, men of Mannering’s contingent were streaming into the house and the first shouts and curses erupted from somewhere within, Sergeant Belich’s the loudest as he demanded immediate surrender. Thankfully, Danielle heard no swords clash or the distinct release of a crossbow.
Unlike those below, her party reached the hall above without encountering a soul. A nod sent two soldiers down the hall to the right to check the rooms in that direction, while she went left with the rest of her company. They moved quickly, the Lady Winters, a crossbowman and her on one side of the hall and the two remaining guards on the other. The first room revealed four sleeping mats, rumpled blankets, packs and weapons of a Surlemian variety, but no sign of any threat. On the other side of the hall, yelling burst forth, curses in the Surlemian tongue, and a demand to relent in the name of the king, which was quickly adhered to. The second chamber Danielle stepped into was also occupied, but the female mercenary and the naked man lying between her thighs were in no condition to offer resistance, so she left them for the soldier at her shoulder and made for the last door in the hall other than that which opened into Kane’s day room. This door was slightly ajar. With her heart thumping against her ribs, she gave the Lady Winters a curt nod, and the woman reached out and threw the door back.
“Relent in the name of the king and you will not be harmed!” Danielle shouted. When no reply was given she stepped gingerly inside, sword raised ready to defend herself. There was nothing to see but a lavishly furnished bedroom; Kane’s bedchamber from the hint of the expensive perfume that lingered in the air and the finely crafted furniture. This place gave her the shivers and after a cursory glance made it clear no one was in here, she returned to the hallway.
Her men had brought their captives out into the hallway; some half attired others wrapped in blankets, and were herding them towards the stairs.
“It’s clear, Milady,” Mr. Sarenson, said. “And no harm done.”
Pleased to hear that, Danielle thanked him and then said, “Please tell Sir Mannering that I want the mercenaries and servants locked in the cellar, and to see it done quickly, for we won’t be here long.”
The door to Kane’s day room was already open and as Danielle stepped in she found the Lady Winters rifling through an imposing stone desk at the centre of the room. Like the bedchamber she had just vacated, Kane’s presence filled this room as surely as if he were here in person, and even that ethereal knowing played her fear like a skilled musician.
“How long will this take?”
“Not long.” The pile of manuscripts and scrolls on top of the desk was growing, as was the frown on the Lady Winter’s face.
It’s the confused look I saw in my dream, Danielle thought. She gazed around the room thinking where her brother would likely hide a scroll. Unfortunately, her dream had not been clear on that point—only that she was the one who found it. Beautiful timber bookshelves lined every wall, and where there were spaces between, paintings of her brother or masterfully worked weaponry filled the void.
Thinking it best to be systematic, Danielle grabbed an ornate timber chair beside the hearth and pulled it over to the shelves by the door and climbed up so she could reach the top shelf. The first book contained no extra pages so it was thrown over her shoulder. The second, third, forth all went the same way and soon the small pile of volumes in the middle of the room was becoming a mountain.
“What are you doing?”
Danielle flicked through a manuscript and tossed it. “You won’t find the scroll in his desk. You’d be better served helping me here”
“And you know this how?”
“Like I said, I just do.”
“Well it’s not what my informant said. This desk has a compartment in one of the drawers but I can’t find where. It would be more productive if you helped me find it.”
Sir Mannering stepped through the doorway and returned his sword to its scabbard. “All is in order, Milady. The mercenaries and servants are securely locked in the cellar and we’re ready to leave on your command.” His attention drifted over the mess they were making of the chamber.
“Any injuries?” Danielle asked. It was one of the things she feared. This was going to be hard enough to explain to her father as it was. She stopped to suck a paper cut on her finger.
“Talbot took a wound, but nothing serious, and two of the mercenaries are a bit battered about. But all in all it went as you said it would.”
“Yes, well, I’ll believe that when we find this scroll. Have some of your men begin to search the shelves on that side of the room. And please be thorough.”
“And what are we looking for?”
“A scroll secured with black and silver ribbon and the words Naitus al ta merosia written across it.”
The Lady Winters glanced up from her search for a moment and caught Danielle’s eye.
“I told you, I know certain things,” she said, answering the lady’s unspoken question.
“That’s evident, but I fear your informant isn’t telling you what is most important.”
“Meaning what?”
“I’ve told you; talk to your Lord Protector. If he and the other members of your father’s Inner Council were doing their duty none of this would be necessary.”
The woman’s tone was caustic to say the least. The sad thing was, Danielle empathised with her.
“It is a little conceited to say as much, when you could tell me what you know, and as you say, make this unnecessary.”
“And what, have more of the peasantry suffer because of the incompetence of the nobility?”
Danielle didn’t have an answer to that, mostly because it was true, so she returned to her work. She finished clearing one bookcase and moved her chair to begin at the next. Sir Mannering and two of his men had almost caught up to her on the opposite wall. Yet, the scroll still eluded them. It didn’t help knowing that the pre-council breakfast would be starting soon. And certainly, Joseph would have read her letter by now. She was half expecting her father and brothers to arrive at the head of a retainer of loyal knights, Arkaelyon’s banner fluttering in the morning air. And James with them. Just thinking of him made her ache with guilt.
“I have it!” The Lady Winters cleared the desktop with a swipe of her arm and rolled the document out. Danielle leapt off her chair and rushed to the woman’s side, hope lifting her spirits. This wasn’t exactly how she’d dreamed it but that really didn’t matter now. They had the document. She hooked a stray tress behind her ear and read the deed of agreement, for that’s what it was. Reaching the bottom of the parchment scroll she looked over the names and seals of those that had signed it with no real surprise. They were nobles with a reputation for framing politics as a mere extension of their personal interests.
“Is it sufficient?” the Lady Winters asked.
Daniell
e nodded, deeply relieved. “Slavery is not going to be legalised today. Sir Mannering, tell Sergeant Belich we’re leaving.” She rolled the scroll back up and tied the ribbons. At a good pace she should get back to the palace in time to catch her father before the breakfast really got underway. From there it would not be difficult to call for a delay to the start of the meeting so they could plan how this was to be done.
The knight and his two men had left the room at a run, and the Lady Winters was following at a more sedate pace. Before she reached the door, Danielle said, “Wait, I want to thank you.”
Winters did not slow or answer so Danielle dashed after her, catching her arm in the hall. There were tears in the woman’s eyes when she turned to face her and a deep consternation that made Danielle frown.
“If you fear for your own, you shouldn’t,” Danielle reassured. “I’ll see to it that none of the men speak of what you have told me. And whatever I must now do, I will not endanger you or your kin. I promise.”
“I’m grateful.”
Danielle said, “You have done my father and Arkaelyon a great service today, and you should know that my door is always open to you. If I can help you and your kin, you need only say so.”
Winters smiled gratefully and reached up and gently touched Danielle’s cheek. “Thank you. But you can’t help me, Danielle. Save the Zemithians, they deserve your kindness. I just ask that you forgive me when you discover the truth of my visit. I don’t expect you to understand but I must look to my own. And when you speak with your Lord Protector, ask him why the Archbishop would want your twin brother under his control. His answer, if it is honest, will lead you to the truth. And whatever happens over the coming months, be safe and strong and wise because Arkaelyon is going to need you.”
She knows of my dream, Danielle thought with instant dread. But it wasn’t fair to hound the poor woman, so she offered a grateful smile and said. “I’ll do my best.”
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