Claws: Homeward VII

by Barb Hendee

  “No,” Jan answered. “You didn’t see it. It wasn’t hunting, and it wasn’t hungry. It made certain it was seen. It maimed someone, and then it vanished.”

  “What are you suggesting?” Doreena asked. “That the act was intentional?”

  “I’m suggesting that someone is trying to expose Rico as a shifter and have him blamed for this crime.”

  Everyone turned to stare at Jan, but the same thought had already occurred to Julianna—and she was almost certain she knew who it was.

  Really, it wasn’t difficult to guess.

  · · · · ·

  By nightfall, Julianna had set a plan into motion.

  She’d been busy preparing all day, and thankfully, everyone else, especially Jan, had been too preoccupied to notice.

  All of her instincts and sense of reason pointed to Donovan. First, whoever was trying to cast doubt on Rico would need access to not only a great cat—but to one at least partially trained and controllable. Donovan was the son of the wealthiest wine merchant in the province and his family dined with Lord Reuben.

  Julianna remembered all the stories with which Cadell had regaled her with while they mutually worked on projects in the village, and one of his favorite topics was the excess of the nobility. On his visits to Enêmûsk, he’d seen first hand collections of exotic animals in places called “menageries” kept by higher nobles. It was a sign of status to at least keep a small menagerie, and from everything Julianna had heard of Lord Rueben, she suspected he might be the type—hence her question to Master Braxton.

  Between wealth and position, even though Donovan was not noble, he would certainly have access to Lord Reuben’s menagerie... though whether it contained a great cat or not was still in question. For all she knew, it could contain nothing more than an aging bear and a few peacocks.

  However... second... Julianna was a good judge of emotions, and she’d seen every passion which had crossed Donovan’s face during his short visit to the camp. His obsession with Belle had been clear, but so had his hatred of Rico for thwarting him.

  He wanted revenge.

  Yes, Julianna’s speculation was far-fetched: that Donovan had somehow managed to use a great cat from Lord Rueben’s menagerie to try and get Rico arrested, or worse, but was it any more far-fetched than Rico’s ability to shape shift?

  No matter which way she pondered things, her final conclusion was the only possibility that made any sense.

  And she had to pursue it.

  So, that afternoon, she’d asked Belle, pretending mere curiosity, and learned the location of Donovan’s family storage buildings in Serov. She also learned that he and his father resided part of the year at an upscale inn a few blocks away. Sneaking into the wagon alone—and feeling guilty even though she was acting in Rico’s interest—she’d found a quill, ink, and some paper among Doreena’s things, and she penned a note.

  Master Donovan,

  I travel with Belle and am her friend. She has asked me to speak with you alone, to give you a message about why she acted as she did during your visit.

  She would come and see you herself, but she fears her father and brother, and she cannot be seen leaving camp. I am not so easily watched.

  Please meet me just after dark behind your father’s storage sheds, and I will tell you of her feelings.

  Looking at the note, she grimaced over the dark light in which it portrayed Rosario and Rico. However, this didn’t stop her. She knew after reading this message, Donovan would rush to meet her.

  Quickly, she engaged a boy to run the message to Donovan’s inn, and once he was gone and the plan was set into motion, she realized she’d need to bring some way to defend herself—should Donovan prove dangerous if he suspected what she was really doing.

  Several possibilities occurred to her and after a moment’s contemplation, she decided on one, but she couldn’t take action to secure this plan until she was almost ready to leave the camp after dark.

  Her biggest fear was that the mood of the Móndyalítko was so dour that they might skip their normal evening’s practice around the campfire. As things stood, Rosario had decided to put off performing inside Serov until he’d ascertained whether or not Donovan had been spreading rumors about Rico.

  But to her relief, that evening after dinner, the families gathered around the fire and Doreena asked Jan to play.

  “Only if Rico joins me,” Jan said.

  Without speaking, Rico picked up a violin.

  “Perhaps Belle could dance?” Julianna suggested.

  Belle flashed her look of mild surprise and smiled. “Of course.”

  Julianna stepped out to the edge of the circle, and this time, Jan and Rico began a duet with a fast pace, and Belle’s body moved more quickly than her typical dance. Unfortunately, she managed to position herself in front of Corbin and continued to torment him.

  He watched her with hungry eyes.

  Julianna paid little attention, and she kept stepping backward, away from the group as everyone else focused on Belle. Once Julianna was far enough into the shadows, she turned and hurried to the wagon, climbing the short stairs and entering.

  Inside, she donned Doreena’s wool cloak, and then she hesitated only an instant before going to the wide bed built into the wall and kneeling down.

  Rosario kept a small, hand-held, loaded crossbow beneath the bed.

  Julianna took and hid it beneath the heavy cloak. Then she slipped back outside and headed for the path leading into the Serov. She knew Jan would most likely miss her before she got back, and he would be frantic, but her task was necessary and she couldn’t take the chance of bringing him into her confidence and having him try to stop her.

  Her trip through the streets of the town didn’t take long. She simply followed the descriptions she’d been given earlier—from Belle—of the location of the two storage buildings, and they weren’t hard to find.

  Upon reaching them, without even stopping, she hurried around the back and peered through the darkness.

  As she’d anticipated, Donovan was already there, waiting for her. His back was to her, but he whirled at the sound of her footsteps and rushed toward her, stopping a few paces away. Beneath her borrowed cloak, she gripped the crossbow.

  Closer, his face looked even rounder than before, but his cheeks were covered in stubble, as if he’d forgotten to shave.

  His eyes searched her face wildly.

  “Are you Belle’s... friend? I don’t recognize you,” he said. His voice was ragged. This poor young man was a fool if he was making himself ill over Belle.

  Julianna nodded, bracing herself, and carefully planning her next words. She needed to catch him utterly unawares so that his reaction would be naked to her.

  “Yes, I am her friend. She sent me to tell you how sorry she is.”

  This was a terrible lie, but it couldn’t be helped. Donovan closed in his eyes in sheer relief, and his body sagged.

  “Then she still loves me?”

  Julianna hesitated, knowing she had to time this just right. “She has a question, and she wants an honest answer.”

  His eyes opened, and puzzlement crossed his features. “Anything. I’ll tell her anything.”

  “Were you the one who set that great cat loose in the market yesterday? Were you trying to get her brother arrested?”

  His face went blank with shock, as if he barely understood the question, and she shriveled inside at the sight.

  “What?” he gasped. “How would I...? Why would she think that I...?” Shock turned to anger. “And that was her brother in the market yesterday.”

  She shook her head. “It wasn’t. He was at the camp all evening.”

  “No, he slipped away somehow! It was him. It had to be.”

  His accusations about Rico meant nothing, but Julianna could read even subtle faces—like Belle’s—and Donovan was not subtle, and his shock at her question had been genuine.

  He wasn’t the culprit.

  She took a few
steps back, reeling in disappointment. If not Donovan, then who?

  “Tell me her message,” he begged in desperation. “What message did she send with you?”

  Julianna lessened her grip on the crossbow. This foolish young man was no danger to her. He was more likely a danger to himself.

  “She’s asked you to stay away,” Julianna said. “She’s sorry and she never meant to hurt you, but her parents and brother would never let her become your mistress, some kept woman. You’ll only cause her pain if you ask her to go against her family.”

  “No! She promised.”

  “If you loved her at all, you would never have asked her such a thing!” Julianna snapped, unable to keep her feelings inside. “Let her be. If you love her half as much you claim, you’ll leave her alone.”

  Turning, she strode away, and he didn’t follow.

  The disappointment in her mouth was bitter.

  In the matter of Rico, she was not only certain of Donovan’s innocence, but also his ignorance. He didn’t know a thing.

  · · · · ·

  Jan tried to enjoy himself, and to help his cousin enjoy himself. Rico rarely played, but he wasn’t bad, and the two of them hopped around the fire after Belle, playing tunes to make her move faster and faster.

  The families watching them smiled and laughed and clapped, but it felt forced. Having a shifter among a group was a sign of status—as not all the traveling families had one—and they took pride in Rico. Should another attack by this mysterious cat occur and Donovan’s men made a larger fuss about what they’d witnessed in this camp, Master Braxton would be forced to do more than visit.

  Even though he only spent the autumns with his mother’s people, Jan was well aware that when trouble started anywhere, most eyes turned to the Móndyalítko.

  As he and Rico finished their fourth song, Belle fell backward into a chair by the fire, laughing and gasping. She alone appeared light-hearted and unworried about Rico.

  “Enough!” she cried, still laughing. “I’m done for.” Looking around, she said, “Father, come and tell us a story.”

  Rosario was a storyteller. Jan could see his uncle was not in the mood—and he looked a bit older than his years tonight—but he nodded to his daughter and walked in beside the campfire.

  “Tell something light,” Rico said. “Nothing dark.”

  Jan wondered what tale his uncle would choose.

  He never found out.

  Carrying his bow and violin, he moved toward the outskirts of the group, looking around for Julianna... and not finding her.

  “Aunt?” he said, seeing Doreena a few paces away. “Did you send Julianna to the wagon for something?”

  “Did I what?” she glanced around, her brow wrinkling. “No. I haven’t seen her.” She turned toward their wagon. “Julianna! Are you there?”

  “I’ll go look,” Jan said. “Maybe she’s tired and went to lay down.”

  He found that unlikely, but could think of no other reason for her to leave the fire without saying anything. Even those of the group going off into the trees to answer the call of nature told someone. This was only safe.

  Walking swiftly, he reached the wagon, leaped up to the door, and looked inside. It was empty... but he noticed Doreena’s cloak was missing, and she hadn’t been wearing it.

  Mild anxiety turned to alarm, and he set his violin on a bunk.

  Not bothering with the stairs, he jumped off the back of the wagon and jogged into the trees.

  “Julianna!”

  “I saw her,” a small voice said.

  He turned quickly to see a girl about fifteen, with long black braids, standing behind him. She was Macie, Heraldo’s youngest. In autumns past, she’d followed Jan around like a puppy.

  “Where did you see her, Macie?” he asked.

  She pointed to the path leading toward Serov. “There. I saw her go there.”

  “Toward town?”

  She nodded. “Wearing Auntie’s cloak, and she was carrying something inside it.”

  Without even thanking her, Jan bolted for the path. What could Julianna be doing, going into Serov alone at night?

  He tore down the path and skidded to a stop at the edge of town, uncertain which direction to take. Where could she have gone?

  His panic and his question both became moot as he looked up and saw her coming toward him. She saw him in the same instant and stopped.

  He jogged over, unable to contain his anger. “What are you doing? I’ve been looking for you.”

  Her mouth tightened, as if he was the one in the wrong, but he didn’t care. His mother had placed Julianna into his protection on this journey.

  “Answer me!”

  “I had an errand,” she said finally, but she sounded defeated, almost bitter.

  He realized she was holding the front of her cloak closed and without warning, he snatched it open... exposing a loaded, hand-held crossbow.

  “Julianna?”

  Her expression crumpled inward. “I thought it was Donovan trying to get Rico blamed and arrested, and I went to be certain of his guilt.”

  “What?”

  “It isn’t him. When I asked, he was stunned and there was no guilt in his face.” Her voice lowered. “It’s someone else, and now I have no idea who.”

  For a moment, Jan absorbed all this, unable to speak, and then he managed to ask, “And what if it had been him? What if he’d realized what you doing?”

  She held up the crossbow. “But he wouldn’t have realized what I was doing. I lured him out by telling I had a message from Belle, and I just wanted to see his reaction when I accused him. Had he been guilty, he’d still have denied it... but I’d have seen the truth in his face. I’d have pretended to believe him. I’d have delivered my false message to him, and then I’d have gone straight back to camp and told you, Rosario, and Rico what I’d learned.”

  He couldn’t believe this. Julianna was not capable of deception. “You lured him out by. . .”

  Grabbing her free hand, he began pulling her back toward camp. She didn’t jerk away or scold him. Instead, she let him pull her along.

  “Jan, if it’s not Donovan, who could it be? Who would benefit from hurting Rico?”

  She sounded so disappointed by her apparent failure that he stopped and turned to face her.

  “I don’t know, but I promise I’ll find out if you make a promise to me.”

  Her jaw tightened, and a bit of the old Julianna returned. “What promise?”

  “That you won’t try anything like this without telling me first. Do you swear?”

  She silent for a moment and then nodded. “I swear.”

  · · · · ·

  The following afternoon, Rosario informed Jan that he’d decided to take a small group into the marketplace and set up a show. He mainly wanted to get a feel for how they would be received, and to learn if there were any rumors flying about.

  Also, Sebastian’s people had been performing in the merchant district, which was the most lucrative area. Rosario wanted to lay claim to the market place, which was the second more lucrative.

  Jan understood. “Who’s going today?” he asked.

  “Rico should stay here. We’ll just bring a small core of the best performers. Heraldo can do magic and card tricks. Doreena can read palms. You can play for Belle and Macie, and they can both dance. I’ll alternate with you and tell stories.”

  “Can Julianna come watch?”

  “Of course she can come. If you have her put on that bright red dress and give her a tambourine, she can help you. She’s pretty enough.”

  Jan went to find Julianna, uncertain of how she might respond to his request. But after an instant of initial surprise, she agreed. He probably should have expected that. She was always ready to pitch in and help.

  So, after a bit of preparation, not long past mid-day, the small group headed over into the marketplace. Heraldo carried a box with his cards and tricks. Rosario carried a table, and Doreena carried two
light chairs.

  Jan was amused to see Julianna glowing with a kind of excitement as she gripped her tambourine.

  He couldn’t help smiling at her as they walked. “I thought you weren’t comfortable in that dress?”

  “I wasn’t... but now it feels more like a costume,” she said. “I feel like one of the Móndyalítko going out to earn my living.”

  Still smiling, he shook his head. She did make quite a picture, with her colorful sash and bracelets. Though her hair was normally straight, she’d been wearing it in a braid, and now that she’d taken it out, it fell in waves down her back.

  Upon reaching the marketplace, Jan turned his attention to their reception, but several of the sellers in their stalls called out cheerful welcomes.

  “Rosario! Doreena! How good to see you.”

  Jan relaxed. It appeared no one was blaming them for the attack, and he knew their group brought more people to the marketplace—who then often spent money at the stalls.

  Doreena waved back and stopped to chat with a few townsfolk while Rosario chose a spot where they would be visible but out of the way. He soon set up Doreena at the table with the chairs, and people came hurrying over to have their palms read. Doreena was good at palm reading, not so much because she could tell the future, but because she had a gift for listening and telling people what they needed to hear.

  Later, Heraldo would borrow the table for his show.

  Rosario took Jan, Belle, Macie, and Julianna about twenty paces away to an open area, and he set out three hats at various intervals. Then he nodded to Jan.

  “What do I do?’ Julianna whispered.

  “Just stay with me and hit the tambourine in time to the music I play.”

  A look of panic crossed her face, as if she had no idea what he meant, but she nodded.

  Lifting his bow, he hit his first note, and the rest of the world faded. He played lively tunes at first, vaguely aware of Belle and Macie, dancing swiftly to the sounds coming from his instrument. Then he heard Julianna’s tambourine as she quickly picked up on the melody, and she never missed a beat.

  As the first song ended, a crowd had gathered and exploded with applause, but all eyes were on Belle, who smiled and bowed and soaked in the worship. She loved to perform more than anything else.