Laurie’s attention was diverted by someone approaching. Pug noticed a look of open admiration upon the singer’s face. The magician turned and was greeted by the sight of a beautiful young woman approaching with a guard escort. Pug’s eyes widened as he recognized Carline. She was as lovely a woman as her girlhood had promised. She came up to them and with a wave of her hand dismissed the guard. She looked regal in a fine green gown, with a pearl-studded tiara crowning her dark hair.
“Master magician,” she said, “have you no greeting for an old friend?”
Pug bowed before the Princess, and Kasumi and Laurie did also. Katala curtseyed as she had been shown by one of the maids. Pug said, “Princess, you flatter me by remembering a simple keep boy.”
Carline smiled, with a gleam in her blue eyes “Oh, Pug . . . you were never a simple anything.” She looked past him to Katala. “Is this your wife?” When he nodded and introduced them, the Princess kissed Katala’s cheek and said, “My dear, I had heard you were lovely, but the reports my brother gave did you little justice.”
Katala said, “Your Highness is gracious.”
Kasumi had returned to his nervous posture, but Laurie stood unable to take his eyes from the young woman in green Katala had to grip his arm firmly to recapture his attention. “Laurie, will you show Kasumi and me about the palace a little, before the ceremonies begin?”
Laurie smiled broadly, bowed to the Princess, and accompanied Kasumi and Katala down the hallway Pug and the Princess watched their retreating backs.
Carline said, “Your wife is a most perceptive woman.”
Pug smiled. “She is indeed remarkable.”
Carline looked genuinely glad to see him. “I understand you also have a son.”
“William. He is a little devil, and a treasure.”
There was a trace of envy in Carline’s expression “I would like to meet him.” She paused, then added, “You’ve been most fortunate.”
“Most fortunate, Highness.”
She took his arm and they slowly started to walk “So formal, Pug? Or should I call you Milamber, as I have heard you were known?”
He saw her smile and returned it. “I sometimes don’t know, though here Pug seems more proper.” He grinned. “You seem to have learned a great deal about me.”
She feigned a small pout “You were always my favorite magician.”
They shared a laugh. Then, lowering his voice, Pug said, “I am so very sorry about your father’s death, Carline.”
She clouded a little. “Lyam told me you were there at the last. I am glad he saw you safely back before he died. Did you know how much he cared for you?”
Pug felt himself flush with emotion. “He gave me a name; there is little more he could have done to show me. Did you know that?”
She brightened. “Yes, Lyam also told me that. We’re cousins of sorts,” she said with a laugh. As they walked, she spoke softly. “You were my first love, Pug, but even more, you were always my friend. And I am pleased to see my friend once more home.”
He stopped and kissed her lightly upon the cheek. “And your friend is most pleased to be home.”
Blushing slightly, she led him to a small garden on a terrace. They walked out into bright sunlight and sat upon a stone bench. Carline let out a long sigh. “I only wish Father and Roland, could be here.”
Pug said, “I was also grieved to hear of Roland’s death.”
She shook her head. “That jester lived as much in his few years as most men do in their entire lives. He hid much behind his raffish ways, but do you know, I think he may have been one of the wisest men I’ll ever know. He took every passing minute and squeezed all the life from it he could.” Pug studied her face and saw her eyes were bright with memory. “Had he lived, I would have married him. I suspect we would have fought every day, Pug; oh, how he could make me angry. But he could make me laugh as well. He taught me so very much about living I shall always treasure his memory.”
“I am pleased you are at peace with your losses, Carline. So many years a slave, then a magician, in another land have changed me much. It seems you have greatly changed as well.”
She tilted her head to look at him. “I don’t think you’ve changed all that much, Pug. There’s still some of the boy in you, the one who was so rattled by my attentions.”
Pug laughed. “I guess you’re right. And in some ways you are also unchanged, or at least you still have the knack of rattling men if friend Laurie’s reaction is any measure.”
She smiled at him, her face radiant, and Pug knew a faint tugging, an echo of what he had felt when he was a boy. But now there was no discomfort, for he knew he would always love Carline, though not in the way he had imagined as a boy. More than any tumultuous passion, or the deep bond he had with Katala, he knew what he felt was affection and friendship.
She pursued his last comment. “That beautiful blond man who was with you a few minutes ago? Who is he?”
Pug smiled knowingly. “Your most devoted subject, from all appearances. He is Laurie, a troubadour from Tyr-Sog, and a rascal of limitless wit and charm. He has a loving heart and a brave spirit, and is a true friend. I’ll tell you sometime of how he saved my life at peril of his own.”
Carline again cocked her head to one side. “He sounds a most intriguing fellow.” Pug could see that while she was older and more self-possessed and had known sorrow, much about her remained unchanged.
“I once, in jest, promised him an introduction to you. Now I am sure he would be most delighted to make Your Highness’s acquaintance.”
“Then we must arrange it.” She rose. “I fear I must go make ready for the coronation. Any time now the bells will sound and the priests will arrive. We shall speak again, Pug.”
Pug came to his feet as well. “I shall enjoy it, Carline.”
He presented his arm. A voice from behind said, “Squire Pug, may I speak with you.”
They turned around and found Martin Longbow standing some distance away, farther back in the garden. He bowed to the Princess. Carline said, “Master Longbow! There you are I’ve not seen you since yesterday.”
Martin smiled slightly. “I’ve had a need to be alone. In Crydee when such a mood strikes, I return to the forest. Here”—he indicated the large terraced garden—“this was the best I could manage.”
She looked quizzically at him, but shrugged off the remark. “Well, I expect you will manage to attend the coronation. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be off.” She accepted their polite good-byes and left.
Looking at Pug, Martin said, “It is good to see you once again, Pug.”
“And you, Martin. Of all my old friends here, you are the last to greet me. Except for those still in Crydee I’ve yet to see, you’ve made my homecoming complete.” Pug could see Martin was troubled. “Is something wrong?”
Martin looked out over the garden, toward the city and sea beyond. “Lyam told me, Pug. He told me you know as well.”
Pug understood at once. “I was there when your father died, Martin,” he said, his voice remaining calm.
In silence Martin began to walk, and when he came to the low stone wall around the garden he gripped it hard. “My father,” he said, bitterly. “How many years I waited for him to say, ‘Martin, I am your father.’ ” He swallowed hard. “I never cared for inheritance and such things I was content to remain Huntmaster of Crydee. If only he had told me himself.”
Pug thought over his next words. “Martin, many men do things they regret later. Only a few are granted the opportunity to make amends. Had a Tsurani arrow taken him quickly, had a hundred other things come to pass, he might not have had the chance to do what little he did.”
“I know, but still that is cold comfort.”
“Did Lyam tell you his last words? He said, ‘Martin is your brother. I have wronged him, Lyam. He is a good man, and well do I love him.’ ”
Martin’s knuckles turned white gripping the stone wall. Quietly he replied, “No, he did no
t.”
“Lord Borric was not a simple man, Martin, and I was only a boy when I knew him, but whatever else may be said of him, there was no meanness of spirit in the man. I don’t pretend to understand why he acted as he did, but that he loved you is certain.”
“It was all such folly. I knew he was my father, and he never knew I had been told by Mother. What difference in our lives had I gone to him and proclaimed myself?”
“Only the gods might know.” He reached out and touched Martin’s arm. “What matters now is what you will do. That Lyam told you means he will make public your birthright. If he’s already told others, the court will be in an uproar. You are the eldest and have the right of first claim. Do you know what you will do?”
Studying Pug, Martin said, “You speak calmly enough of this. Doesn’t my claim to the throne disturb you at all?”
Pug shook his head. “You would have no way of knowing, but I was counted among the most powerful men in Tsuranuanni. My word was in some ways more important than any king’s command. I think I know what power can do, and what sort of men seek it. I doubt you have much personal ambition as such, unless you’ve changed a great deal since I lived in Crydee. If you take the crown, it will be for what you believe are good reasons. It may be the only way to prevent civil war, for should you choose the mantle of King, Lyam will be the first to swear fealty. Whatever the reason, you would do your best to act wisely. And if you take the purple, you will do your best to be a good ruler.”
Martin looked impressed. “You have changed much, Squire Pug, more than I would have expected. I thank you for your kind judgment of me, but I think you are the only man in the Kingdom who would believe such.”
“Whatever the truth may be, you are your father’s son and would not bring dishonor upon his house.”
Again Martin’s words were tinged with bitterness. “There are those who will judge my birth itself a dishonor.” He looked out over the city below, then turned to stare at Pug. “If only the choice were simple, but Lyam’s seen that it is not. If I take the crown, many will balk. If I renounce in Lyam’s favor, some may use me as an excuse to refuse Lyam their allegiance.
“Gods above, Pug. Were the issue between Arutha and myself, I would not hesitate for an instant to stand aside in his favor. But Lyam? I’ve not seen him for seven years, and those years have changed him. He seems a man beset with doubts. An able field commander, no question, but a king? I am faced with the fearful prospect I would prove a more able king.”
Pug spoke softly. “As I have said, should you claim the throne, you will do so for what you,judge good reasons, reasons of duty.”
Martin’s right hand closed into a fist, held before his face. “Where ends duty and begins personal ambition? Where ends justice and begins revenge? There is a part of me, an angry part of me, that says, ‘Wring all you can from this moment, Martin.’ Why not King Martin? And then another part of me wonders if Father may have placed this upon me knowing someday I must be King. Oh, Pug, what is my duty?”
“That is something each of us must judge for himself alone. I can offer you no counsel.”
Martin leaned forward upon the rail, hands covering his face. “I think I would like to be alone for a time, if you do not mind.”
Pug left, knowing a troubled man considered his fate. And the fate of the Kingdom.
Pug found Katala with Laurie and Kasumi, speaking with Duke Brucal and Earl Vandros. As he approached, he could hear the Duke saying, “So we’ll finally have a wedding, now that this young slow-wit”—he indicated Vandros—“has asked for my daughter’s hand. Maybe I’ll have some grandchildren before I die, after all. See what comes of waiting so many years to marry. You’re old before your children marry—” He inclined his head when he saw Pug. “Ah, magician, there you are.”
Katala smiled when she saw her husband. “Did you and the Princess have a nice reunion?”
“Very nice.”
Prodding him in the chest with her forefinger, she said, “And when we’re alone, you’ll repeat every single word.”
The others laughed at Pug’s embarrassment, though he could see she was only having fun with him.
Brucal said, “Ah, magician, your wife is so lovely, I wish I were sixty again.” He winked at Pug. “Then I’d steal her from you, and damn the scandal.” He took Pug by the arm and said to Katala, “If you’ll forgive me, lady, instead I’ll have to steal a moment of your husband’s time.”
He steered Pug away from the surprised group and when they were out of earshot said, “I have grave news.”
“I know.”
“Lyam is a fool, a noble fool.” He looked away for a moment, his eyes filming over with memory. “But he is his father’s son, and his grandfather’s grandson as well, and like both before him has a strong sense of honor.” The old eyes came into sharp focus again. “Still, I wish his sense of duty were as clear.” Lowering his voice even more, he said, “Keep your wife close about. The guards in the hall wear the purple and will die defending the King, whoever he may be. But it may get messy. Many of the eastern lords are impulsive men, overly used to having their petty demands instantly gratified. A few might open their mouths and find themselves chewing steel.
“My men and Vandros’s are positioned throughout the palace, while Kasumi’s Tsurani are outside, at Lyam’s request. The eastern lords don’t like it, but Lyam is Heir, and they cannot say no. With those who will stand with us, we can seize the palace and hold it.
“With du Bas-Tyra hiding, and Richard of Salador dead, the eastern lords have lost their leadership. But there are enough of them on the island, with enough of their ‘honor guards’ in and around the city, to turn this island into a pretty battleground should they flee the palace before a king is named. No, we’ll hold the palace. No traitorous easterner will leave to plot treason with Black Guy. Each one will bend a knee before whichever brother takes the crown.”
Pug was surprised by this. “You’ll support Martin, then?”
Old Brucal’s voice became harsh, though he kept it low. “No one will plunge my Kingdom into civil war, magician. Not while I have a breath left to spend. Arutha and I have spoken. Neither of us likes the choices, but we are clear on our course. Should Martin be King, all will bow before him. Should Lyam take the crown, Martin will swear fealty or not leave the palace alive. Should the crown be broken, we hold this palace, and no lord leaves until a congress has named one brother King, even if we’re a year in that bloody damned hall. We’ve already picked up several of Guy’s agents in the city. He’s here in Rillanon, there’s no doubt. If even a handful of nobles can win free of the palace before a congress is convened, we have civil war.” He struck his fist into his open hand. “Damn these traditions. As we speak, the priests walk toward the palace, each step bringing them closer to the moment of choice. If only Lyam had acted sooner, given us more time, or not acted at all. Or if we could have caged Guy. If we could have spoken to Martin, but he’s vanished . . .”
“I’ve spoken to Martin.”
Brucal’s eyes narrowed. “What is his mood? What are his plans?”
“He’s a troubled man, as well you might imagine. To have all this put upon him with scant time to adjust. He has always known who his father was, and was resigned to take the secret with him to the grave, I’ll wager, but now he is suddenly thrust into the heart of the matter. I don’t know what he will do. I don’t think he’ll know, until the priests put the crown before him.”
Brucal stroked his chin. “That he knew and tried not to use that knowledge for his own gain speaks well of him. But there’s still no time.” He indicated the group by the main door to the hall. “You’d best be back to your wife. Keep your wits sharp, magician, for we may have need of your arts before this day is through.”
They returned to the others, and Brucal led Vandros and Kasumi inside, speaking with them in low tones. Before Katala could speak, Laurie said, “What is afoot? When I took Katala and Kasumi outside to a balcony over
looking the courtyard, I saw Kasumi’s men everywhere. For a moment I thought the Empire had won the war. I couldn’t get a thing from him.”
Pug said, “Brucal knows they can be trusted to follow Kasumi’s orders without question.”
Katala said, “What is this, husband? Trouble?”
“There is little time to explain. There may be more than one claimant to the crown. Stay near Kasumi, Laurie, and keep your sword loose. If there’s trouble, follow Arutha’s lead.”
Laurie nodded, his face set in a grim expression of understanding. He entered the hall, and Katala said, “William?”
“He is safe. If there is trouble it will be in the great hall, not in the guest quarters. It will be afterward the true grief will begin.” Her expression showed she didn’t understand fully, but she quietly accepted what he said. “Come, we must take our places inside.”
They hurried into the great hall, to a place of honor near the front. As they passed by the throng gathered to see the King crowned, they could hear the buzz of voices as rumor swept the room. They came up to Kulgan, and the stout magician nodded greeting. Meecham waited a few paces behind, his back to a wall. His eyes surveyed the room, marking the positions of all within a sword’s length of Kulgan. Pug noticed the old, long-bladed hunter’s knife was loose in its scabbard. He might not know what the problem was, but he would be instantly ready to protect his old companion.
Kulgan hissed, “What is going on? Everything was calm until a few minutes ago, now the room is abuzz.”
Pug leaned his head closer to Kulgan’s and said, “Martin may announce for the crown.”
Kulgan’s eyes widened “Gods and fishes! That’ll set this court on its ear.” He looked around and saw most of the Kingdom’s nobles had taken their places within the hall. With a sigh of regret he said, “It’s too late to do anything now but wait.”
Amos crashed through the garden, swearing furiously. “Why the hell does anyone want all these bloody posies about anyway?”
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