Sword & Flame: The Sara Featherwood Adventures ~ Volume Two

by Guy Antibes

  “Bags are in the hall, Miss Featherwood. I have mail to deliver. Enjoy your stay in Parth.”

  She rose and placed a gold crown in the coachman’s palm. “Thank you for bringing me to Parth. You are a superb coachman.” She smiled and the coachman grinned back.

  “Thank you, Miss. You were no trouble at all. I’ve been glad to serve you.” He knuckled a salute and closed the front door behind him.

  Sara returned to the room to resume her wait. The excitement of the ride through Parthy still buzzed inside. So much to see and sense. The windows to the room looked out at a much larger back garden bounded by a stone wall. She had never thought much about garden plans, as Brightlings was kept as natural as possible except for the front lawns and the topiary that lined the drive.

  Lady Worthy’s garden had a formal feel to it with small hedges bordering flower gardens, just like Edmond Heartfly’s garden in Belting Hollow. The similarity brought Sara a bit of familiarity in the strange new home. She heard voices in the hallway approaching the room and stood.

  A blondish woman, perhaps Nona’s age or a year or two younger rushed into the room. She had curled hair, darker than Sara’s, to match blue-green eyes. Her skin seemed flawless, but it might have been the heavy makeup that Lily had shown her how to use last year at School.

  “Miss Featherwood, I am Grianna Worthy, Lady Worthy. My husband died two years ago and left me this beautiful townhome while his son from a previous marriage inherited his country estate and lands.” The thought had brought disappointment to Lady Worthy’s face, Sara noticed. “I understand that you lost your mother about the same time.”

  “A year and a half,” Sara said. “I miss her as I’m sure you miss your Lord Worthy.” Banna must have given Lady Worthy a detailed description of her new guest.

  Grianna waved a shapely hand. “I do, I do. If it wasn’t for Willa, I don’t know what I’d do.” She grinned at the older woman who flashed a modest smile in return, however to Sara it was more of a grimace. Lady Worthy must have inherited her with the house. “Willa mentioned you were young. Miss Thresher wrote that you were very capable and we will see how much of a help you are.”

  “Perhaps after a session or two working on the proposal, you will be better able to make an opinion of me.” Sara didn’t feel intimidated by Grianna. If her hostess had changed roles with Willa, the housekeeper, her confidence might not be so certain.

  “I’ll have Willa show you to your room. Your bags are being taken up as we speak. She will act as your personal maid, for your stay. I have Ressi for that.” Grianna waved her hand and glanced at the clock on the large green marble mantle. We will dine in two and a half hours. Willa can have one of her girls bring up a snack. If you excuse me, I am going out, but will return well before dinner.” Grianna gave Sara a nod and left through the front door.

  “Don’t mind her, Miss Featherwood. She is what she is and, at present, she’s glad to have you here. I believe she needs the help.” Willa’s demeanor softened, which surprised Sara.

  “I’m sure she doesn’t,” Sara said. She sensed nervousness in Grianna, but didn’t suspect any kind of slight from the woman, even though she left just as Sara had arrived.

  “Why don’t you have a seat so we can get acquainted.” Sara sat and Willa remained standing. “I served Lord Worthy’s family since I started as a kitchen helper when I was a few years younger than you are now. I came with the house. You’ll find Lady Grianna a little impulsive. I’m not denigrating her ladyship, I just want you to know that she always means well and has since I’ve known her. She can be a bit gullible, but she believes in the project. She might not show it, but she is a woman of intellect and would have loved to attend a Women’s College.”

  “You don’t—”

  Willa held up her hand. “Miss Featherwood. I volunteered to assist you while you stay. Knowing about Parth and actually living here are two different things. Lady Grianna permitted me to read the letter of recommendation from the Headmistress of the Women’s School in Obridge. You are regarded as somewhat of a prodigy and I’d like you to be taken care of proper like.” A genuine smile, tiny and of short duration came to her lips.

  Sara knew she could trust this woman like she knew she couldn’t trust Lady Worthy. Not because Grianna seemed to be an evil woman, but because she was open and, in a sense, guileless, somewhat like she perceived herself. Willa would keep a secret—Sara could sense it.

  “If you would permit me, I will unpack under your direction and I would be pleased if you would let me know what you might want in the way of refreshment while we do so.”

  Sara followed Willa upstairs to a bedroom half again as large as her bedroom at Brightlings. It had its own bathroom and water closet. No chamber pot at Lady Grianna’s. The room had a bed at one end and a sitting area in front of a good-sized, but not massive, fireplace. She rated the room too large to be cozy, but it certainly would be a comfortable place to stay.

  “And what may I say is this?” Willa held Sara’s long knife in her hands.

  “That has killed a man who came after me carrying a sword. He wasn’t very good, thank goodness. I strap it to my lower leg.”

  Willa frowned. “Ladies are not meant for putting themselves in such perilous situations,” but then she pulled a smaller, thinner sheathed blade from a pocket in her dress. ‘However I am not a lady. There is some sense in you, Miss Featherwood. In Parth, there are those who are more than happy to plunge a knife in your back, metaphorically, and those who think nothing of doing it for real.”

  The woman didn’t exactly keep her feelings secret. Sara felt compelled to respond. “I suppose I’m not a lady yet, either.”

  “No disrespect meant, Miss, you are quite the opposite.”

  After Willa had helped her unpack, Sara sat on a plush chair and noticed a new book on Parth sitting on a side table. Lady Grianna must have placed it there for her. She read through the first few pages and looked out the window. She viewed coaches pass in the lane and looked to her right to see the white wall of the palace above the houses.

  Would she ever find herself on the other side of that barrier? The King lived there. Lord Northcross undoubtedly had offices in the palace. Would Klark frequent them? Did he know she now lived in Parth, if just for part of a season? She hoped he did. Her hand went to the necklace and brought up the whistle, putting it to her lips as she breathed a little harder so that the whistle only whispered its tune. A breeze of nostalgia fled across her mind and she thought of the last year at school. Lisha Temple’s class certainly had been suited for life in Parth and Sara’s recollections of the class andThe Purple Pig meetings seemed to match the sophistication she could feel in the air.

  A knock on the door broke into her reverie.

  “Your snack, Miss.” A maid brought in a teapot and a covered plate. She put the tea service on a table in front of her and uncovered a plate of fruit, cheese and a piece of dark candy that Willa had suggested. It was called chocolate and came from a country far to the south of Parthy across the Middle Sea.

  Sara sampled the plate and drank two cups of tea. She bit into the brown buttery softness of the chocolate and found it much to her liking.

  Sara felt a bit of a chill coming from the windows. Wood had been stacked in the unlit fireplace and looked around for a tinderbox, but couldn’t find one. She wondered if she could start the fire on her own.

  Sara stared at the logs and tried to make them burst into flame. Nothing happened. She remembered she had to show anger. She called up the face of the assayer and let her emotions build. She pointed her finger and said “Ignite!” The logs burst into flame, warming up the chilly room.

  She lay back on the chair, feeling a bit drained. She would still keep her little talent a secret. Perhaps she’d have the time to do a little research on magical talent. That was something for another day. Letting the fire’s heat warm up the room, she soon slipped into slumber.

  Willa tapped her shoulder and Sara sat up in a
larm as she woke. The sky had turned dark, yet the fire continued to warm the room.

  “Perhaps a bath and then it will be time to dress. Lady Grianna is late, but that’s to be expected,” Willa said. She glanced at the fire and grunted quietly and walked into her bath room to draw a bath for Sara.

  Sara stretched and realized that her mother’s demeanor matched Willa’s. Would her mother have aged to be just like Willa? No one would know, but the similarity comforted her.

  Sara finally descended the stairs in the same simple gown that she wore to the Duke’s court in Stonebridge. Willa showed her into the front sitting room. Grianna greeted her in a stunning blue silk gown. Instead of layers of cloth and lace, the gown fit her figure. Folds in the fabric accentuated her feminine curves. Sara felt like the doughty schoolgirl that she was.

  “We might need to do some shopping,” Grianna said, putting her hand to her chin and then grinned. “It will be a lot of fun.”

  The prospect excited Sara. She hadn’t been shopping for nice clothes in a long time. Parth would have the latest fashions and Sara had enough money to buy a few things, if she spent carefully. Somehow, she didn’t think that Grianna would care about the cost. Sara thought back to the room full of clothes that Vesty had bought after she married her father. No. Sara knew how to restrain herself.

  “Even though this is your first night in Parth, I didn’t invite any others to dinner. It will be just the two of us girls so I can tell you how far I’ve gone with the project. I have had a little help from a few acquaintances with the figures, but I’m sure, from Miss Thresher’s letter, that you are knowledgeable about how to interpret those.”

  “Banna might have overstated my qualifications, but I’m comfortable with budgeting and forecasting results. I’ve taken some Practical Mathematics courses that we can use.” She didn’t tell Grianna that she had taken a First.

  Grianna clapped her hands. “Perfect.”

  The dinner bell rang and Willa opened the door. “Dinner is ready, your ladyship, Miss Featherwood.”

  After they had eaten a bit, Grianna began to talk about her progress. “I’ve had a man help me with the numbers. He’s an academic from outside of Parth, but quite knowledgeable about the political aspects of launching a College. He left a few weeks ago, but I expect him to return sometime after Winter’s Rise. Perhaps he can review our work.”

  Sara wondered how much Grianna had actually completed but it couldn’t have been much from their conversation. Had her helper done it all? She suspected that was the case as the night wore on as Grianna just talked about the project in general.

  “Tomorrow, we will purchase you some ready-made clothes. They are a bit less expensive than my dressmakers’, but you will dress more like a Parthian.”

  “I am a Parthian,” Sara said. “Shattuk Downs is part of the kingdom, but we don’t dress so fashionable, I admit.”

  ~~~

  Chapter Five

  The Women’s College Proposal

  New dresses and a riding outfit filled Sara’s wardrobe. Her Shattuk Downs clothes were, indeed, different than what she now wore. Her new dresses were less full and more fitted on the top. She wasn’t so comfortable in the fashions of Parth, but looking more sophisticated would be one of the prices she’d have to pay for living in the capital. At least the hemlines hadn’t crept up. Perhaps in the summer, and, if they did, Sara wouldn’t be able to wear her knife… however she expected to be back in Obridge sometime in the spring, anyway.

  Grianna didn’t want to talk about the project when they returned in the late afternoon from shopping and she admitted that she was already engaged for dinner that evening. Sara didn’t mind reading more in the book on Parth.

  “Do you have anything I can read about the University and what you’ve already done on the College?”

  Grianna showed her to the library. Books lined the walls—many more than at Brightlings. Dark paneling and massive furniture, well aged, told Sara that Lady Grianna hadn’t applied her decorating skills to this room. Thick imported rugs covered the stone floors and a tiny fire burned in the huge fireplace. It reminded her of the fireplace in her room at school.

  Papers covered a table. “It’s all there. I admit my organizational skills are not up to the task and that’s why I had asked for Miss Thresher to come. Perhaps you can look these over. I expect to sleep in rather late tomorrow.” Grianna gave Sara a sheepish grin. “Dinner is only the start of my evening, you understand.”

  Sara nodded but didn’t. Late night revelry by the nobility was not an experience Sara had, but her father had often come home late after an evening with his friends, so perhaps she did understand the behavior, after all. She didn’t like these little stabs of recollection of days that would never return. No mother, no father, no Brightlings. She would focus on the present for now. Parth had always been a dream and now she had just a taste of the dream. A little sweet and a little sour, so far, but then she had only just arrived and had barely started to get a feel for the city.

  Later, Willa brought Sara a cup of tea, cookies and a piece of chocolate as Sara pulled a chair up to the paper-strewn table. “Do you like the chocolate, Miss? I noticed that you had eaten the candy last night.”

  She seized the brown morsel as Willa set the tray down. “It’s the best thing so far about Parth.” She grinned at Willa. “It doesn’t look like Lady Grianna spends much time in this room.”

  “No, she doesn’t. She comes in often enough to grab a book of interest or look something up and then leave. Lord Worthy spent most of his days in this room reading and writing, too. He published four books on the agricultural methods he employed at his estates. The manuscripts were removed to the manor when he died.”

  “Agriculture. I imagine Lady Grianna wasn’t very interested in that.”

  Willa shook her head. “Her ladyship’s interests lie elsewhere. There’s was a young-old marriage and both of them benefitted from the other’s company.”

  “I see.”

  “Begging your pardon, miss, but I don’t believe you do.” Willa said, exhibiting her prickliness. “You might think Lady Grianna married Lord Worthy for his money, but that was not so. She has enough on her own to support this house. Lord Worthy settled her ladyship down at a time when men, who did not have her best interests in mind, were courting her. Forgive me for saying so, but freely given trust is a fault of hers.”

  “Why do you tell me this?” Willa’s forthrightness informed Sara of facts about Grianna that she didn’t really want to know.

  Willa nodded at the papers. “Look into these numbers. I don’t trust the man who helped her. That’s all I’ll say. It’s not for me to pry into what he’s done, but I’d like you to make sure everything is written in the Women’s College’s favor. That’s all. I’ll be going now, Miss Featherwood.” Willa gave Sara a nod and left.

  What had Sara done to prompt Willa’s bluntness? Servants in Shattuk Downs wouldn’t be so free with their opinions, but then none of the servants she knew had the sharpness of demeanor and intellect that Willa obviously exhibited. She reminded her more of her mother than of Natti, even though Willa was older than both of them. Sara shook her head and took a bit of her cookie and a tiny bite of the chocolate. The combination went splendidly together.

  She turned to the papers. She’d been confronted with such a disorganized mess before at Brightlings when she came home from School and found that Vesty had ignored the Brightlings accounts. Sara brought over another lamp and went to work. She looked around the library and quite liked the feel to the room. Masculine came to her mind and Knowledge. She would enjoy working here.

  ~

  “What have you done?” Grianna said as she walked into the dining room for the midday meal. She wore a filmy robe of three or four layers of fine silk with matching slippers. Her hair was pulled back and tied with a matching ribbon. Her face had much less makeup and it made her look just a bit more mature.

  Sara raised her eyebrows. What could
she have done?

  “The mess, Sara. You’ve straightened everything out. It’s a miracle!” Grianna sat and clapped her hands with glee as a maid brought her meal. She barely plucked at it. “What did you learn?”

  Relieved, Sara said, “Not much. I organized last night and this morning. I’m nearly to the point where I can begin to assess your progress. I’ve only read enough of the notes so I could classify the papers into categories. It will help give us direction to move forward.”

  Grianna smiled. “Categories. What a wonderful concept.” She shook her head in wonder and began to eat a little more.

  Willa walked in after a tap on the door and presented a message to Sara.

  “For me?” She opened it up.

  Sara,

  I just heard you’re in Parth. We should get together, but I’m tied up with Duke Northcross. Could you meet me at two o’clock at the South Gate? It’s only a few blocks from Lady Worthy’s house. She can direct you.

  If you aren’t there, no matter, for we can get together another time.

  With my sincerest wishes,

  Klark.

  “A friend,” Sara said, clutching the note. “He wants to meet me at two by the South Gate? Do you know where it is?”

  “Of course. I’ll send Willa out with you.” Grianna smiled at Willa. “Will you help Sara? I’m not going out this afternoon.”

  “Whatever you wish, my lady,” Willa said. She turned up a corner of her mouth and left. Willa kept Sara wondering about her. Did the older woman keep baiting her on purpose?

  ~

  The sun splashed coldly against the stone walls of the buildings. A wind blew, changing course seemingly with every step, as Sara bundled up. Willa wore a coat as well, but didn’t even bother to button it up. Her skin seemed to glow with the weather as she smiled with every gust. Sara shook her head because the woman simply confounded her. They turned on a large boulevard to see the South Gate.