‘Goodbye Brothertoft,’ she said softly to the frail figure on the bed. She watched him for a moment then turned and left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.
When she walked back into the kitchen Mistral found the twins singing a haunting lullaby with their arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders.
‘Ah,’ sighed Phantom wiping an emotional tear from his eye. ‘Do you remember mother singing that to us?’
Phantasm nodded vaguely and a sorrowful look clouded his face as he hummed the last few lines again.
‘Right! Sheldon! Wesley! It’s time to go now!’ Mistral stood in the kitchen doorway with her hands on her hips and a look on her face that brooked no argument.
The twins jumped and looked up at her guiltily. Phantasm muttered something unintelligible to Phantom who nodded, round-eyed with fear. Mistral frowned and narrowed her eyes menacingly at them, she was sure she had just heard Phantasm call her ‘mother.’ Catching her look, they both instantly rose to their feet and staggered obediently out of the tiny kitchen and into the bright midday sunshine.
Mistral fought hard to control her temper while she watched the twins trying to mount their horses. Jupiter and Mars stood patiently while their masters hopped around unsteadily on one leg with the other wedged in the stirrup.
‘Oh this is just pathetic!’ Mistral muttered, striding over and shoving each twin unceremoniously up onto his horse. ‘Now can we please get out of here?’ she demanded frostily.
‘Lead the way, sister,’ said Phantasm faintly, pressing a hand delicately to his forehead. ‘I can feel a slight headache coming on.’
Mistral swore under her breath and urged Cirrus into a fast trot out of the village.
‘Oh hang on a minute,’ she said in an exasperated voice. Reining Cirrus in sharply, she leapt from the saddle and banged energetically on the nearest door to her.
After a lengthy pause the door opened a crack and a frightened looking face peered out at her.
‘Yes?’ the woman enquired apprehensively.
‘Sorry to bother you,’ said Mistral in a voice that clearly meant she wasn’t. ‘But has Mage Grapple and an army of warlocks been through here in the last couple of days?’
The woman’s eyes grew huge, ‘M-Mage Grapple?’ she stuttered uncertainly.
‘Yes,’ snapped Mistral. ‘You know, Head of the Council. Well? Been here has he?’
The woman made to close the door in Mistral’s face but she quickly rammed her boot into the gap, forcing it open.
‘I’m not going until you answer me,’ she growled threateningly.
The woman shook her head, wide-eyed with fear.
‘You sure?’ Mistral asked in a hard voice. ‘Only I would hate to have to come back and ask again.’
‘I swear! I swear! Mage Grapple hasn’t been here!’ the woman wailed with tears in her eyes.
Mistral nodded in satisfaction, ‘Thank you,’ she said coldly before lifting her foot out of the woman’s door and letting her close it with a resounding bang.
‘Nicely handled,’ said Phantom approvingly. ‘Really good display of people skills, have you ever considered a career in politics?’
Mistral glowered at them both and leapt back onto Cirrus, pushing him into a gallop along the main street in her eagerness to leave Nevelte far behind her, hopefully for the last time.
The Story Of The Gemini
They made camp sooner than Mistral would have liked that evening due to the twins’ sudden desire to have an early night.
‘Come on! We can make more ground before the sun sets,’ she argued, frowning in frustration at the ill-looking pair.
Phantasm groaned and lowered himself slowly from Jupiter’s back, ‘No, Mistral,’ he muttered in a pained voice. ‘I can’t ride another step, we’re camping and that’s final.’
‘We’ll make the time up tomorrow.’ Phantom promised weakly.
‘Make the time up? What do you think we’re doing? Shift work?’ Mistral demanded angrily.
Phantasm pressed his hands to his head, ‘Please … don’t shout –’
Mistral drew in a deep breath and glared furiously at them, ‘Fine,’ she snapped. ‘I’m going to hunt for dinner. Try and make a fire or do something useful by the time I get back.’
The twins watched her disappear into the woods and didn’t speak until they could no longer make out the dark shape of Cirrus amongst the trees.
‘Has she gone?’ asked Phantasm faintly.
‘Yes,’ confirmed Phantom with a deep sigh.
‘Thank goodness for that.’ Phantasm sank gratefully onto the grass. ‘She can be very … demanding.’
Phantom looked in askance at his brother lying with his eyes closed, ‘I’ll make the fire then shall I?’ he snapped.
‘Please,’ said Phantasm opening one eye a fraction. ‘I don’t feel up to moving at the minute –’
The night passed without event. Mistral brought back a couple of rabbits which she skinned whilst sitting next to the fire, much to the twins obvious discomfort.
‘Do you have to do that here?’ asked Phantasm looking queasy.
‘Need the light, sorry,’ she muttered tersely, throwing the hides into the nearby undergrowth.
Strangely, neither of the twins felt like eating much and Mistral gorged herself on roast rabbit before having an enforced early night. Rolled in her cloak, Mistral tried to get comfortable on the hard ground but sleep proved elusive and she lay for a long while with only her thoughts for company. Seeing Nevelte again had made her think of all the times she had tried to escape her dull existence by running off to live in The Velvet Forests for days, sometimes weeks at a time. Mistral smiled at the memory of the girl who had always felt more at home sleeping out under the spreading canopy of trees than in a bed under a roof.
Mistral awoke stiff and cold at dawn the next day; the down side to sleeping out in the open. She looked over at the twins to see them both still fast asleep. Mistral knew she wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep, there was too much noise. The birds were singing so loudly she couldn’t believe the twins were sleeping through it. Deciding that a good breakfast might sort out their delicate constitutions, Mistral quickly bundled up her cloak and went to saddle Cirrus for another hunting trip.
Mistral had still not returned by the time the twins awoke an hour later.
‘What time is it? Phantasm asked groggily rising to his feet and yawning.
‘I don’t care,’ moaned Phantom in a low voice, dragging his cloak over his head.
‘Let’s get sorted out before Mistral gets back. I can’t face her shouting at us again,’ urged Phantasm tugging the cloak from his brother’s face.
‘Good point,’ conceded Phantom getting reluctantly to his feet and rubbing his face blearily. ‘Is there a stream near here?’
Feeling marginally better after an invigorating wash in the stream, the twins returned to the camp and began to pack up ready for when Mistral returned.
‘Where do you think she’s gone?’ Phantom asked while he rolled up his cloak.
‘Probably to kill something,’ replied Phantasm shortly. ‘She was in a rather challenging mood yesterday.’
Phantom cringed, ‘Please don’t mention yesterday. I was hoping that was just a bad dream.’
‘Sorry brother.’ Phantasm looked glumly at his twin. ‘I think that I rather let the cat out of the bag. Let’s just hope Mistral’s forgotten about it.’
Phantom’s eyebrows twitched dubiously but he said nothing and they continued to pack in silence. Mistral returned a short while later laden with more rabbits. Leaving Cirrus to graze she strolled nonchalantly over to where the twins were sitting with their backs pressed up against the broad trunk of an oak tree.
‘Breakfast?’ she enquired cheerfully waggling a pair of rabbits at them.
Encouraged by her apparent good mood, the twins nodded eagerly.
‘I’ll get this going again,’ said Phantom, getting to his feet and walking over
to the remnants of last night’s fire.
‘Thanks Wes.’ Mistral sighed gratefully and sat down to skin the rabbits.
Phantom froze and shot his brother a foul look.
‘Er, Mistral, about yesterday,’ began Phantasm hesitantly.
‘Hmm?’ Mistral didn’t look up from the rabbit she was skinning.
‘Well, about the whole name thing ... I was wondering if we could agree never to mention the subject ever again?’ he asked, looking at her beseechingly.
Mistral gazed back at him evenly, ‘Oh, I don’t think I could do that,’ she murmured, giving him a small smile. ‘After all, you did want to meet Brothertoft so very much and find out all about me, so I only think it’s fair that I get something in return.’
The twins looked at each other, totally aghast as the truth sank in. They were being blackmailed.
‘What do you want?’ Phantasm asked weakly.
Mistral speared the rabbit she had skinned on a stick and passed it to Phantom to cook over the fire.
‘I think,’ she said turning to look at Phantasm thoughtfully, ‘that I would like to know all about your upbringing, in particular, your mother.’
There was an awful, billowing silence in which the twins stared at her with stricken expressions on their faces. Their looks were so agonised that Mistral almost withdrew her request, but then she remembered how Phantasm has mercilessly plied Brothertoft with cider to encourage him to talk and forced herself to remain firm.
The fire crackled and spat as fat from the cooking rabbit dropped into the flames, breaking the silence. Mistral looked at Phantasm and lifted an eyebrow.
‘I’m waiting for my answer,’ she reminded him archly.
Phantasm rubbed his hands over his face looking uncharacteristically flustered. Phantom stared at him with a worried expression on his face.
‘Oh, alright then,’ he finally conceded, ignoring Phantom’s groan. ‘But not before we’ve eaten. I don’t think I could face an inquisition on an empty stomach.’
Mistral grinned and passed the second rabbit to Phantom, ‘No problem! Roast rabbit coming up!’
Fortified by rabbit and rye bread, the twins felt almost ready to face the day. While Mistral doused the fire with earth and checked the campsite was clear they went to tack their horses.
‘This is going to be hell,’ muttered Phantom to his brother and threw a saddle bad-temperedly onto his horse.
‘Look, it’s entirely my fault, I know, so it’s only fair that I answer all the questions,’ Phantasm responded in a conciliatory tone. ‘Happy now?’
Phantom looked slightly mollified and bent to buckle the girth. ‘Not really, I would be happy if you hadn’t gone and blabbed about those hideous names mother dumped on us!’
Phantasm sighed and hoped that Mistral wasn’t as good at asking questions as she was hunting.
The moment Mistral swung her leg across the saddle and gathered up the reins she turned and fixed Phantasm with a look of anticipation.
‘Tell me everything.’
Phantasm stared wordlessly at her for a moment, ‘What, no questions? You just want me to start from the beginning?’ he asked with a frown.
Mistral nodded and smiled smugly.
Phantasm cast his eyes upwards and drew in a deep breath before glancing quickly at his brother for reassurance. He was dismayed to see that Phantom was keeping his eyes steadily fixed on his horse’s ears.
‘Oh fine.’
They began to ride at a steady walk, moving out of the shade of the trees and across a wide meadow while Phantasm began to tell Mistral their story.
‘Well, our mother, Melsina, was – is – a sylvad from a large tribe in the Dawn Forest. A celebrated beauty in her time but none of the tribe was ever quite good enough for her. She had ambitions of leaving her woodland tribe and took the chance to realise them when she met a Mage travelling through the forests. Of course he fell in love with her instantly; she was very beguiling. He wooed her relentlessly for what I’m sure she considered to be an appropriate amount of time before she submitted to his marriage proposal and promptly left the tribe to live in the Council’s northern stronghold. Her new husband was much older than her but she didn’t care, he was her one opportunity to leave the tribe. His name was Preston Argyle, and he held quite a high position on the Mage Council, so mother instantly had prestige.
‘Mother took to Council life as if she was born to it; the endless galas, the clothes, the dinners, the petty gossip. She thrived on it. And then my brother and I came along. Preston couldn’t be prouder at having twin sons and insisted on us being integrated into every aspect of Council life. We were given acceptable names,’ Phantasm paused and shuddered, ‘and educated in the Council school alongside all the Mage born children.’
Phantasm paused again and Mistral wondered how hard that must have been for them both, to have been forced to try and fit in when they were so obviously different from the other children.
‘Anyway, the whole house of cards came crashing down when Preston selfishly died of a heart attack at one of their indulgent functions. It turned out that Preston wasn’t as rich as he made out and left a pile of debts instead of a fat legacy. Mother was instantly ostracized by all her so called friends; she’d only really been tolerated because of her husband’s high standing. She was friendless and practically destitute but still couldn’t bear the thought returning to tribal life so she accepted the first suitor that came knocking on her door. Well, he wasn’t interested in raising somebody else’s half-breeds and told her flatly that it was us or him.’
Phantasm had stopped again and Mistral looked at him, his face was hard and she immediately felt guilty for forcing him into talking about such a distressing memory. Everyone who came to train in the Valley had a story of pain and rejection to tell, which was precisely why it was a taboo subject amongst the apprentices.
Phantasm drew in a deep breath and shrugged his shoulders, ‘Anyway, mother made her choice. We were sent back to the tribe to be raised there and she became Mrs De’ath. My brother and I couldn’t take to the tribe’s way of life and they couldn’t take to us. We were too used to good food and hot baths, not hunting and fighting. We stayed for a couple of years while we made our minds up on what to do with our lives and finally decided to pursue a career through the Ri. Laughable really, when you consider that neither my brother not I liked hunting or fighting, but we had a plan you see. We would train as warriors initially then spend a second year honing our gift specifically to work in the Council – for the highest payer that is. The Council turned its back on our mother and us when we needed them and I have no qualms about making money at their expense. And with our skills, my brother and I will be in great demand.’
Mistral raised her eyebrows in surprise; she had never considered that their ambitions were driven by revenge.
‘My brother and I knew from an early age that we were … different. We found that when we thought of the same thing at the same time we could make it happen. I suppose we really realised the full potential of our gift when we were at school and used it to stop the other children bullying us. Mother called it the power of positive thought. She said she’d done the same thing to meet our father – wished hard for something to happen and it did. I’ve often suspected that she has a latent gift but never developed it.’
Phantasm stopped talking and lapsed into a brooding silence. Mistral rode along quietly beside him for a while, thinking about everything he had said.
‘Where’s your mother now?’ Mistral asked, breaking the silence.
Phantasm sighed and shrugged his shoulders. ‘She still lives in the house that our father owned but she travels quite a lot with her new husband, Vilius De’ath. He’s a Foreign Ambassador for the Council.’
They rode in silence for a while. The sun arced overhead and began to drop as the afternoon wore on. They were travelling alongside the outskirts of The Velvet Forests, heeding Leo’s warning not to cut through.
�
�Tell me about the boy who dared to ask you out,’ said Phantasm suddenly.
Mistral looked at him dubiously, ‘Really?’
‘Yes, really. I can’t imagine anyone brave enough to do that. He must have been a goliath or something!’
Mistral shook her head and laughed, ‘No, no quite the opposite, I think he was in training to be the village idiot actually. Anyway, he wouldn’t take no for an answer at first, but finally got the hint after I knocked two of his teeth out.’
Phantasm pulled a sympathetic face, ‘Poor boy, prepared to suffer for love.’
‘Love is for fools,’ said Mistral scathingly.
Phantasm shot her a pitying look, ‘You don’t really think that do you?’
Mistral considered for a moment, ‘No, I guess not. I love Cirrus, so I suppose I’m not totally immune.’
Phantasm and Phantom both laughed and Mistral joined them. The atmosphere suddenly became more relaxed.
‘Do you think we can do this?’ Mistral suddenly asked.
The twins looked at her; they knew she wasn’t talking about the ride.
‘What, meet with Mage Grapple and persuade him not to protect his only sister from an army of Ri mercenaries?’ asked Phantom lightly.
Mistral sighed, ‘I know it sounds improbable. Just what is this Contract all about?’
‘You know my thoughts,’ said Phantasm softly. ‘And I’ve thought about it non-stop since we took the damned thing. But even with my take on things, it just doesn’t add up. There’s a piece of the puzzle missing –’
‘A piece with dark hair and lack of a winning smile,’ muttered Phantom sarcastically.
Mistral knew he was referring to the brooding figure of Fabian De Winter and felt her heart quicken.
‘Well, I don’t know about you but I think it’s time for something to eat. Shall we make camp?’ Mistral said abruptly and started looking around at their surroundings for a suitable site.
The twins shared a perplexed look but didn’t pursue it.
‘Fine by me,’ said Phantom, lowering himself down from the saddle with a groan. ‘I think I’m allergic to cider.’
The Assassin's Tale (Isle of Dreams) Page 28