Wrede, Patricia C. - Magician Series 1 - Mairelon the Magician

by Mairelon the Magician [lit]

  "Send the girl with a message," St Clair replied "She can

  tell Merrill's man that Mernll wants the bowl brought here to

  help locate the platter He'll believe that"

  217

  "Not if she's the one telling him," Dan responded with a

  contemptuous glance at the quivering Marianne "Besides, I

  wouldn't tmst her to keep her story straight"

  "Not that girl," St Clair said "The one you've cast the

  control spell on " He gestured at Kirn

  Kirn swallowed hard, half terrified that Dan knew her se-

  cret at last and half hoping against hope that he would adopt

  Lord St Clair's suggestion If she could get away and warn

  Hunch . .

  "Ah," said Dan on a long, slow breath, staring at Kim

  "Yes, perhaps that would be a good idea "

  "Hunch won't believe Kim," Mairelon said a little too

  quickly "He doesn't trust her "

  "No?" Dan said "Kim, tell the truth could you make Mer-

  rill's man believe you?"

  "Yes," Kim said, trying to sound sullen and reluctant "He'll

  believe me "

  "Good." Dan gave her a slow smile that chilled her to the

  bone. "We'll discuss the other business later You know what I

  mean Meanwhile, we'll wait here while you go—"

  "No!" Marianne cried

  Everyone turned to look at her. She cringed back against

  Freddy and said, "We can't stay any longer, we can'ti It's

  nearly teatime, and Lady Granleigh wilt look for me and

  find ..." She faltered to a stop under the circle of astonished

  stares and buned her face against Freddy's coat once more,

  her shoulders shaking with sobs

  "Find what?" St Clair asked "Find you gone? Embarrassing

  and unfortunate, to be sure, but it's too late to do anything

  about it now "

  "Even if we would let you," Dan added.

  Marianne turned a damp face to the group once more and

  said defiantly, "Freddy and I are going to be marriedi"

  318

  "Oh, Lord," said Jonathan "Freddy, you fool' Your uncle

  will cut you off with a shilling'"

  "It don't matter," Freddy said "Rather have Marianne than a

  whole mountain of shillings "

  "Congratulations," St Clair said politely "I fear you'll have

  to postpone your arrangements a little, however We can't

  just let you go, you know "

  "But you must!" Marianne cried "I—oh, you must' You

  must'"

  "Are you trying to say that you left a note for your guard-

  ian?" Mairelon asked

  "Ohi" Marianne turned back to Freddy's comforting shoul-

  der and hid her face against his by now damp and wrinkled

  coat Safely hidden from hostile eyes, she nodded. In the

  silence that followed, the noise of an approaching horse came

  clearly from the drive outside

  219

  TWENTY-TWO

  "^"W^ K. T ° one ^Q^e as the hoofbeats grew louder

  w^'^ IN and slowed to a walk "Hi, you there, wake

  f r up," someone shouted "Who's here'?"

  "Putting Ben to sleep may not have been one of your best

  ideas," Mairelon said to Lord St Clair "Is he the sort that

  wakes up cross, do you suppose?"

  "He won't wake up at all until I let him," St Clair said "Be

  quiet, Men-ill "

  "You take a deal of liberty with my men," Dan Laverham

  observed

  "1 am only following your example," Lord St Clair replied

  sweetly "Your handling of my former footman, James Fenton,

  for instance, left much to be—"

  "Austen' Edwardi George'" the voice outside shouted, com-

  ing nearer with every name "Out and about, you're needed

  Jon's gone and been thrown by that fire-breathing nag of his,

  and—Jonathan'"

  The lodge door had been flung open during the latter part

  of this speech, revealing the speaker as Robert Chomiet He

  stopped short when he saw Jonathan, then said in a more

  220

  moderate tone, "I'm glad to see you weren't hurt, but you

  might have sent a message home Your mother was frantic

  when your horse turned up without you "

  "She's always frantic," Jonathan said callously "She should

  know better, and so should you How did she talk you into

  haring off after me">"

  "Well, what was 1 supposed to do^" Robert asked "There

  was the horse, all over lather and frightened out of its wits,

  with an empty saddle The obvious assumption was that you'd

  been thrown For all we knew, you were lying under a hedge

  somewhere with a broken leg "

  "You didn't tell me you'd taken a toss, Jon," Freddy put in

  with interest "That'll teach you not to call names I've told

  you and told you, it's the sort of thing that can happen to

  anyone "

  "I didn't take a toss," Jonathan snarled "And even if i had,

  I'd still say you're cow-handed, because you are "

  "Don't you say that about Freddy!" Marianne said, raising

  her head and looking daggers at Jonathan

  "Can't you keep them under control?" Lord St Clair asked

  Dan, while Jonathan, Freddy, and Marianne embarked on a

  noisy quarrel that relieved their feelings even if it accom-

  plished nothing else "None of us will ever get anything done

  at this rate."

  Dan gave St Clair a glare that should have melted steel "If

  you think you can do better, you're welcomed to try "

  "Here, you loti" Jack shouted, waving his pistol "Stow your

  gob and listen to Mr Laverham'"

  This command did not produce the desired result Instead,

  Freddy and Jonathan turned on Jack, demanding an apology

  for the interruption Dan was obliged to intervene to keep

  Jack from shooting Freddy out of hand, while Robert did his

  best to distract the other combatants Unfortunately, Jack's

  221

  threats were all too clear to Marianne, who immediately went

  into strong hysterics

  Lord St Clair stood calmly watching, as if he were observ-

  ing a raree show that did not please him above half, though

  he made a point of keeping an eye on Mairelon as well as the

  row in the middle of the room Kim realized suddenly that,

  for the time being, no one was watching fcer She slid quietly

  behind a tall chair and crouched down, eyeing the path to

  the door Two more chairs and a card table provided some

  concealment, but she would have to cross an open stretch of

  floor to reach the exit itself Kim shrugged and began mov-

  ing

  She was not even halfway to her goal when the door swung

  open yet again 'Villain! Unhand that girt'" cned Jasper Mar-

  ston as he strode into the room He stopped short, looking

  completely nonplussed, as he took in the scene in front of

  him

  The noise died as the adversaries became aware of their

  new audience and turned to stare at him "Ah, Mr MarstonI"

  Mairelon said cheerfully "I'm afraid you'll have to be more

  specific about whom you were addressing There are several

  persons present who admirably fit the description 'villain '

  Which of them did you have in mind?"

  "Really?" Robert Choimet said "You mean this isn't all one

&nb
sp; of Jon's queer starts?"

  "My queer starts? What do you mean, my queer starts? Are

  you saying you think 1 arranged all this^"

  "It has all the earmarks I mean, just look at those two—

  waving pistols all over the lodge and threatening Freddy, of

  alt people How do you expect me to take it seriously?"

  "You'd better," Dan said He sounded a little wild, and Kim

  was glad to be out of sight behind the card table "Get over in

  the corner there, all of you, and be 0iirt You, too, Marston,

  or whatever your name is "

  222

  "Ah, I don't want any trouble," Jasper said, eyeing Dan's

  pistol with misgiving "I'll just leave quietly It's no problem,

  really "

  "Yes, it is," Dan said, recovering himself somewhat "Into

  the corner "

  "'Ere, now, what's all this, then^" a deep, slow voice said

  from the doorway

  "I should think it was perfectly plain, even to someone of

  your limited understanding, Stuggs," a female voice answered

  acidly "My brother has bungled things again "

  "Lady Cranleigh'" gasped Mananne She turned as white as

  St Clair's cravat and fainted into Freddy's arms Unfor-

  tunately, Freddy was as dumbfounded as she by the new ar-

  rivals, and he failed to catch her in time He overbalanced,

  and the two of them toppled backward into a chair and

  crashed to the floor in a shower of splinters

  Mairelon sank onto a nearby footstool, propped his head

  on his bound hands, and began to laugh Lady Granleigh

  gave him a look of displeasure and marched into the room,

  followed by Stuggs Her gaze swept imperiously around the

  assembly, barely checking at the sight of the pistols Dan and

  Jack still held She passed over the struggling Freddy and the

  unconscious Mananne, dismissed Jonathan and Robert as in-

  consequential, and fixed at last on Lord St Clair

  "Good day, St Clair," Lady Cranleigh said with a dignity

  that did not conceal her annoyance

  "Lady Granleigh," Lord St Clair responded, nodding a cor

  dial greeting

  Below the table, Kim ground her teeth and made a rude

  gesture with her left hand Lady Granteigh had left the door

  wide open but tempting as the sight was, Kim still could not

  reach it Lady Cranleigh had stopped too close to the door,

  and what little space she had left was taken up by the overly

  large Stuggs

  223

  "I confess I had not expected to find you here, but I thank

  you for your efforts on behalf of my ward," Lady Cranleigh

  went on, smiling insincerely at Lord St Clair

  "Effortsi" Freddy said, outraged He extracted himself from

  the tangle at last, with some help from Jonathan, and climbed

  to his feet, staring at St Clair the whole time "What efforts?

  He ain't done anything but stand there and annoy people "

  "Your conduct hardly bears examination, Mr Meredith,"

  Lady Cranleigh responded "I should be careful about casting

  aspersions, if I were you " She looked pointedly down at Mar-

  ianne

  Robert, who had knelt beside the unconscious girl and be-

  gun chafing her wnsts, glanced up and said to no one in

  particular, "Could one of you get a glass of wine?"

  "No, but there's brandy," Jonathan answered He started

  toward a small cabinet near the fireplace, but came face-to-

  face with Jack Stower before he had taken two steps Jack's

  pistols and threatening glare were eloquent Jonathan

  shrugged and went back to his original position

  "Aspersions' Well, 1 like that!" Freddy said to Lady

  Cranleigh, undaunted by her arrogance "I didn't barge in

  through a locked door without so much as a by-your-leave I

  didn't wave any pistols about or make any threats I didn't

  frighten any ladies into a fit of the vapors, and I didn't scare

  her straight into a faint'"

  "You lured Miss Thornley here," Jasper charged

  Robert looked up, visibly impressed "Did you really,

  Freddy^ 1 hadn't thought you had it in you "

  "I didn't lure anybody," Freddy protested

  "You made Miss Thornley extravagant promises you had no

  intention of fulfilling'" Jasper said

  "I dunno," Stuggs put in "'E don't took like the type, if you

  take my meaning "

  Jasper gave his henchman a withering look "Why else did

  224

  you bring Miss Thornley here, to this lonely place?" he de-

  manded, turning back to Freddy

  "Hardly lonely " Mairelon said in a low but clearly audible

  tone

  "Had to meet her somewhere," Freddy said reasonably "It

  would have looked dashed odd for me to pick the girl up off

  the side of the road "

  "No doubt," Jasper sneered with an ironic glance at Jack

  Stower's gun "You and your ruffians would have looked odd

  anywhere "

  Freddy frowned "Here, now' What are you insinuating"?"

  "1 think it is perfectly plain," Lady Granleigh said "If Lord

  St Clair and his friends had not arrived in time to stop you

  and your kidnappers, who knows what might have hap-

  pened?"

  "Marianne and I would have gotten married, that's what

  would have happened'" Freddy retorted, too angry to con-

  tinue trying to be polite "What's more, we're going to tie the

  knot as soon as we get out of here, no matter what you say "

  "Freddy, you're crazed'" Jonathan said

  "No, I ain't, and ! ain't as foolish as you think, either Got

  the special license right here in my pocket "

  "What'" Jasper's eyes widened, then he whirled to face his

  sister "Now see what you've done, Amelia' If you hadn't set

  the girl on to this buffoon, we wouldn't be in this pickle'"

  "Be quiet, Jasper'" Lady Granleigh commanded "There is

  no need for you to worry Lord St Clair, be so good as to

  have your men assist Miss Thornley into our coach After we

  have gone, you may deal with these felons as you see fit "

  Before St Clair could reply there was a loud crash Every-

  one jumped and turned Dan Laverham was standing beside

  one of the long windows, which he had just broken, his

  pistols leveled at the assembly

  "1 am afraid you have mistaken the situation. Lady

  225

  Cranleigh," he said. He stepped forward, and shards of glass

  crunched under his feet. His face was a cold, expressionless

  mask. "I am not in St. Clair's employ, nor have I the slightest

  interest in you, your ward, or any of your companions. I am

  here for one thing, and only one thing. Once I've got it, you

  may sort yourselves out in any manner that suits you. Until

  then, I have heard too much of your brainless chatter. I shall

  shoot the next person who speaks out of turn."

  St. Clair nodded- "Crude, but generally effective."

  "That includes you, St. Clair," Laverham said, glaring.

  Lady Granleigh drew in her breath at this breach of man-

  ners, which seemed to disturb her more than Dan's pistols,

  St. Clair smiled, but said nothing-

  "Much better," Laverham went on. "Now, you, the high-

  wayman. Is there somewhere in th
is pile to lock up this lot of

  lunatics while we search the rest of it?"

  "Highwayman?" Freddy said with interest. "I say, Jon, you

  never told us anything about—" He broke off as one of Dan's

  pistols swung in his direction.

  "There are private rooms upstairs," said Jonathan sullenly, "I

  think one of them has a lock."

  "The one on the end," Freddy put in- "But it's broken. The

  lock, I mean."

  "This is an outrage!" Lady Granleigh said, finding her

  voice- "Who is this person? Lord St. Ctair—"

  "I told you to be quiet," Dan said. "Get over there with the

  others."

  "Better do as 'e says, mum," Stuggs warned. "'E looks the

  sort as 'ud do you without blinkin'."

  Kirn held her breath as Lady Granteigh, stiff with disap-

  proval, moved away from the door at last. Now, if they

  would all stay busy at the other end of the room for a few

  minutes longer . . ,

  A shadow fell across the doorsill. Kim frowned and sank

  226

  back into her uncomfortable half-crouch. Had Lady

  Granleigh brought a coachman, or had Ben awakened in spite

  of Lord St. Clair's precautionary spell? Either way, she would