City of Lies
Page 19
She saw the beginnings of disbelief on Toadspit’s face and hurried on. “I lost the skill when the Big Lie stopped. I don’t know why. It just went. You may as well keep them.”
The cat gazed at her, its eyes dark and knowing.
“I haven’t forgotten,” said Bonnie.
Toadspit laughed. “We saw that.” Then his face grew serious again. “I haven’t forgotten either. It doesn’t seem fair.”
Goldie forced a smile. “I don’t mind. Really.”
She was glad when they snatched the weapons up and carried them away. She was glad too when the cat fell asleep on a coil of rope. She wished she could sleep, but she was wide awake now.
It wasn’t easy to fool Toadspit. She had only been able to do it because he wanted the sword so much. She hadn’t forgotten how to use it. She hadn’t forgotten a thing that had happened during the Big Lie. Her hands and mind and heart remembered every skillful movement of sword and bow.
Even now a part of her wanted to jump up and snatch the weapons away from her friends. To wrap her fingers around the hilt of the sword, and feel that glorious weight in her hand …
Frisia.
The Lie had ended, but the princess’s voice was still there inside her. And so was her love of war and fighting.
Goldie gritted her teeth. There were things she admired about the princess, but the love of war was not one of them. As far as Goldie could see, the main thing that happened in war was that ordinary people had their lives torn apart for no good reason.
But Frisia’s fate-telling had been meant for her as well, she knew that now. The fire was the Fugleman. The household that he threatened to destroy was Jewel. And she must not hold back.
The trouble was, the princess’s love of war wasn’t the only thing that she carried hidden inside her. The wolf-sark was there too, ready to blaze up as soon as she drew the sword. She had nearly killed Mouse because of it. Who might she kill if it happened again?
She shuddered. It was better to give her weapons away.
“Hey, Princess,” shouted Smudge, interrupting her thoughts. “Am I really the captain, like you said?”
He had been holding the tiller on a steady course for some time, and had apparently accepted what had happened. But Goldie knew they would have to watch him. Just as they would have to watch Pounce. She would not let herself be betrayed again.
“I’m not a princess,” she shouted.
“What are ya, then? Who are ya?”
Goldie drew in a long breath. She didn’t know what they would find when they reached Jewel, but if Guardian Hope had told the truth about the mercenaries, it seemed likely that there would be a war of one sort or another. And she and Toadspit and Bonnie would be caught up in it.
She would not glory in it, like Frisia did. She would not wield a sword or a bow if she could possibly help it. But neither would she hold back. She would fight the Fugleman in her own way, and with all her strength.
Who was she? What was she? She wrapped her fingers around her bird brooch. There was only one possible answer.
“I’m Goldie Roth,” she cried. “I’m Fifth Keeper of the Museum of Dunt!”
The Fugleman was being unchained from the desk for the last time. His guards, of course, did not know that it was the last time. He took care not to let them see the smile of anticipation that flickered across his face.
They were not smiling. There had been no further messages from Spoke, and it was clear that something had gone wrong with the rescue. The children were lost, perhaps even dead. The guards muttered among themselves, trying to decide who was responsible.
They blamed the mysterious Harrow. With a little encouragement from the Fugleman, they blamed the Protector. They blamed everyone except the Fugleman himself.
Which was exactly as it should be.
When the first shots sounded in the distance, they almost fell over with astonishment. The Fugleman could see it on their faces. Gunfire? In Jewel?
“Don’t mind me,” he murmured. “I’m sure it is your duty to go and see what is happening. Just lock me in my cell and I’ll be here when you return.”
They did as he told them, fools that they were. He waited until he could no longer hear their voices; then he strode to the middle of the cell and, for the first time in days, drew himself up to his full height. The mask of false humility fell away. He raised his fists in the air—and laughed. He was the Fugleman, the leader of the Blessed Guardians and spokesman for the Seven Gods!
Soon his mercenaries would fight their way to his side. The moment they freed him, he would go and visit his dear sister.
He laughed again, glorying in the thought of what was to come. This was surely the end for the Protector! But for him it was just the beginning.…
LOOK FOR BOOK I IN THE KEEPERS TRILOGY
Discover Where It All Began in
MUSEUM of THIEVES
Welcome to the tyrannical city of Jewel, where impatience is a sin and boldness is a crime.
Goldie Roth has lived in Jewel all her life. Like every child in the city, she wears a silver guardchain and is forced to obey the dreaded Blessed Guardians. She has never done anything by herself and won’t be allowed out on the streets unchained until Separation Day.
When Separation Day is canceled, Goldie, who has always been both impatient and bold, runs away, risking not only her own life but also the lives of those she has left behind. In the chaos that follows, she is lured to the mysterious Museum of Dunt, where she meets the boy Toadspit and discovers terrible secrets. Only the cunning mind of a thief can understand the museum’s strange, shifting rooms. Fortunately, Goldie has a talent for thieving. Which is just as well, because the leader of the Blessed Guardians has his own plans for the museum—plans that threaten the lives of everyone Goldie loves. And it will take quite a daring thief to stop him.…
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many thanks once again to Peter Matheson for his feedback on the various drafts of City of Lies—and for the idea that Frisia’s sword might come out the other end of a Big Lie.
Thanks also to the talented and enthusiastic people at Delacorte Press, particularly editor Michelle Poploff, designer Kenny Holcomb, publicist Dominique Cimina, and Lauren Flower, who oversaw the creation of the stunning series website.
Jon Foster painted another of his beautiful covers for this book, and Sebastian Ciaffaglione’s internal illustrations gave Goldie, her friends and enemies an extra dimension. Eva Mills and Susannah Chambers from Allen & Unwin kindly worked with me on the structural edit.
And finally, I am indebted as always to my two agents, Margaret Connolly in Australia and Jill Grinberg in the United States.
Thank you all.
LIAN TANNER is a children’s author and playwright. She has worked as a teacher in Australia and Papua New Guinea, as well as a tourist bus driver, a freelance journalist, a juggler, a community arts worker, an editor, and a professional actor. It took her a while to realize that all of these jobs were really just preparation for being a writer. Nowadays she lives in southern Tasmania with a small tabby cat and lots of friendly neighborhood dogs. She has not yet mastered the art of Concealment by the Imitation of Nothingness, but she is quite good at Camouflage. Lian Tanner’s Museum of Thieves, the first book in the Keepers Trilogy, is available from Delacorte Press.