Diadem from the Stars (5 page)

Hands opening and closing spasmodically, her pale gold face flushed an ugly mottled red, Qumri stalked out of the entranceway. Her eyes fixed on the object of her hatred, she demanded again, “Rusvai, who is he?” Each step she took toward Aleytys she spit out another phrase. “Who woke the curse … who breaks our house? Curse … you … your bitch mother.…”

“Salkurdeh khatu!” The man's deep voice broke into the ugly scene, startling Aleytys so that she bumped her head hard against the tree as she whipped around toward him. “Ahai, Ziraki!” She blinked and shook her head to clear it. Then she looked at Qumri and gasped. The angry woman's body wilted and the color drained from her face. She looked back at Ziraki. His face was as red as if the color had leaped from Qumri to him. Frown lines ran in tier on tier of wrinkles from the corners of his eyes to his nose, from his nose to the corners of his mouth, from his mouth down under his pointed chin.

“Come here,” he snapped, crooking his finger at her.

Puzzled and a little apprehensive, she edged over to him, still watching Qumri out of the corners of her eyes.

“You. Qumri.” She lowered her hooded eyes and wouldn't look at him. “You've said too much already, woman. Taklif waits for your hands. Azdar may want to see you later.”

Walking like a tired old mundarik Qumri plodded across the grass and vanished into the house.

Aleytys scrubbed the end of her sleeve across her sweaty face. “Thanks, Ziraki.”

“Follow me,” he said in a colorless voice. He turned and strode for the nearest door. Inside the house he stopped in front of the records room. “Go in and sit down.”

She hurried past him and stood beside the long table.

“Sit down.” He watched her from the doorway.

Nervously she pulled out the chair and dropped into it. She glanced at him out of the corners of her eyes, then set shaking hands on the table, folding them together.

“Aleytys.” He said her name sharply, spitting it out as if he found the syllables upsetting.

“Yes?” She kept her eyes on her hands.

“The shura' have called a mulaqat in the finjan Topaz.”

“Yes?”

“You're not to go.”

She jerked around and stared at him in astonishment. “What?”

“Azdar commands. Forget about your assigned work. Go to your room now and stay out of sight. I'll send an asiri with your lunch.”

“But …” She jumped to her feet. “I have the right.”

Ziraki pinched his lips together. “Aleytys, don't argue. This is no time to stand on your rights. If you try to go …” He shrugged. “You saw Qumri. You want to face that multiplied by hundreds?”

Aleytys swallowed. She stared stubbornly down at her clenched hands. “He should tell me himself.”

“Sabbiyya,” he said brusquely. “You're not stupid.”

“Hah!” Her laugh was short, shaky. “Ziraki …”

“I can't answer any questions, Aleytys, so don't ask.” He moved closer and touched her head lightly. “Be sure to keep out of the way for the next few days. Just to be safe.” He stepped back until he was out in the hall. “Just give us a little time to settle down.”

After he left the room Aleytys sat down again. “What a day,” she sighed. She leaned back and let her tired arms dangle. Softness flowed past her ankles, then brushed back again with a small
mrowrr.

“Mooli,” she said with delight and got an answering
mrowrr.
She scooped the vibrating furry body into her lap. The gurb twisted around in her hands and swiped her small rough tongue over the fingers holding her. “Mooli, Mooli,” Aleytys crooned, stroking her fingers across the thick russet fur, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, until her anger and tension drifted away.

5

Aleytys sat up and leaned over Twanit. She was breathing deeply and steadily and seemed likely to continue that way till dawn. Every third intake was a low gurgling rattle, a semisnore no louder than a mouse-squeak.

As Aleytys swung her legs over the side of the bed, the leather lacing supporting the mattress creaked loudly. She dived off onto the floor and held her breath, a muscle twitching at the corner of her mouth. Twanit didn't stir. Her breathing clockworked on, in-out, in-out, without a break. Aleytys sighed with relief and pulled the heavy nightgown over her head. Shivering in the cold air of the room, she folded it up and tucked it neatly under her pillow.

Bare feet flinching from the cold floor, heart bumping, she slipped along the wall and slid the panel back. She scrambled into the first abba that came to hand and fastened the ties with shaking fingers. Then she closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. “Plenty of time …” she whispered. “There's plenty of time.…”

She shoved her hair back off her face. “Perfume … got to have perfume.…” She rummaged in the closet, running her hands lightly over the bottles, jumping slightly each time they clanked together. At last she found the right one and pulled the cork. With fingers trembling in excitement she rubbed the scent every place she could think of, her blood heating up again as the prickle of the liquid started shivers in her skin.

Her sense of the ridiculous suddenly reasserted itself. As she shoved the cork back into the bottle, her stomach was rippling with suppressed laughter.
You could track me by smell alone,
she thought.
Idiot
.…

Out in the hall the night candles were burned halfway down. Twisting shadows danced on the walls like nightmare monsters hunching over her. She swallowed nervously. Running on her toes, she slanted across to the stairs and bolted down them. Even the almost soundless patter of her bare feet sounded like gong-strokes in her cringing ears.

In the patio she stopped for a moment by the housetree and stroked the glistening bark. “For luck, aziz,” she whispered. Reluctantly she pulled away from the tree and sped through the entranceway tunnel.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped onto the roadway. The cold soggy sand, wet from the evening rain, squished between her toes while above her head the horan branches flickered back and forth in the light wind and whispered words at her just beyond the threshold of hearing, as though she could understand all the terrible things they were saying if she just listened a little harder. All around her the moon-shadows danced phantomlike across the pale earth and she fled through them, the rhythms of her ragged breathing a discord in the quiet pattern of night sounds.

Her bare foot splatted down on the bridge with a sound obscenely loud in her straining ears. She gasped and ran up the arch. In the middle of the bridge she paused to catch her breath and leaned against the smooth rail, shaking like those wind-tossed leaves.

The murmur of the water drifted into her head, comforting her now as it had done so many times before. She sighed and rested on her elbows, watching the water. The river at night had a strange fascination … silver swirling current lines, deep black on black layers of shadow, moving, altering, sliding away beneath her. It whispered to her, the sound flowing like balm over her quivering nerves and melting into the marrow of her bones. She seemed to dissolve through her skin, scattering along the jewel-bright water like moonbeams dancing on the surface … insect wants and busy hungers caught at bits of her … and the long cool thoughts … lives … of the trees … and far-off feral greeds.… Time … time stretched out … out … out … and snapped!

She gasped and swung around to look at the black bulk of the house. It rested solid and silent against the diamond-bright dust lighting the night blackness of the sky. She shivered again as the whispering leaves rasped across naked nerves. Moving swiftly she slid into the concealing shadows of the trees growing on the far bank of the river.

At the old horan she put her hand on the gnarled trunk and called softly, “Vajd?”

The river murmured past and the night around her was filled with mysterious creaks and rustles.

Aleytys hugged the tree and closed her eyes. “Vajd?” Still no answer. Fear was a cold and growing lump in the region of her stomach. If he didn't come …

“Leyta?” The whisper hissed past her ear.

She clutched at the tree, pressing herself tight against the rough bark.

“Hai …” He scrambled down to her and lifted her into his arms. “Poor little gurb.”

Gentled aaginst his chest she tried to answer, but her teeth chattered so loudly she couldn't force the words past them.

“Just be quiet, love. Relax … we've the whole night.…” He held her close and stroked gentle hands over her hair and down her back.

Gradually the chill warmed away. She sucked in a long unsteady breath and let it trickle out again. Lifting her head from his chest, she touched his cheek with her fingertips, then sighing with intense satisfaction, she snuggled down against his strong warm body. “It's been a hellish day.”

“I know, Leyta, I know.”

She tilted her head back. “What happened at the malaqat?”

He didn't answer but his face looked grim.

“As bad as that?”

He tightened his arms around her and dropped a light kiss where her hair parted. “As bad as it could be.”

“Um. Hadn't you better tell me?” She trailed her fingers back and forth across his hands, slightly distracted by the hard strong feel of skin and muscle. “Vajd-mi?”

He nodded but seemed reluctant to begin. She could hear his heart beating fast under her ear.

“Well?” She wriggled impatiently. “Azdar kept me shut up in my room all day. Twanit was too scared to say anything. After she came back from mulaqat, every time she looked at me she started crying, poor baby, but I found it very frustrating.” She shivered. The cold was beginning to slide up her legs.

“You're cold,” he said sharply. “Your hands are shaking.”

She pushed away from him and frowned. “Vajd!”

He laughed. “Not here, love.” He pushed her onto her feet and stood beside her. He stretched and yawned the vertical stripes on his black and silver abba shifting back and forth in the moonlight. “The finjan's out. Too far. Shall we join the horses?”

“Better horses then some snoopy idiot. Lot better.”

Vajd's teeth gleamed as he grinned down at her. “I forgot.” He reached for her hand. “You like animals.”

As they picked their way over the roots, Aleytys tightened her fingers around his and moved closer. “They're mostly nicer than people. At least to me.”

He slid his arm around her waist and propelled her ahead of him up the ramp to the stable door. When she tensed at the low rumble as he slid the door back, Vajd chuckled and rubbed his hand on her side. “Relax, love. All sensible people are warm in bed.”

She snorted and stalked into the stable. After sliding the door shut, he followed her. Around her she could hear soft snuffles and thumps as the horses shifted in momentary dreams. Although a little light crept in through dusty double windows high on each side of the long narrow building, she could see almost nothing except vague bulks rising here and there on either side of a central aisle. The air was rich with animal smells, warm from their body heat. She felt the wavery shivers that were crawling up and down her body begin to subside. “Vajd …”

“Up the ladder.” He gave her a little shove, his hands warm on the small of her back.

Aleytys groped her way into the loft and slid over the loose slippery straw to one corner, where a window permitted a few stray moonbeams past spider webs and hay dust to light the downslope of the small hill. Sighing with pleasure, she dropped down on the straw and rooted around until she had a comfortable hollow, then she leaned back and sniffed. “Smells good here.”

Vajd slid down beside her and she smiled up at him. “Leyta …” His eyes glinted in the moonlight as he bent over her and slid gentle exploring fingers down the side of her face. “Soft …” His voice trailed off as he settled beside her and touched the sensitive hollow at the base of her throat with her lips. “Bless …”

She rested fingertips on the shallow curve of his neck, pleased by the soft springy feel of the shorter hairs there. His cheek was faintly rough against her skin. She brought her hand around and pushed his head gently back so she could see his face. “I couldn't steal any pills this time.…”

He laughed, his lips vibrating against her throat as he settled his head against hers. “So the prophecy begins tonight.…”

Aab slid down across the window, shining softly on the two golden figures, her opaline glow highlighting changing portions of their bodies as they moved. Then they stilled into an abstract design in chiaroscuro.

After a long warm while Aleytys stirred. Vajd sat up and touched her cheek with a forefinger. “Leyta?”

She pulled his hand over her mouth and kissed the wide palm. Then she flung out her arms and stretched luxuriously. “Mmm.”

He laughed and pulled her abba around her. “Before you freeze. No, don't move.” He tied the ties and smoothed the material over her body. She sighed with pleasure and watched as he shrugged back into his. He caught hold of her hand. “Happy, love?”

“Very.…” She sighed and sat up. “Prophecy?”

He pulled her closer until her head rested on his chest. She felt his heart beating strongly beside her ear. Somehow, in spite of a vague apprehension hovering at the back of her mind, she felt warm and secure and only half listened to the words ruffling through the hair on top of her head.

“Blood and violence,” he said, his voice soft and slow. “I've dreamed the same dream the same day every year since … Blood and violence. Whichever way I turned.…” The words seemed to drag out of his mouth. “People falling dead around you. The Raqsidan raped by strangers. Not now. I felt that. Not now but when our son …” He felt her jerk in surprise against him. “The son we make this night … when our son will be grown. Men spreading fire … a redheaded man with angry green eyes laughing fiercely at the destruction.…” His hand slipped from her breast to stroke the incurve of her waist. For several minutes she felt his breath stirring in her hair in time with the smooth rise and fall of his chest. “Then a strange image expanded all through my dream. A blackness shot with stars spreading out, out, out … so far it seemed to encompass the whole of the universe, and wheeling slowly in the middle of this all, you … your body misty, a thousand suns tangled in the tossed-out strands of your hair and a thousand suns glowing through the translucent smoke of your body. I felt a vast sadness in you, a terrible power … you had traveled far in ways I couldn't begin to comprehend and you had a long and complex journey before you.”