Lord of the Shadows (34 page)

n the weeks leading up to the eclipse, Jacinta D'Orlon had the time of her life. As the envoy of the Queen of Dhevyn, she was wined and dined and feted by almost everyone in Bollow who thought she was a person whose friendship they needed to cultivate. Despite her rather outspoken performance at the swearing-in ceremony, almost without exception, they assumed her nothing but a vapid young woman who had gained her position because she was the queen's cousin. That she was beautiful, unmarried and the daughter of the richest duke in Dhevyn merely added to her charms.

Jacinta delighted in watching them trying to win her over. She could barely move in her cluttered suite at the Widow's Rest for the gifts she'd been sent. Her rooms were filled with flowers sent by numerous admirers. She'd been given bolts of silk from Galina, jewelry ranging from the exquisite to the absolutely tasteless, a fantastic statue of a lion cut from a single piece of Sidorian crystal, and countless boxes of sweetmeats (which she gave away to the maids at the inn), and she had refused at least four offers of marriage.

But of all the gifts she had received, the most unexpected had come from Dirk Provin. The day after the swearing-in ceremony, Eryk had arrived at her door bearing a small parcel. In it was a book, a rare copy of
A Brief History of Dhevyn
, a text banned by the High Priestess years ago because it chronicled Dhevyn's rise before the Age of Shadows without any reference to the Goddess.

Inside was a note that simply said: “Thank you. Dirk Provin.” He gave Eryk no other message to pass on, and asked for none in return.

Jacinta worried about the gift a great deal. She had thought the book no longer existed. The mere possession of it was enough to have her charged with heresy. Her first thought— that the gift was an astonishingly thoughtful gesture—quickly
turned to fear. If Dirk was planning to set her up to be arrested, it was the perfect way to do it.

How had he known she would never throw away something so rare and valuable? And if she did keep it, how long before she answered her door to a troop of Senetian soldiers wanting to search her room because she was suspected of being a heretic? Was that why Dirk had done nothing after she asked him to keep the Senetians away from Oakridge? Had he merely found a more subtle way of removing her? He must know that as far as witnesses to her treachery went, both Eryk and Caterina were unreliable. The word of a commoner and a half-wit would never stand up against the word of a noblewoman and even the Lord of the Suns couldn't accuse the cousin of Dhevyn's queen without proof. If she was found with such a book in her possession, he wouldn't have to accuse her of anything.

A dozen times in the past weeks she'd taken the book from its hiding place in the bottom of her trunk and flicked through the fragile pages in awe. A dozen times she had promised herself to get rid of it. A dozen times she hadn't. The book remained hidden while Jacinta tried to work out the meaning of the gift. It told her much about Dirk Provin, she knew. The problem was, she couldn't decide if it told her he was a thoughtful and insightful young man, or a fiendishly clever despot.

Jacinta fervently hoped the latter was not the case. She had gone out of her way to help him gain the position of Lord of the Suns. If she was wrong about him, then she may have singlehandedly done more damage to Dhevyn's hopes for freedom than any other event since the Age of Shadows. She clung to the hope she'd done the right thing. She clung to the belief that Dirk Provin was not the Butcher of Elcast, but the thoughtful, intelligent young man Eryk and Caterina had described to her on the journey from Avacas. For her own peace of mind, she had no choice but to believe Alenor's faith in Dirk was grounded in reality and not wishful thinking. Dirk Provin had asked Alenor to trust him. No matter what. As the queen's envoy, Jacinta was compelled to share that trust. Share it, but not
actively aid him in whatever he was up to. Had she taken Alenor's trust too literally? There were nights when Jacinta couldn't sleep, wondering what she had done.

But a few days before the eclipse, her fear she may have hastened Dhevyn's ruin, suddenly didn't seem important anymore. The threat of being arrested as a heretic paled in light of a new calamity that faced her. The thought of being burned alive seemed almost pleasant when faced with the alternative. She would have welcomed the prospect of torture at the hands of Barin Welacin.

It was the single most disastrous thing that could have happened, as far as Jacinta was concerned. When she heard the news, she
wanted
them to find that damn book, to drag her away in chains, never to see the light of day again …

Because Jacinta's mother, the Lady Sofia D'Orlon, Duchess of Bryton, arrived in Bollow for the eclipse.

“Oh, Ja
cin
ta!” her mother cried in horror as she swept into her rooms at the Widow's Rest without even saying hello. “How can you bear living in such
appalling
squalor?”

It always amazed Jacinta how her mother could turn a simple, three-syllable word into such a production. And how she always managed to emphasize the middle syllable as if there was some special meaning attached to it. When Lady Sofia spoke her name, Jacinta always imagined it spelled “Ja-
sin
-ta.”

“This is the best inn in Bollow, Mother,”

“But it's an
inn
!” she objected. “Why aren't you staying at the Lord of the Suns’ palace? Was this Alenor's idea? What was she thinking, sending you here as her envoy and then making you bunk down in some flea-ridden hovel?”

“The Widow's Rest isn't a hovel, Mother, nor is it flea-ridden. It's a perfectly respectable establishment. The Duke of Grannon Rock is staying here. So are Lord and Lady—”

“It's intolerable!” Sofia cut in. “I will see the new Lord of the Suns at once, and arrange to have you moved to more suitable accommodation.”

“That may be rather difficult, Mother,” Jacinta pointed out calmly. “For one thing, he probably won't see you. For another, the Lion of Senet and the High Priestess are already staying at the palace. Prince Baston of Damita is on his way and Alenor will be staying there, too, when she arrives. I probably
would
be bunking down in the stables if I tried to move to the palace.”

“Then you must come with me. Your father and I are staying with Lord Parqette. I will not leave you here in this … this … fleapit. How many servants have you got with you? I suppose we'll have to find room for them, too.”

“I didn't bring any with me. The inn has more than enough to cater for my needs.”

Lady Sofia was mortified. “Ja
cin
ta! You don't mean to tell me you traveled all this way on your
own
? Dear Goddess, where did I go wrong with you? What did I ever do to be punished like this?”

“Oh, Mother, do be quiet,” Jacinta groaned. “I sailed from Kalarada on the Lion of Senet's ship and traveled to Bollow in the Lord of the Suns' own carriage with an escort of Queen's Guardsmen. You make it sound as if I stood by the side of the road and hoisted my skirts up to get a ride from the first wagon driver who happened by.”

“A thing I'd not put past you, young lady. You have no sense of decorum, no sense at all, now that I think of it. I should
never
have let you go to court on your own.”

“You wanted me to go, as I recall.”

“Only because I thought being at court would civilize you. I should have known better than to imagine you'd learn anything in such a licentious place.”

“Licentious?” Jacinta asked with a smile. That was overdoing it, even for her mother.

“What else do you call a court where the regent openly flaunts his mistress and the queen gets caught with a lover?”

Jacinta's heart skipped a beat. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, you probably haven't heard,” Sofia shrugged, taking a seat by the window as she pulled off her gloves, after running
her finger along the window sill to check if it had been dusted. “Alexin Seranov—you know him, don't you? Saban's second boy—was caught in a rather compromising position with the queen. Prince Kirshov arrested him along with a half-dozen other Guardsmen who were hiding the affair. He's bringing the young man here, I understand, so Antonov can deal with the pair of them. It was bound to happen. I mean, Alenor is far too young for the responsibilities of a queen and marrying her to someone as dissolute as Kirshov Latanya was a disaster simply waiting to happen. Of course, now there's all sorts of questions being asked. People are even starting to wonder about that baby she lost. Or if she lost it accidentally …”

“Mother!”

“What, dear?

“When did this happen?”

“Oh, a few weeks ago now, I suppose. Just after that awful business at Oakridge.”

Jacinta's chest constricted even further. “What awful business at Oakridge?”

“Well, you know how the Senetians have been turning Dhevyn upside down looking for the people who escaped Mil … well, some fool started a rumor we were hiding them in the fruit-pickers’ cottage near Oakridge. I mean, as if anybody would believe such ridiculous gossip.”

“Inconceivable,” Jacinta agreed tonelessly, wondering how many more things could go wrong.

“Anyway, when your father heard about it, he was furious, of course, so he sent a message to Prince Kirshov in Kalarada protesting the idea we would have anything to do with those criminals from Mil …”

“Naturally …”

“And then that damned Sundancer turned up …”

“What Sundancer?”

“Brahm Halyn. He used to be on Elcast until Lady Morna was … well, after she died he returned to Bollow, apparently. Anyway, Brahm Halyn arrives in Oakridge with a decree from the Lord of the Suns and announces the temple there—which is little more than a ruin, mind you, since it was struck by lightning
a few years ago—is a site of great historical and religious importance. And now we're not even allowed on our own lands. The whole place has been declared off-limits to everyone but the Sundancers. Your father will be taking that up with Lord Provin, I can tell you. He can't just arbitrarily acquire Dhevynian land just because the Goddess is supposed to have smote the temple … or whatever it is he's claiming happened. I don't know what the world is coming to. Paige Halyn never threw his weight around in such a manner.”

Jacinta stared at her mother in shock. “So what happened to the Senetian forces that were planning to search Oakridge?”

“They've had no more luck getting near the place than we have. And the harvest is coming up soon. We'll lose a fortune if that fruit is allowed to rot on the trees.”

The implications of her mother's news made Jacinta's head reel. She rose to her feet and crossed to the chair where her shawl was hanging.

“I have to go.”

“Go? Go where?”

“I have to see somebody,” she explained, throwing the shawl over her shoulders. “Perhaps I can drive out to Lord Parqette's estate later to see you and father.”

“Ja
cin
ta! Don't you dare just walk out on me!”

“I'm sorry, Mother, but this is very important.” She hurried back to the settee by the window, kissed her mother's cheek hastily and then fled the room before Lady Sofia could object.

When she reached the lobby, Jacinta strode through it without acknowledging any of the greetings directed her way. There were several carriages for hire waiting outside. She climbed into the nearest one and gave the driver orders to take her to the palace of the Lord of the Suns.

ad he known in advance how beautiful the Lord of the Suns’ residence was on the shores of Lake Ruska, Dirk might have found himself wanting to attain the post simply to lay claim to the estate. Set apart from the city, the palace had been constructed of alternating blocks of dark granite and creamy ignimbrite, its elegant design untouched by time, earthquakes or the Age of Shadows. The carefully tended gardens reached all the way down to the lake, where long-necked swans glided across the surface and the raucous calls of the ducks roosting in the rushes at the water's edge echoed over the water.

Dirk had taken to disappearing from the palace whenever the pressure began to reach boiling point; taking a walk along the shore gave him time to sort out his thoughts. It was peaceful by the lake and he'd just about convinced the servants not to reveal his whereabouts whenever he fled the chaos around him for a few moments of blessed peace.

“Lord Dirk! Lord Dirk!”

Almost all the servants
, he thought as Eryk hailed him.

He turned to see what the boy wanted and realized with despair that Jacinta D'Orlon was with him. He suddenly became very conscious of the fact he had been caught skipping stones like a ten-year-old boy. Cursing under his breath, he tossed away the pebbles he had been skimming over the surface of the lake, brushed his hands clean on his trousers and strode across the lawn to meet them.

“See! I told you I knew where he was,” Eryk declared happily as Dirk reached them.

Jacinta smiled at the boy. “Yes, you did, Eryk, although by the look of him, I'm not sure your master wanted to be found.”

“He doesn't mind seeing
you
, my lady,” Eryk told her. “It's just everyone else he's hiding from.”

Jacinta looked at him curiously. Dirk wanted to cringe with embarrassment.

“Go find something to do, Eryk,” he ordered.

“Like what, Lord Dirk?”

“Like fetching Lady Jacinta something cool to drink, perhaps?”

“That would be lovely, Eryk,” Jacinta agreed.

The boy nodded eagerly and ran back toward the house. Jacinta watched him leave and then turned back to Dirk with an apologetic smile. “I'm sorry, my lord. I truly didn't mean to disturb you.”

“It's all right,” he shrugged. “He's right, actually. I was hiding from everyone.”

“Are we not enjoying being the Lord of the Suns?” she asked with a slightly raised brow.

“Actually, we're not,” he admitted, a little surprised to find himself confiding in her.

“I have noticed you seem rather reluctant to assume the robes of your office.”

He glanced down at his shirt and trousers with a wan smile. “I just can't bring myself to walk around in a long yellow dress.”

Jacinta laughed. “I'm sure the rest of your order would be quite offended to hear you refer to their traditional robes in such a manner.”

“You're probably right. Still, there's no way I can get out of wearing them for ceremonial occasions. But I'm damned if I'm going to wear them any other time.”

“Well, I for one applaud your stance, Lord Provin. I think you're right. You'd look ridiculous in a long yellow dress. Shall we walk?”

Jacinta fell in beside Dirk and they began to walk along the shore. Within a few steps the trees obscured the palace and they were effectively alone.

“It's quite beautiful here,” Jacinta remarked, looking around with interest.

“It is, isn't it?” he agreed, and then he looked at her curiously. “But that's not why you're here.”

“No, it's not. I came to thank you.”

“For what?”

“For helping the refugees in Oakridge.”

“What makes you think I had anything to do with that?”

“You had
everything
to do with it, my lord. Alenor was right about you, wasn't she? You are still on our side.”

“I'm going to rather a lot of trouble to prove that I'm
not
, my lady.”

“And you've succeeded admirably,” she assured him. “The Dhevynians who believe you shouldn't be hung, drawn and quartered are a very small minority.”

“Well, there's a comfort.”

She was silent for a moment, as if working up the courage to speak. He wondered if she was planning another test to prove where his loyalties lay.

“I need to ask you another favor, my lord,” she said eventually.

Apparently she was. “What sort of favor?”

“Alexin Seranov has been arrested.”

“What for?”

“Adultery with the queen.”

Dirk stopped and stared at her. “Please tell me this is your idea of a joke.”

“I wish it were.”

He closed his eyes for a moment.
Poor Alenor
. “What happened?”

She shrugged. “I don't know the full story. All I know is he was caught with Alenor, and Kirshov is bringing him here to face the Lion of Senet.”

“Then he's as good as dead, my lady.” Dirk's mind was reeling.
Why this? Why now?

“And so is Alenor unless you intervene.”

“How can I help?” he asked, a little impatiently.

“You're the Lord of the Suns, Dirk Provin. You are the only person on Ranadon who can pull rank on the Lion of Senet and get away with it. You control the High Priestess of the Shadowdancers. You're probably the single most powerful man
in the world right now. If you can't save Alenor and Alexin, nobody can.”

Dirk stared at her, wondering how much she knew. Or what she had guessed. Jacinta scared him a little. That such a sharp mind lurked behind such as disarming face was extremely disturbing. For a fleeting, inexplicable moment he was tempted to confide in her, to tell her everything. He resisted the temptation. He'd come this far alone. He would see it through to the bitter end.

“Do you trust me?”

“That's an odd question.”

“But an important one. Do you trust me?”

She thought about her answer for a moment and then nodded. “Yes, I think I do.”

“Do you believe I would never do anything to hurt Alenor?”

“She certainly believes it.”

“But do
you
?”

Once again, she considered her response carefully before she answered. “Yes.”

“Then if I'm to save them, I'll need your help.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“I want you to denounce Alexin.”

“What?”

“When Kirsh and Alenor arrive in Bollow, I want you to stand up and declare you know for certain Alexin is in league with the Baenlanders and he seduced Alenor with the sole intention of turning her from the Goddess.”

“That will brand him a heretic.”

“I know.”

Suddenly Jacinta smiled. “And if he's a heretic, it becomes a matter for the Church and the Lord of the Suns can take a hand in his fate. You're smarter than you look, Dirk Provin.”

She was very quick, this girl. He would never have gotten away with half the things he'd done lately if there was anybody else around him with even half her wit.

“You'll have to be convincing,” he warned. “And Alenor will be furious with you until you can explain it to her.”

“I can be convincing, but will my word be enough?”

“Probably not,” he agreed. “But in that, we may have had a stroke of luck. I have it from a
very
reliable source that Tia Veran is currently in Bollow. Her presence would lend such a theory a great deal of credence if I can find her before Alenor and Kirsh get here.”

“
Will
you find her?”

“If I don't, it won't be from lack of trying. I've got every soldier and city guard in Bollow looking for her.”

“And with Tia Veran in custody, what then? She won't acknowledge Alexin is a member of the rebel underground willingly.”

“That won't matter provided I don't let Antonov question her directly. All I really need to do is have her arrested and then assure him that she has verified your story. He'll believe me. And after the eclipse … well, it won't matter so much then.”

She stared at him suspiciously. “You just thought this up now, didn't you? You're making this up as you go along.”

“That doesn't mean it won't work, my lady. I'll speak to Marqel. She'll back me up when I demand Alexin is handed over to me. With the Lord of the Suns and the Voice of the Goddess demanding justice, you implicating Alexin as a heretic and the greatest heretic of all's daughter confirming your accusation, Antonov won't be able to deny me.”

“Do you trust the High Priestess to do such a thing?”

“I don't trust her at all,” he told her. “But I have ways of making her toe the line.”

She searched his face curiously for a moment. “What
are
you up to, Dirk Provin?” When he didn't answer, she smiled suddenly, and let the question go unanswered. Jacinta was obviously dying to press him on the subject, but she had the sense not to insist he elaborate. “Do you know when Kirsh and Alenor are due to arrive?”

“The day after tomorrow, I believe,” Dirk told her.

“I'll need to be here when they arrive. Kirsh won't wait on this.”

“Perhaps you should think about moving up to the palace,
then?” he suggested. “Alenor will need you close by and we have plenty of room.”

Unaccountably, Jacinta burst out laughing.

“My lady?”

“I'm sorry,” she chuckled. “I'm not laughing at you or your kind offer. I was just thinking about … you see, my mother … Oh, it's just too hard to explain…”

Dirk smiled. “You'll stay then? I can have someone sent into town to collect your things.”

Forcing her laughter under control, Jacinta's smile faded. “I'd best go with them. And be careful who you send to aid me, my lord,” she cautioned. “There's a certain book in my possession that could get me into an awful lot of trouble if it were discovered among my things.”

He smiled knowingly. “I'll send Caterina and Eryk with you. They could come across you burning effigies of the Goddess in the middle of the Bollow Temple and I'm sure they'd swear you were doing nothing wrong.”

“Are you angry with them?”

“Jealous, actually.”

She eyed him skeptically. “You've nothing to be jealous of, my lord. I'd be delighted to engender even a fraction of the devotion Eryk and Caterina have for you in my servants.”

“The people who'd like to see me dead outnumber my loyal followers rather dramatically, my lady.”

“Which doesn't seem to bother you at all,” she remarked, studying him with those strange, color-shifting eyes. “Are you sure you know what you're doing?”

He smiled. “No.”

“Well, that's a relief. You'd be rather scary if you weren't even a little bit uncertain.” They walked on in silence for a way. “I can't thank you enough for helping Alenor and Alexin.”

“I haven't done anything yet.” He was uncomfortable with her gratitude. Jacinta was placing a great deal of trust in him he wasn't sure he deserved. His plan sounded clever, but Antonov's fury on learning Alenor had taken a lover and fallen pregnant with a child that wasn't Kirsh's might be much stronger than
his belief in church law. Despite his stated approval of Dirk's new role, Dirk had not challenged Antonov openly since becoming Lord of the Suns. He wasn't sure what would happen when he did.

“But you will,” she said confidently. “And now, if you will excuse me, I'll leave you in peace to continue… hiding. Would you be offended if I wasn't in attendance for dinner this evening? I need to visit my parents.”

“I'll see there's a carriage made available to you.”

“You're being very generous.”

“Actually, since you're the queen's envoy, I probably should have invited you to stay at the palace when you first arrived in Bollow.”

She stared at him suspiciously. “You haven't been talking to my mother, have you?”

“No. Why?”

“Nothing,” she shrugged, and then smiled. “Just an idle thought. I'll see you later then?”

“Undoubtedly.”

She turned to leave but had only gone a few steps before she turned back to him with a slight frown. “There was one other thing I wanted to ask.”

“Name it.”

“Who are you planning to sacrifice at the ceremony?”

Dirk had been dreading that question. And avoiding it. Not even Antonov had been able to get an answer out of him.

“I haven't decided yet,” he told her honestly.