The Crystal Heart (15 page)

Somewhere in that hurtle down the shaft, I'd lost both my torches and was now without light. I clutched the crystal in my hand. Above my head, I heard pebbles come flying down and, immediately after, a grinding, clashing sound resounded. It could only mean one thing – the passage to the level above was closing, and I was marooned down here in the darkness with no hope of ever getting back. I had to find the Lake before the shaft closed and locked me into eternal darkness.

Was that a glimmer of water? I crawled over the uneven and spiky ground and made my way to the faint watery
shimmer. Just as I reached the Lake's edge, I heard the passage closing with a clash of awful finality. I flung myself on the ground and groped towards the water.

Bone-crushing, blood-freezing, mind-numbing cold. My teeth chattered, my body convulsed in a violent shiver that shook me from head to foot. Still I held on to the crystal, still I forced myself to go on. Taking a deep breath, I launched myself into the Lake.

‘Have you heard the news, my lady?'

I looked up and smiled at Glarya, who had burst excitedly into my room. Small, sharp-nosed and fair-haired, she was a cheerful soul but also somewhat noisy and clumsy – a rare thing here. For that and the fact of her lowly origin – Glarya was from a remote outstation at the edge of the realm – she was looked down upon by the rest of the palace staff. My choice of Glarya as my maid no doubt hardened my bad reputation. When, last year, tired of being observed every minute of the day by unfriendly eyes, I dismissed my ladies-in-waiting and declared I would only have a personal maid by my side, it caused great consternation. My father let it pass for he knew that, following Fela's death, I was at the end of my tether.

Glarya did open her heart to me. Frequently! Though she was not like the rest of them here, she did share one thing in common with the other
feyin
. Like them, she had
no desire to venture above ground. She did not understand why I should miss it.

I smiled for her sake, because she is warm and kind. ‘What is it then, Glarya?'

‘They have caught a creature, my lady.' Despite repeated instructions from the Chief of Protocol, she was always forgetting to call me ‘Your Royal Highness', which suited me. I did once tell Glarya to call me by my given name, but soon realised that was as impossible for her as remembering my correct title. A
feyin
lady was a
feyin
lady – that was the way of the world, and Glarya ignores my human half. ‘They found it by the Crystal Fountain, half dead. Some say it is a creature from the abyss. Others say it is a shapeshifting wizard from That Place, who has come through the Lake.'

The abyss is the place where our world ends, at the very edge of the Outlands. No one knows what is truly in it. That Place is what Glarya calls the lands above. She doesn't distinguish between any of them. That Place is where humans rule, there are no
feyin,
and
feya
are found only as solitaries. And that to her is surely a disturbance of the natural order of things.

‘You shouldn't listen to gossip, Glarya,' I said half-heartedly. ‘It's hardly likely to be either of those things. It's probably just a stray cave goblin or Outlands skulker.'

Glarya wore a stubborn look. ‘Well, my lady, I heard the Prince himself has ordered that it be brought to him.
He
will personally decide its fate, and you have to agree that is not the usual way for a simple trespasser.'

No, indeed. A skulker illegally working in Night would simply be arrested by the City Guard, fined and sent back
to whence he came. Cave goblins, however, are regarded as vermin and have no such privilege. They are immediately destroyed by the Marshals. In neither case was my father ever directly involved. So why was this different? What kind of trespasser could possibly interest my father? Only something more than commonly dangerous and unusual. Something … or
someone
. An intruder from above, who has somehow made their way through the Lake …

My stomach churned. I tried to still my shaking hands, to swallow the lump of hot iron that had suddenly seemed to have lodged itself in my throat as a wild, impossible idea flooded into my mind. I thought of the crystal heart, long since abandoned somewhere in the bottom of a clothes chest. I had to find it.

‘Glarya,' I said, trying hard to keep my voice calm, ‘you know how people gossip. They are likely to be rumours, and we should not listen to them.'

‘Yes, my lady,' said Glarya, looking supremely unconvinced. She has never been able to hide her feelings. That's another thing that endears her to me – it's so different to the other staff, who keep a poker face at all times. At times I itched to slap them, just to see if their expressions would change. Happily, I had thus far resisted the temptation.

‘Kindly go and inform Lady Fandoren that I will not be attending the fitting this afternoon.'

‘But, my lady,' Glarya said with a look of dismay, ‘the presentation is the day after tomorrow!'

‘Do you think I have forgotten? There will be time enough tomorrow for a last fitting,' I said brusquely. ‘Right now, I am tired and need to rest. A complete rest, do you understand?' I added sternly, looking at her.

Glarya blushed. ‘I'm sorry, my lady, talking on and on like that … I just thought you'd like to hear –'

‘No harm done,' I replied gently. ‘Now, if you will run that errand for me, it will be a load off my mind.'

‘Certainly, my lady,' Glarya said eagerly. ‘And if I may bring you anything to –'

‘No, no,' I snapped, wanting her to be gone. Seeing her hurt look, I relented. ‘I will be fine. I just need a little rest, that's all.' I felt bad lying to her, my only friend, but I had to.

‘If you're sure, my lady,' she said, before leaving the room.

Finally, blessedly, I was on my own. I locked the door and feverishly set about the task of rummaging in the big clothes chest. I almost missed the crystal, for it was hidden within the folds of a petticoat. As soon as I pulled it out, I knew it was awake. Yes, it was awake and no longer cold rock. But there was something strange about it, a deep inner light emanating from within.

He was here! My love had come at last! Somehow he had escaped and found his way to me. I stared at the crystal for an instant, before threading it carefully onto a length of thin silk ribbon. Slipping it over my head, I tucked it under my bodice, the crystal resting against my skin, next to my heart. My skin tingled and puckered beneath it. The tears came unchecked as I remembered what Glarya had said: They found it by the Crystal Fountain, half dead.
Oh dear Lady of the Rock
, I prayed,
please protect him. Let him be safe. Please.

But it was not only prayers he needed. It was action.

My father's private quarters were some distance from mine, across the glittering Palace Square. I wanted to run but I could not, for fear of ever-watching eyes. I could not give them cause to wonder, not now. It was agony to force my steps into this slow pace. When at last I reached my father's rooms, Lord Chamberlain Parigan told me that the Prince had given instructions not to be disturbed.

‘By anyone,' Lord Parigan added, looking at me meaningfully. He was not one of the many who hated me, but he had never been a friend. He was a dry old stick who genuinely cared about my father's wellbeing. And that's how I had to tackle him, because I had no idea exactly where my father was, and I would not get far if Lord Parigan stood in my way.

‘Dear Lord Parigan,' I began, ‘I want only to be of help to His Majesty. As I was so long above, I know how these creatures think better than anyone.'

He blinked. ‘Your Royal Highness has heard the news?'

I nodded.

‘The first time in fifteen years that an intruder has come from above,' said Lord Parigan. ‘It's all on account of that mine reopening.'

‘You mean, it is a miner?'

‘Stands to reason,' said the Lord Chamberlain, fretfully.

That was true enough. To get here, Kasper would have had to come through the mine. ‘It is certainly a worry,' I said earnestly. ‘If more of them get the idea, they would start flooding in.'

‘Exactly, Your Royal Highness,' said Lord Parigan, sounding pleasantly surprised.

‘So, therefore, dear Lord Parigan,' I went on, ‘I'm sure you can see how I can help, for I gleaned much knowledge about humans over those long and dreadful years as their prisoner. For too long I have sat on the sidelines and not taken my proper place as my father's right hand. I wish all that to change now.'

His smile broadened. ‘I am very glad to hear you speak thus, Your Royal Highness, for I know His Majesty has been mighty anxious about you. But now things are changing, now that the Erlking's son will –'

‘Yes, yes.' I did not want a reminder of what lay in my future, not now, not when my heart and my body were filled with light. ‘But there is no more time to waste now, so please take me to him at once.'

‘Of course, Your Royal Highness.' Lord Parigan led the way, heading not towards the State rooms, nor the chamber where my father meets with his closest advisers. He did not take me to the cells that lie directly under that chamber, but to the study where my father allows no one except me to enter.

Following my instruction, Lord Parigan left me at the door. I knocked and, after a moment, my father's angry voice answered. ‘I told you I was not to be disturbed, Parigan.'

‘It is not Lord Parigan, it is your daughter. Let me in, Father.'

There was a small pause before I heard the rattle of a key in the lock. The door opened to reveal my father standing on the threshold. There was a look in his eyes I had never seen before.

‘News travels fast.'

‘Yes,' I said, and walked past him to where I could see a figure crouched in a corner of the room, huddled under a blanket. I couldn't see his face, only his head of dark hair. My heart was thumping so loudly I thought my father must hear it.

My father gave me a thin smile. ‘Go ahead,' he said, answering the question in my eyes.

I looked at him in surprise. ‘Thank you, Father,' I whispered, and with trembling legs I walked across to Kasper. Though he must have heard my voice, he did not look at me. What had they done to him to change him so? A wave of love and sorrow and fear washed over me as I touched him gently on the shoulder. ‘Please, Kasper,' I said. It was the first time I had spoken his name aloud in such a long time, and just the sound of it sent a thrill through me. ‘Please, Kasper, won't you look at me?'

He lifted his head to look at me. I gave a cry and stumbled back, for the young man staring up at me with wide, frightened blue eyes in a deathly pale face was a complete and utter stranger.

I had no words. All I could do was stare at the stranger before me.

‘You were expecting someone else, my daughter?' said my father.

I nodded mutely.

‘Do you know this man?'

It was a while before I could answer. ‘No, Father.'

‘You are sure you have never met him during your time in the woods? Or the Tower?'

I swallowed the lump in my throat. ‘No, Father, I have never seen this man before.'

‘He is telling the truth, then.'

My skin tingled against the warming crystal. I didn't understand – this wasn't Kasper, so why had the crystal awoken?
Perhaps it is a spell
, I thought wildly. Perhaps Kasper had visited a witch and borrowed a new face to pass through undetected. ‘What has he told you, Father?'

‘That he does not know you or Kasper Bator.'

I shot a glance at the young miner.
Why doesn't he speak?

My father answered my unspoken question. ‘It is a temporary spell to stop him babbling on about being innocent. It was giving me a headache.'

‘Who is he?'

My father shrugged. ‘A nobody. At least, that's what he pretends to be. Most likely, he's a Krainos spy.'

The young man violently shook his head. He struggled to stand but kept falling over. The spell Father had cast must have also stayed his feet. It would have been comical if it weren't so pathetic.

‘I was expecting that this would happen one day,' added my father. ‘I just didn't think they'd send such a useless article.'

‘How did he get in?' I asked.

‘He claims it was an accident. But nobody comes here by accident. Such a lie is enough to condemn him, especially as he refuses to say any more about it. I know he is hiding something. Whatever it is, I will get it out of him and make him wish he had never set foot in Night.'

Over his shoulder, I could see the young man slumping back down, his head in his hands. An unexpected pang of pity went through me at the sight. I made up my mind. ‘Father, since my return I have always done as you have asked.'

A puzzled expression flickered briefly in my father's eyes. ‘You have, my daughter. And I honour you for it.'

‘Then will you grant me a favour?'

He frowned. ‘If you wish to be released from –'

‘No, Father. That is not what I ask. That promise I will keep. All I ask is that I be allowed to speak to this man. Alone.'

There was a long silence as both my father and the stranger stared at me. ‘You wish to ask the spy more about Bator,' my father said at last.

I was about to say the kind of thing I told Lord Parigan, when I thought better of it. My father was no fool. I looked him straight in the eye. ‘Yes. I do.'

‘I see. Why?'

‘I have to know, Father. I have to know what has become of him.'

‘I see,' he said again. ‘And you swear that if I grant you this, you will not attempt to be released from your promise, no matter what you learn?'

‘I swear it,' I said quietly, ‘on my mother's memory.'

A softness touched my father's thin lips, just for an instant. ‘Very well, Izolda. It shall be as you wish. You have ten minutes to speak to him before I call the Marshals to take him away.' Turning on his heel, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

I wasted no time. ‘Don't bother lying to me,' I said harshly, ‘for I will know if you are. You say you do not know Kasper Bator, but you must have heard of him. What do they say has happened to him?'

The young man cleared his throat. ‘I'm … I'm not sure. I believe he is in a secure prison near the White City, never to be released.'

‘He isn't dead?'

‘Not so far as I know. I think they would say if the trait – I mean, Bator had died,' he added hurriedly, correctly interpreting my thunderous expression. ‘And besides, I'd
say they want to keep him alive as long as possible, or he wouldn't suffer enough.'

‘You people make me sick!' I shouted. ‘Your government is happy to take our money, and your people are happy to work in our mines, so you can all grow fat and rich. And Kasper, who made it all happen by breaking me out of prison before your people could kill me – yes,
me
, for there was no witch,' I went on, as his eyes widened, ‘he is treated like a mangy dog, even though they promised that he wouldn't be harmed!'

For too long those thoughts had been burning in me, and now they burst out with such wild force that the numb shell of eternal present shattered around me. I was swept up again in the march of time, of events, of real happenings, and the pain of it pierced me like a knife. As to the spy, he stared fearfully at me as though I were the legendary monster surging up from the bottom of the Lake, the legend that should keep his kind away from our realm.

‘I'm – I'm sorry,' he stammered. ‘Forgive me if I have offended you, Princess. But I don't understand.'

‘I don't care if you do or not,' I hissed. ‘You will tell me why you are here. You will tell me the truth. If you were afraid of my father, you should be much more afraid of me. Do you understand that?'

‘Yes, my lady,' he whispered.

‘Your Royal Highness to you,' I said coldly. ‘Now speak, spy.'

‘I am no spy, Your Royal Highness,' he said shakily. ‘I swear it by all the Angels.'

‘Then what are you?'

‘I'm just an ordinary person. I work in the mine.'

‘No,' I said, ‘it is not all. If you do not tell me at once who you really are, I will tell my father that you are a wicked liar who should be dumped alive in a cave goblin den.'

‘Please,' he cried. ‘Please, Your Royal Highness, I mean no wrong.'

‘Who are you?'

‘My name is Amadey Rozen.'

‘Why are you here, Amadey Rozen, if you are not a spy? Are you a thief? A curious fool after
feyin
magic? Only those kind are ever stupid enough to come into our realm without an invitation.'

He looked away. ‘I came here for a friend's sake.' He spoke so quietly I barely heard him.

The hair rose on the back of my neck. Against my skin, the crystal had grown warmer. ‘Explain yourself.'

‘I was worried about him, so I followed him. He did not see me, because of my grandmother's ointment …'

‘What?' My head was spinning.

‘My grandmother was friendly with a
feyin
lady when she was a little girl, back in her native Almain. She learned a few spells from her, or so she always said. I thought it was just talk for children, like the drink she said would turn me into a frog.'

It was my turn to stare at him, baffled.

He went on. ‘She gave me the ointment before I left, said I was only to use it if I really needed it. She didn't say what it would do, only that I'd know when I needed it. And I did … It was strange, like a dream.'

‘What do you mean? What happened?' I pressed.

‘It made me invisible,' he said simply. ‘Unseen, but not unheard, so I had to be very careful. Once, I think he
almost heard me. I was extra-quiet after that. And then when we fell through the hole –'

‘The hole?' I said weakly.

‘The hole in the bottom mine, that opened above the Lake,' he said, with a why-don't-you-know-that tone in his voice.

As his voice was steadying, mine was getting shakier. ‘What is your friend's name?'

‘Vazily,' Amadey replied at once. ‘Vazily Adamak. He is a strange sort of person – hot and cold, like the wind. There is a darkness in him, a wildness. But he is a good man at heart. That was why I was worried. I thought maybe he was a thief, that he was planning to steal salt flowers from the bottom mine to sell on the black market. My brother told me that people sometimes try to do that but are always caught and sent to prison for a long time. I didn't want that to happen to Vazily, so I –'

‘This Vazily – what does he look like?'

‘Tall – taller than me. Fair skin, black hair – much darker than mine, but short, very short, growing out of a crew cut. Black eyes.' He frowned, squinting into his memory. ‘That's all – no, wait, he has a scar on his wrist. A long livid scar, like a faded scratch. I saw it once when he was swinging the pick.'

Dizziness washed over me and, groping for a chair, I sat down to stop myself from fainting. Oh, dear Lady – oh how clearly I remembered that scar, remembered the moment in the clearing, kissing his wrist. I could smell the scent of his blood, feel the touch of his skin, hear the sound of his voice …

‘Where is he?' I whispered. ‘You must tell me.' Seeing his wary expression, I added, ‘I mean him no harm. I mean
you no harm, not ever. I will help you. I will make sure you both get out of here unharmed. I'm sorry – I'm sorry about before. It was just because I was so, so sad. Please, you must believe me. We have very little time. If they know that he is here, he will be in the gravest danger. And I cannot – I cannot allow that to happen.'

‘But why, Your Royal Highness? I don't under … Oh!' he breathed in sharply as it struck him. ‘Oh, Angels preserve us. Vazily – he is Kasper Bator, and he is your –'

‘Hush,' I said fiercely. I could hear a sound that made my pulse race – footfalls approaching in the corridor outside. My father's steady step and a guard's heavy tread. ‘The less said, the better. Just tell me where he is.'

‘That's the trouble,' Amadey said sadly. ‘I don't know. I saw him jump into the Lake. I went in after him and nearly drowned in the process. I lost the ointment, too. When I was thrown up out of the water, like some kind of flotsam, he was no longer there.' He turned his head away. ‘I don't even know if he made it.'

A sickening fear crashed in on me.
No, he can't be dead.
I pushed the fear away. The crystal had awoken. He was here, somewhere nearby, and I would find him. But first, I had to save Amadey from the rope. And for that I had an idea. ‘Listen to me,' I said. ‘You must follow my lead, or you will be lost. Do you understand?'

Amadey nodded solemnly.

‘There must be no mention of Vazily.'

‘Of course,' he said. ‘And … thank you.'

‘Don't bother just yet.'

The door opened, and my father entered the room, followed by a Marshal. ‘So, my daughter, have you learned
all that you wished to know?' My father crossed over to where I was sitting, and rested a hand on my shoulder.

‘Yes, Father.'

‘Then the Marshal can take the spy away to prepare him for the –'

‘Father,' I said, getting up, ‘this man isn't a spy. He's like me.'

My father's face went still. The Marshal's rock-like features wobbled for an instant. Amadey looked as though he'd been turned to stone.

‘Whatever do you mean?' said my father, a silky menace in his voice.

‘Amadey is a half-blood like me,' I explained earnestly. ‘That's how he was able to get in. His father is from Krainos, but his mother is from Almain. He recently discovered that she was a solitary and had just left after his birth. He doesn't even know her name. He thought he might get answers here.'

‘Here? Why not Almain?' said my father, with narrowed eyes.

‘Despite his half-
feyin
blood, he's not the brightest brain there ever was,' I said, ignoring Amadey's indignant look. ‘He thought that, as Night is a country of
feyin
, there might be some kind of world directory of
feyin
kept here that he could consult.' I held my breath as my father looked at me, then at Amadey, with a keen, predatory sort of look that made my blood run cold.

‘Bring the boy to me, Marshal,' my father said at last. Grabbing Amadey by the scruff of the neck, the soldier half-dragged, half-pushed the young man to his feet and planted him in front of my father. Poor Amadey was
ashen, looking more dead than alive. I gave him a reassuring look, but I don't think he noticed.

My father walked around Amadey. He touched the top of his head, his shoulders. He sniffed the air close to him and made Amadey hold out his hands and then he sniffed those too. I crossed my fingers and prayed inwardly that what I'd gambled on – that the ointment had left a trace of
feyin
scent on the young man's skin – was true. Agonising seconds passed.

‘It would appear there is something in this story of his. The blood is heavily diluted from his being brought up wholly in the land above. But I can smell it, faintly. I should like to know more about this. Boy, how did you find the way here?'

‘I – I had a talisman,' said Amadey, rummaging in his pocket and taking out a string of small clear beads. ‘They look like glass buttons, I know,' he said, seeing our doubtful expressions. ‘But one of them – see this one?' He held it up for us to see. ‘It's made from the crystal of Night itself. I saw that at once, when I found it.'

My father took the string of buttons and examined the crystal carefully. ‘It appears you are right,' he finally said, and relief flooded through me. ‘Interesting. Where did you find it?'

Amadey's eyes flickered. ‘In, er, in the bottom of a chest in our attic.'

‘Hmm. You thought it was your mother's, I suppose?'

‘No, Your Royal Highness. That was before I knew. I just didn't understand why we had it. My grandmother gave me the barest of details. She wouldn't even tell me my mother's name. Just said she'd only ever brought trouble
and that I was to forget all about her. Well, of course, you will appreciate I could hardly do that, Your Majesty.'

He is a very good liar
, I thought uneasily.
Where had he really found that button?
But it didn't matter right now. My father was still a little wary, though his demeanour had changed. We had bought ourselves some time. And safety, for the moment at least.