The False Martyr (68 page)

Mr. Tappers clutched his
wife’s shoulders and kissed her again gently on the cheek. He said
no words, but the gesture seemed to ground her. She looked up at
him. Their eyes drifted together to Dasen and smiles formed on
their faces.

“
You’re enjoying this,
aren’t you?” she asked.

“
As are you,” Mr. Tappers
replied as he stepped to the door. “Now, I have rumors to flame.
Expectation is as much a part of the costume as your pastes and
potions, and that is my area of expertise.” He smiled again and
prepared to leave.

“
I don’t understand.”
Dasen caught him before he could depart. “This is never going to
work. Mrs. Tappers said it. I’m too tall. I’ll never pass as a
woman, and being nobles will only bring more attention. Can’t we
stay hidden away here? No one will see us if we never
leave.”

Mr. Tappers closed the
door again and stepped toward Dasen. “We were going to have to
cover this eventually. I suppose now is as good a time as any.” He
took a deep breath. “It may be weeks before Kian can move to
overthrow the governor. I can’t leave you locked up in here all
that time. Besides, people would know that I have someone hidden up
here. Rumors would spread that I couldn’t control, and who do you
suppose they would think is worth keeping hidden away in one of the
most valuable rooms in the city? We’d have every bounty hunter for
a hundred miles here within a week, and that’s if the governor’s
men didn’t take you first and throw me in a cell in the process.”
Dasen drew a breath to protest, but the innkeeper held up a hand to
stop him. “You are the son and daughter of Lord Esther. He owns the
mining and lumber rights in the Stormwoods.”

“
Who?” Dasen asked. He had
never heard the name Esther before, and his father would certainly
have a relationship with any noble with lumber rights.

“
Being from the
Stormwoods, there are rumors that your family has intermarried with
the Morgs,” Mr. Tappers continued without actually answering the
question.

“
You are joking,” Mrs.
Tappers exclaimed before Dasen could find the words. “There are no
such people.”

“
There are now. I’ve been
whispering it all morning to anyone who will listen. Young Lady
Esther arrived in the night with her brother and bodyguard. The
Esthers you see, are extremely devout. They were returning from a
pilgrimage in the desert and had no idea that the Kingdoms had been
invaded until they arrived here. The rumor spreading below is that
she brought with her a great deal of money and can draw on more
through the facilitators in the commercial district. That is why I
found her a room. She’s going to make me wealthy.”

“
Bodyguard?” Dasen asked.
“And only one? Yet I’m carrying around chests of coins?”

“
Garth,” the innkeeper
clarified. “A single Morg is worth a half-dozen regular men. It
fits with your family’s ties. You will look dainty beside him, and
it will reinforce what a girl with Morg blood might look like. Best
of all, it lets him get out and be useful. He has the same problem
as you. He stands out like a drunk on Teaching Day. This will give
him a cover as well.”

Dasen was abashed. He
couldn’t imagine how such an outlandish plan could possibly work.
The people here would line up to see the half-Morg noblewoman from
the far north. No matter Mrs. Tappers’ abilities, he’d be unmasked
in a day. He looked to Teth. She shrugged her apparent
approval.

“
It’s genius, isn’t it?”
the innkeeper beamed.

His wife nodded without
taking her eyes from Dasen. “I think it will work,” she muttered to
herself. “It explains everything. He’s young for it, but the boy
could have been on a fast during his pilgrimage. You’re both too
tall and broad for who you should be, so the Morg blood works. And
having an actual Morg ties it all together.”

“
It’s absurd,” Dasen
blurted. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“
That’s why it’s genius,”
Mr. Tappers explained. “It is the story that people will concern
themselves with. They’ll be so wrapped up with the scandal of it
that they will barely look at the people involved.”

“
And if someone realized
that there is no such person as Lord Esther?”

“
Then you’ll have a Morg
at your side to dissuade them from doing anything about it. And we
have to do something. Trust me. The bigger the lie, the more likely
it is to be believed. People look for lies in the truth. They
seldom look for the truth in lies.”

Dasen opened his mouth to
protest again. Mr. Tappers stopped him. “See what Margot can do.
Think about the story. Spend the day getting used to the costumes
and characters. Then we’ll discuss it more. Now, I have work to do.
Good day, Lady Esther. I hope you have a wonderful stay.” Mr.
Tappers found the latch to the door and showed himself
out.

“
Sit down, my dear,” Mrs.
Tappers finally pulled Dasen from his shock. “I will do you first
so that you can start getting used to the feel of the cosmetics.”
She looked to Teth, eyes clouding with sadness. “Then we’ll see
what we can do about your hair, my dear.” With some effort, Dasen
popped his jaw back in place and complied. “Now, hold still. This
is going to take some time, and you will not like it if this gets
in your eyes.”

She opened a case that sat
on the table before her and selected a lidded pot with a parchment
colored paste inside. “After today, you will shave in the morning
as close as you can. I’d use the counselors’ potion, but it would
leave your skin red for a week and you hairless for months. From
what I can tell, your hair does not grow too fast or too dark, so
you should be able to make it through the entire day with just
this. We’ll find out soon enough.”

“
May I watch?” Teth asked
from behind

Mrs. Tappers smiled up at
her. “You may, my dear. You most certainly may.” Then she went on
talking through each step as if Dasen could hear her through his
shock and bewilderment at what was happening.

Chapter 39

The
33
^rd
Day of Summer

“
Master Esther, how lovely
to see you out and about. I must say, we are so pleased that you
and your sister have chosen to stay with us. Is there anything that
I can get you?” Mrs. Tappers closed on Teth before she had gone
more than a foot into the inn’s common room. She bowed slightly
with her hands folded before her. At the bar, her husband looked up
from the conversation he was having with a cluster of finely
dressed men. Along with his gaze came that of every other person in
the crowded room.

The weight of those stares
took the very breath from Teth. It was early afternoon, late enough
for the lunch crowd to have departed but not late enough for the
evening crowd to have arrived. She had expected to find the common
room empty, but there was not a single open chair and several men
stood in clumps at the bar and in the corners. She looked out over
the, now silent, room and felt her every pore open.

“
Were you looking for more
lunch?” Mrs. Tappers supplied. “Surely, you are still hungry after
the fast you’ve maintained during your pilgrimage. I must say, that
I was surprised that someone so young would undertake such a
journey and to include the fast. . . . Your devotion to our savior
must be great indeed. Please, allow me to bring something to your
room. I am sure that your sister is hungry as well. Or would you
prefer that I have your man bring it?”

Teth could only stammer.
Certainly she was used to dressing as a boy, but she had seldom
expected people to believe it, and with all these eyes on her, she
suddenly felt naked as the day she was born. “I . . . I just wanted
to get out and . . . and ah . . . look around, I guess,” she said
finally, watching the silent crowd so intently that she barely knew
what she was saying.

“
In that case, I shall
give you a tour,” Mrs. Tappers beamed. “As you can see, this is our
common room. It is the most popular in the city, but with things as
they are, it’s become very busy indeed over the past weeks. My
husband has always maintained a great store of provisions, so even
with the rationing and shortages, we’ve been able to set a proper
table. Our chef is the best in the city. And though his ingredients
are now limited, I am sure he will be able to satisfy your northern
palates.” She steered Teth deftly away from the broad doorway that
separated the common room from the hall. “I know that the crowd can
be intimidating, so we are happy to bring something to your room at
any time. I am sorry that we are not equipped with bells as you are
surely used to, but you can send your man or we can arrange a time
each day. We also have a private dining room that you are welcome
to use, but as we are so full, I humbly request that you provide us
with some notice so that we can ensure it is ready.”

By this time, they were
out of the view of the common room. Teth heard it erupt into
conversation behind her. At the same time, her lung released and
she drew a desperately needed breath of air. “Well, that was
exciting, wasn’t it?” Mrs. Tappers said softly from beside her. “I
thought you and Dasen were going to stay in your room today. If
we’d known you’d be down here, we’d have been better
prepared.”

“
I’m . . . I’m sorry,”
Teth sputtered. “I didn’t think there’d be anyone there. I just had
to get . . . I just needed to get out of that room.” She cursed
herself for saying too much and prayed that Mrs. Tappers would not
catch it.

“
Do you want to talk about
it, dear?” Mrs. Tappers confirmed that the Order was not answering
Teth’s prayers. She had looped her thick arm through Teth’s and led
her slowly down a back hall. “What happened between you two? Mark
told me that you were at Thoren, that you . . . .” She stopped
their walk and turned to look into Teth’s eyes. “That you did some
terrible things.”

Teth started to cry. She
was not even sure why, but suddenly, she was crying. She buried her
face in her hands and fought to keep from wailing. “Oh dear,” Mrs.
Tappers gasped. She hustled them through a door into a small
sitting room and guided Teth into a padded chair. She pushed a
cloth into her hand and rubbed her back. “It’s alright,” she said.
“It’s all over now. The Order forgives.”

Eventually, Teth composed
herself, pushed the images of the battle away, forced herself to
forget the words of the Weaver, and reminded herself that it would
all be over soon. She took a deep breath, wiped her eyes and nose,
and looked up at the lady standing over her. There was something
deep in her eyes, a sadness that could only be seen as a reflection
of what was before her. Teth saw it for an instant, then it was
gone, replaced by the doting lady of the house.

“
I’m . . . I’m sorry,”
Teth stuttered. “I don’t know what came over me. I was . . . really
I was feeling fine a few minutes ago. It is not . . . I don’t
usually . . . I mean I used to not be like this, and I don’t know
what has changed.”

“
You are human,” Mrs.
Tappers said plainly. She sat in another armchair to Teth’s side.
“I think you’ve spent a lot of your life trying to be something
else, but that is what you are. You are allowed to be sad. You are
allowed to cry, to feel guilt for what you have done. That is part
of being human.” She took Teth’s hands and held them before her.
Her hands were thick and strong, surprisingly rough. “But you have
to move on as well. The past is the past. It cannot be undone. You
should not hide from it, but neither should you let it tear you
down.” She paused and took a deep breath. “I do not know what you
have been through, probably cannot even imagine, but I saw how
Dasen looked at you this morning. He loves you. He hangs on your
every movement. He is walking a tight rope blindfolded trying to
please you.” Again she stopped this time until Teth’s eyes rose to
meet hers. “You’re allowed to let him succeed.”

Teth started crying again.
Face in her knees, she felt the fine wool of her pants growing
moist from her tears. “I can’t. You don’t understand, but I can’t.”
She snuffled and tried to breath, but it was no use, despair had
claimed her.

“
I . . . I have to tell
you something,” Mrs. Tappers started to say. The door of the room
burst open before she could finish.

“
What’s she doing down
here?” Kian’s voice cut through the room in a whispered hiss. The
door clicked shut behind him. “I thought Garth was watching them.”
He stopped suddenly as he saw what was happening in the
room.

Teth brought her face up
and watched Mrs. Tappers stare down the burly soldier. “How dare
you barge into my room without permission? I don’t care what deal
you have with Mark. You will still show me common
courtesy.”

“
You have earned no such
courtesy,” Kian scoffed. “And as far as this one and her husband
are concerned, I will do anything I want to keep them safe. Just
remember what will happen if you get in my way,
ma’am
.”

Mrs. Tappers jerked back
and glared, but the fire was gone from her eyes.

“
Why’s she crying?” Kian
asked after a long pause. “What’d you tell her? If you’re filling
her up with your twisted thinking, I’ll have your head. Do you
understand?”