Treachery of Kings (34 page)

Of course, Finn had chosen her, a Mycer with pointy ears and downy skin, instead of a human female. She needed to remind herself of that. So why, she wondered, didn't that seem to help?

Maybe because I can smell that scent of hers, way back here. And I know it didn't
all
come from a jar!

“I just thought I'd mention,” said Julia Jessica Slagg, “in passing, no offense, you have stepped on my tail twice. You might watch where you're going, and forget about our friend up there.”

“I am not thinking about anything at all,” Letitia said. “Besides, you have no idea what's going on in my head. You're not as good as you think you are.”

“Well, ofcourse. I am only a humble mechanical device.”

“Don't start, Julia. I'm not in the mood for this.”

“My snout is sealed.”

“I should live to see the day.”

“May it be the Fates’ will. Do I have the right deities this time? I get these mythical figures Newlies and humans revere mixed up sometimes. Is it the Fates I'm thinking of? Or is that the Three Blind Lice? I can never be sure.”

“Julia?”

“Right here. Scampering aside, just in the nick of time.”

“Can you—sense Finn at all? Do you think he's anywhere near?”

“I had enough trouble sniffing out his trail in the hall. There is nothing in here. Certainly nothing remotely akin to Finn.”

“Then what are we doing here, Julia? I mean, we've avoided the Badgies, but we don't know where she's taking us, or why.”

Julia sensed the edge of desperation in Letitia's voice, the tension, the strain, the tone that said she was hanging on as best she could. Julia knew she needed all the help she could get, instead of the seven acid comments and the half dozen jibes that had just come to mind. Out of great consideration, she said nothing at all.

L
ETITIA SAW NO DIFFERENCE IN THIS PARTICULAR
section of the narrow, twisting crawlway, and the one they'd passed only moments before, but DeFloraine-Marie seemed to feel it was the right place to be.

“I cannot stop and wait for you every five minutes. You're going to
have
to keep up,” the King's daughter told Letitia in that haughty, insufferable manner that seemed to be her ordinary, everyday voice.

Maybe they went to Princess School
, Letitia thought.
You couldn't be that obnoxious without a little help.

“I don't see I'm any farther back than I'm supposed to be,” Letitia said. “You're our leader. I can't very well get ahead of you.

“And, while we're at it, do you think you could tell me where we're going? Could I ask why you're helping us at all? I'm sure it's not concern over me. I know better than that.”

DeFloraine-Marie laughed, stretching her exquisite neck, tossing her perfect golden locks about in a manner Letitia was sure she'd practiced in a mirror a hundred times.

“Letitia Louise—such a charming name, common among the Mycer folk, I assume? If you imagine I have base designs of any sort on your male, you can put that notion to rest. If I cared, the poor dear would be stunned, paralyzed, struck completely dumb by now.

“I don't want him, I want him
out
of here. Out of this palace, out of Heldessia, out of my sight.”

Letitia frowned. “Why? What has Finn done to harm you?”

DeFloraine-Marie dismissed her with a scornful glance. “That's none of your concern. There are things— matters of importance to me. His presence is a nuisance. I want all you out of here, isn't that enough for you?”

“Yes. I suppose it is. As you say, your reasons are none of my concern.”

“How thoughtful of you to say so, dear. What you think means so much to me.”

And there was that vain, arrogant smile, that cold, unfeeling glance that marred the princess’ beauty and turned her perfect features into something ugly and profane.

“You clearly know this enormous structure better than I,” Julia said, fixing DeFloraine-Marie with her bright ruby eyes. “However, I know Master Finn, and that overblown magician never brought him this way.”

“Tell your disgusting machine to stay away from me,” the princess said, backing off a step or so. “If that thing gets near me, I'll step on its dreadful head.”

“I wouldn't” Letitia said.

“If she doesn't bite me, I won't bite her,” Julia said, flicking her silver tongue. “Please pass that along if you will.”

DeFloraine-Marie wrinkled her nose, as if she found something most unpleasant in the air.

“No, Oberbyght didn't bring him this way, your creature's right about that. Even that pompous oaf doesn't know about this passageway.

“When I was a child, my cousins and I found every hollow and hidey-hole in the palace. Some of them I can't even squeeze through now. We peeked on everyone.

Including Oberbyght. If they'd ever caught us, if they'd ever known we were there… “

For just an instant, Letitia saw the princess’ features soften, the mask of contempt give way to reveal the child that lay hidden somewhere behind the woman that child had become.

“Anyway, you don't care about that. You want to know where dear, dear Finn is, right? The seer took him to his place in the south tower. You can't get near him if you go that way. There are all kinds of horrid spells and magic locks and doors. My way will take us past all that. If I recall—and I'm quite good at recalling whatever I like—we'll end up at a spot where we can get a look inside the tower room.”

“Get a look?” Julia twitched her golden tail. “A look won't do us much good, as I see it. What do we have to do, break down a wall?”

DeFloraine-Marie looked past Julia as if she wasn't there. “Do I have to do everything? I'm getting you there. Don't you have a—a weapon or anything?”

“No. I've been bound up for some time. You're not aware of that?”

DeFloraine-Marie rolled her eyes. “Well, you or your monster will have to think of something. I expect you'll have to kill Oberbyght before he'll let Finn go. I'd happily do it myself, but I don't carry weapons of any sort. That's
not
what I do.”

Letitia knew this was so. DeFloraine-Marie wasn't wearing enough to hide anything at all. Letitia wondered if she dressed that way all the time. A cloudy wisp of lace, a sparkle of gems here and there didn't seem the right outfit for sneaking about in drafty passageways. The palace was such a dank and dreary place, it was a wonder the princess didn't have a chronic runny nose.

“I would suggest,” Julia said, “that we move along quickly in whatever direction you feel would be best.”

Her silver snout was rigid, her golden scales aquiver, signs that told Letitia the lizard sensed the need for action of the most immediate kind.

“She means now. She means we don't have time to stand around.”

“Oh? And why would that be?” DeFloraine-Marie flicked a mote off her bare and perfect shoulder. She was clearly bored with this venture, ready for something new.

“We are pursued,” Julia said. “Badgies, and not too far behind.”

“Nonsense. No one knows about these inner corridors but me. I assure you there's nobody here.”

“If Julia says they're here—”

“
Julia
—and I cannot believe I am calling a machine by a name—that thing may smell Badgies, I'm certain the halls are full of them now. And yes, we will move on, as I was about to suggest myself.”

“Good,” Letitia said. “We are in your hands, m'lady. I'm sure you won't lead us astray.”

DeFloraine-Marie left Letitia with a withering glance and stomped off ahead.

“She didn't care for that,” Julia said.

“Exactly what I had in mind, then. She is truly the most annoying, irritating—”

Letitia stopped, nearly stumbled as a tremor, a quake, a deep and distant rumble shook the narrow walls. Dust rained down from above. A herd of beetles scurried across the floor and disappeared.

“When the bugs go, it's time for me to go too,” Julia said. “That's never a very good sign.”

“What
was
that?” Letitia braced her hands against the wall. “I think something exploded somewhere.”

“Don't stand there,” whispered the princess. “Do I have to tell you every time?”

She stared at Letitia, her face the color of ash. Soot smudged her nose, and a spiderweb fluttered in her hair.
Letitia noted with disgust that the soot set off her pale complexion, and the spiderweb looked nice.

“You heard that, I suppose. Is the place falling apart or what?”

The princess didn't answer. She turned quickly and raced down the corridor, past fallen stones, past ancient brick and timbered walls. Shafts of errant candlelight from royal bedrooms, ballrooms, kitchens and halls pierced the holes and cracks in the walls.

Once, Letitia heard peals of laughter. Once, she heard a woman cry.

No wonder the princess is jaded beyond her years
, Letitia thought.
As a child, she must have seen
everything
from here.

“They're coming, Letitia. I don't care what m'lady says, we've got Badgies on our tail.”

“I know. Even I can hear that. Wait,” Letitia said, hurrying to catch up with DeFloraine-Marie. “They're
there
, and they're not far behind us, all right?”

The princess showed Letitia a gentle, lofty smile. “We don't have to do a thing. We're there.”

“What? I don't see a thing, we're where?”

“The peephole's gone, but I'm quite sure. I told you I remember anything I really want to. Obern Oberbyght's chambers are right here. Behind this wall.”

Letitia stared. “You think Finn's over there? Behind
this
? What are we supposed to do now? Isn't there any way in?”

“It's a
wall
, Mycer. What did you expect, a door with a nice shiny knob?”

As the princess spoke, another tremor shook the passageway. A fine veil of ancient mortar fell between Letitia and DeFloraine-Marie.

“I hate this, I really do.” The princess wiped a dainty hand across her face.

“Whatever's doing that, it's getting louder. I hope
we're not buried in here. Julia, Finn's over there. We've got to get through.”

“Excellent idea,” Julia said, waddling over splinters, stones and fallen bricks. “That sound, by the way, is from that Millennial Bell, the thing that wakes the royals from their naps. It sounds quite different up here than it does down below, but it's the very same. I'm sure Her Ladyship will be glad to explain.”

“There's nothing to tell. Your creature's right, it's a bell.”

The princess seemed uneasy. Her lovely lips twitched, and she stared at the ceiling above.

“Look. I got you here, all right? Don't complain to me, that's all I can do. You'll have to think of something yourself.”

“You might help. I don't intend to stand here if my Finn's over there.”

Brushing dust from her eyes, Letitia turned and picked at the debris. She found a large brick, frowned at it and tossed it away. Finally, she lifted a broken plank, a thick piece of wood nearly two feet long.

“It's not much, but it's better than nothing at all. Please stand back, lady, I don't have a lot of room.”

“You're out of your mind. These walls are rotten to the core. You'll bring the whole thing down!”

“Good. That's what I had in mind.”

Letitia took a breath and rammed the timber heartily against the wall. Dust rained from the ceiling. Chunks of mortar clattered to the floor.

The princess moaned and rolled her eyes.

“The odds are good she's right,” Julia said. “You're likely to bring the place down. Still, our chances are somewhat better if you try. The Badgies I mentioned, the ones that aren't there? They are in this very passageway, as I mentioned before. My guess is they are somewhat less than eight minutes away.”

“That's impossible, you little horror. I told you no one knows about this place but me.”

“You're certain of that? No one at all.”

“My cousins are dead, and there's no one else who could possibly… know.”

DeFloraine-Marie bit her lip and frowned. “I suppose there might be. I did—meet someone here once. In this passageway, I mean. Not exactly here

“Oh, dear. I guess I forgot about that.”

“And who would that be?” Letitia asked.

“Maddigern. But there's really no concern. He wouldn't hurt
me. …”

F
INN RAN.
Stumbled, fell to his knees on imaginary ground. Got up and ran again. It seemed like a foolish, useless gesture, but the only thing to do.

Where do you go when you run from an illusion, flee from a spell
?

“Anywhere,” Finn answered himself. “Anywhere's better than nowhere at all.”

The spidery hand thundered again, pounding, crushing, grinding time to dust. The great machine clattered, ticked, hummed in the eternal sky. The horizon vanished in a blur. No way out, then, nowhere to go.

Nowhere, Finn told himself, but the worst, most horrid place he could conjure in his mind. The place where he would surely shudder into soup, porridge, mush with an odorous smell.