The Hidden Mask (Wizard's Helper Book 6)

by Guy Antibes

  “That wouldn’t be the case in the busy season?” Jack asked.

  “You are right. There is more, but you will find that out later. Just enjoy looking at the buildings. There are more murals in Bristone than in Chancey.”

  Ari was right. He stopped talking just to look at all the scenes. Jack wondered what stories they told, especially the older buildings where the pictured inhabitants dressed more like the men of the mountains. Jack wondered what life was like then. Perhaps he would have the time to find out.

  They reached the city center that went on for blocks and blocks. The buildings looked the same as the ones in Chancey, complete with the covered walkways in front of the buildings. Lord Floury’s carriage stopped in front of an inn.

  “This is where you will be staying. My house is a few blocks away. I hope you will allow us to visit you, and you are welcome to visit us. Thank you for letting us accompany you, it made the journey go by quickly.”

  Annette hugged the women, and Floury bowed to Jack, Lorton, and Oscar. Ari stood by his horse, but Floury waved perfunctorily to the wizard before he helped his daughter into the carriage, and it clattered away.

  Jack turned around and looked up at the inn. There wasn’t a mural, but the walls were covered with paintings of statues and plants that looked almost real.

  “Take your personal bags,” a porter said. “Your trunks will be delivered to your rooms.”

  Since Lorton and Jack’s clothes for Bristone were in the same trunk, Jack made sure they were in rooms close by. He found that all their rooms were in the same vicinity, including Oscar’s.

  Jack walked up four flights to his own room and then teleported everyone else from the empty lobby to their floor. He grabbed the keys on his last trip and took Ari with him.

  “You do have a talent for doing this,” Ari said.

  “It was easier because you helped,” Jack said. “I can tell the difference. Grigar could help too.” But Jack didn’t say how much better Ari was at assisting Jack’s teleporting.

  Jack found his windowless room and slipped his bags inside. Lin had a suite with all the windows facing the street.

  “We will stay here until I have found a suitable townhouse. I will visit the ambassador within the next hour. Lord Floury has also given me the name of a few agents who might help us.”

  Jack didn’t care. He just wanted to warm up and rest from the last few days of travel. He expected Ari wished to do the same. Lin was in charge of securing a more permanent situation, so Jack didn’t worry about any of that.

  “Do you need any help carrying your bags to your friend’s house?”

  “Me?” Ari said. “No, not at all. I will get a hired carriage. My destination is some blocks away, too far to walk comfortably. I will let you know where I will be staying. If you need to find me, there is always the Battlebone, which should allow you to find anybody or anything in the city.”

  “It drains my magic, though,” Jack said.

  “Then don’t use it very much. Isn’t that simple?”

  Jack smiled. “It is.

  “Good. Rest up, and I will see you tomorrow.”

  Ari winked at Jack and disappeared from view. From bringing him up from the lobby, Jack knew Ari could teleport.

  Penny walked up to Jack. “I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to Ari Gasheaux,” she said.

  “He’s already gone.”

  Penny looked behind her. “But he would have had to pass me.”

  “Ari can teleport.”

  Penny looked at the silver band around her wrist. “Of course. This is an object of power, and he made it. He’s like Fasher.”

  “And to an extent, like us. I’m glad he is here. We might need a powerful backup.”

  Penny nodded. “I’m going to accompany Lin to the embassy, which is only a few blocks away. Do you want to come?”

  Jack groaned. His afternoon nap had disappeared, just like Ari.

  Chapter Thirteen

  ~

  J ack decided not to teleport everyone downstairs. He knew he would begin to feel the strain on his magic, and he couldn’t use Eldora’s box to gain strength easily, so they walked downstairs. Lin showed Penny the street map to the embassy, and Penny used a quick glance at her bone seer to lead them down the street with confidence.

  The stripped roads didn’t remove the people. Many people walked underneath the roofed arcade, as Lin referred to the walkways covered by the next floor up that went from building to building. They walked as a group of three through the town. Occasionally Jack noticed people clad in white walked singly or in clusters. Jack wondered if they were WWS members, remembering the woman in a white ball gown in Boxwood. He didn’t notice so many while they traveled through the rest of Antibeaux.

  They didn’t take long to reach their destination. Lin led them up the steps in front of the arcade and through the entrance on the floor about street level.

  “I am here to see the ambassador. I have sent notice that I would be arriving via bird and via post. The name is Lady Kanlinn Marker.”

  The woman at the front desk looked through a logbook. “You are sponsoring…” she counted names in the book, “five other Corandians?”

  “I am,” Lin said.

  The woman nodded. “The ambassador asked to see you as soon as you arrived. If you would go to the next floor, the ambassador’s office faces the street.”

  They were ushered into the ambassador’s office, who stood when they entered.

  “Fenton Crabson, Corandian ambassador to Queen Inez.” He bowed to Lin and gave smaller bows to Jack and Penny.

  “I am Lady Kanlinn Marker. I have brought my noble companions, Lady Penneta Ephram and Lord Jack Winder.”

  Crabson’s eyebrows rose. “I wasn’t aware that you would be accompanied by nobles. The dispatches said five people. I assumed they might be servants.”

  “Lady Penneta and Lord Winder serve me from time to time. Have you secured a suitable residence while I winter in Bristone?”

  “Nothing suitable is available at present, Lady Kanlinn. We are still looking. You are at an inn?”

  “We are,” she stood up. “Now that we have been introduced, I will be on my way. I had hoped to hear better news, but I suppose I will return to the inn and rest after my long journey to Bristone.”

  Ambassador Crabson scrambled to his feet. “Perhaps you might grace my wife and me for a private dinner in a day or two after you’ve settled in at the inn.”

  “That would be lovely. I wish you a good day,” Lin said and left the office.

  “Weren’t you a bit rude?” Penny said after they stepped off the last step onto the street.

  “He is lucky I didn’t pierce him with a wizard bolt,” Lin said. “According to Lord Floury, there should be quite a few townhouses available, and good ones, too. There are enough Bristone merchants and nobles who winter outside Antibeaux to create space in the city for us. Crabson is playing us for fools. He is probably finding the cheapest place where he and a confederate will charge a huge fee. She pulled out a sheet from her bag but didn’t let anyone look at it. “I have three names. They are all around here somewhere. Let’s find a townhouse on our own. Lord Floury gave me a reasonable range of rent to pay.

  They toured the second of three available townhouses from the second agent. Lin didn’t trust the first, and Jack agreed with her assessment of the woman, but the next agent didn’t look much better.

  “This is close to everything. The rooms are large, with windows facing the back and the front. There is a modest ballroom surrounded by intimate alcoves and two sitting rooms. The owner winters in Passoran and is very motivated to let this out as soon as possible. I can give you excellent terms.” The agent quoted a price in the middle of Lord Floury’s range. They inspected every room.

  “Do we have to hire servants? Do they come with the property?”

  The agent thought for a moment. “A few. I can procure reliable helpers, should you choose.”

 
; “I may call on you to do that. Lord Floury referred you to me.”

  “He is the most honorable of men,” the agent said.

  “Can we move in tomorrow?”

  The agent’s eyes lit up. “With a suitable deposit.”

  “Is this enough?” Lin gave the man a heavy sack from her purse.

  The man looked inside. “I will make it so. We will have papers delivered to your inn within the hour.”

  “That will be acceptable. Thank you for your time. I can have my man perform a more thorough inspection tonight?” Lin said.

  “Of course, with this deposit.” He presented the key to Lin.

  They parted company at the street level entrance and found that the house was closer to the inn than the embassy.

  “What was the ambassador’s problem?” Penny asked.

  “One of his own making,” Lin said. “I expect we will be greeted by the ambassador or one of his staff when we arrive at the inn.”

  Jack was amazed. A man stood up in the lobby of the inn when Lin entered.

  “I have excellent news. The Ambassador has located a townhouse that you might find acceptable,” the man said.

  “What is the price?” Lin said.

  The man opened a portfolio and quoted a rental higher than the top of Lord Floury’s range.

  Lin frowned. “I didn’t wait, so I engaged a local man to locate a property, which I have already leased for the winter. Please convey my regrets to Ambassador Crabson.”

  “The Ambassador will be very disappointed.”

  Lin tapped the man on the shoulder. “I am sad that he is disappointed. Tell him I am still looking forward to dining with him soon.”

  The embassy employee left. “Can you take me up to my room?” Lin asked.

  Jack teleported Lin and met Penny back in the lobby. “You didn’t want me to teleport you too?” Jack asked.

  “I am sorry you are disappointed,” Penny said, breaking into laughter. “If you ever wondered why we needed Lin on this trip, you experienced it. She told us there would be someone at the inn with an offer.”

  “It was a masterful act,” Jack said. “I would have felt obligated to the ambassador. I’m sure she counts that as a victory.”

  “Knowing Lin, she does,” Penny said.

  She slipped her arm through Jack’s as they walked up the stairs. “Tell me what you spent so many hours talking about with Ari Gasheaux?”

  ~

  “There are a few issues with the townhouse,” Oscar said.

  Lorton stood behind the butler while the state of the townhouse was reviewed.

  “We will not need to redecorate, although there are some closets that will require extra cleaning. They have these odd ceramic heating blocks. Heat is ducted from a furnace in the basement, so there is no smoke in any rooms. It is vented through the roof.”

  “I wondered what those were for,” Jack said. “I had one in my room in Chancey.

  “And the kitchen?” Lin asked.

  “It is in decent shape. The cooking surfaces and ovens are made for both mundane fire and wizard fire, I think. There is a warming closet that uses the furnace as well. I would imagine there is a servant who manages the fire. It was too dark to ascertain all the intricacies of the heating system.”

  “There is no stable,” Lorton said. “We will have to store the carriage and the horses elsewhere. I didn’t notice other stables in the neighborhood, so that probably won’t be a problem, just an extra cost.”

  “Is there anything that will prevent us from moving in tomorrow?”

  Both men shook their heads.

  “Good. Oscar check with the inn’s management on the details.”

  The butler bowed. “I will, Lady Kanlinn.” He left the sitting room to Lin’s suite.

  “There is something else. Oscar was more comfortable with me bringing it up,” Lorton said. “He believes there are sound pipes throughout the place.”

  “What is a sound pipe?” Penny asked before Jack had the opportunity to ask the same question.

  “It is a spying device. Sound travels through a pipe. A spy can hear all that is being said in a room. It isn’t used much in the First Ring, but often enough that I have heard of them,” Lorton said.

  “Is it bad enough to back out of our lease?” Lin said.

  Lorton sighed. “I’m not sure that any of the properties we look at will be totally safe from such things.”

  “I can fix it,” Jack said.

  “How?” Lin asked.

  “The Battlebone. We can follow the piping between the walls with it and seal them up.”

  Lin grinned. “You can do that?”

  Jack shrugged. “It will likely deplete my magic, but I think it is worth it.”

  “I can help,” Penny said.

  Lin nodded. “Then we will work on it after we move in. We just have to be a little more circumspect until your work is done.”

  The next day, Lorton and Oscar supervised the moving people while Penny and Jack went to work.

  They started with the master suite in the townhouse. Lorton had described what a sound pipe would look like. It took them almost half an hour to find the first one.

  Jack was able to track the space using the Battlebone back to an empty library a few doors down. The room was at the back of a smelly closet. Jack found that someone had painted a smear of tarry smelling material in the corner of the space. Penny found the latch that led to the listening room. There were eight flexible pipes consisting of coated fabric wound around springs.

  They each took a pipe and followed the pipe to its termination. The pipes were distributed along one side of the townhouse. One of them even went to the library from the closet.

  Jack brought Lorton up to inspect the closet.

  “We found another one of the smelly closets on the west side wall. Would you like me to show you?” Lorton asked.

  “If you would,” Penny said, winking at Jack.

  Jack inspected the closet and showed Lorton the smelly smear. “Penny has something to show you.”

  She quickly found the latch, and the back of the closet opened into the second listening room in the house. “There is a reason for the smell,” Penny said. “Jack and I found a similar room on the other side of the townhouse. I am guessing that these pipes will monitor activity on this side.”

  Lorton grabbed one of the flexible listening tubes. “I expected one or two devices, but this is shocking.”

  “I’m not sure if the occupants are in Passoran or lying in wait to blackmail the renters,” Jack said.

  “Or both. They wouldn’t do the listening,” Lorton said. “Perhaps we should contact the authorities.”

  “Is that the best course?” Jack asked.

  Lorton laughed. “I’m thinking like a policeman, aren’t I? No, we should observe to see who is entering these rooms, and then we can cap the pipes.”

  “Lin is probably the most devious among us,” Jack said, “but I would cap them now. When they don’t hear anything, they will stop. We can always turn them in later or tell Lord Floury to spread the word. We don’t know enough to do much.”

  “No, we don’t, and what if the listeners are the authorities?” Lorton said. He smiled. “We can get carried away with scenarios.”

  Penny nodded. “We wait for Lin and decide what is best for our quest.”

  “I agree, now that I have been given a dose of what can happen in Bristone,” Lorton said.

  Jack grinned. “What is best for our quest. I like it!”

  Penny bumped him with her elbow. “I’m sorry,” she said. “The closet is quite tight.”

  “The closet is quite tight for the best of our quest,” Jack said, laughing.

  Even Lorton smiled a little.

  “Enough,” Penny said, stepping out of the listening room through the closet to the sitting room beyond.

  “I’m sure a servant would be the one doing the monitoring,” Lorton said when he emerged after making sure the room was se
cure. “They would have to know when the target room was occupied.”

  “Are there any other smelly closets?” Penny asked.

  They found another listening station just off the main floor sitting room. That one served a set of sound pipes installed around the ballroom at the alcoves that the agent pointed out.

  “A blackmailer’s delight,” Lorton said.

  When Lin finally arrived with Sera, Oscar was already at work, making order out of everything. They all inspected the ballroom.

  “Have any servants shown up yet?” Lorton asked.

  “They are due to arrive after lunch,” Oscar said. “I have been in contact with the agent. Four are already attached to the townhouse, and three are in the process of being hired.

  “Seven?” Jack asked. “That is a lot of servants.”

  “You try cleaning the place and cooking for us,” Oscar said.

  Lin ushered everyone downstairs to the sitting room. “Jack has something to show us.”

  He led them to the closet and opened the listening room door, surprising a woman with her ear against the pipe.

  The woman’s eyes grew. “I’m just doing some cleaning. I thought that awful smell came from here,” the woman said.

  Penny dragged her out of the listening room and put her into a chair.

  “What do you think you are doing?” Lin asked.

  “Cleaning. That is my job. I’ve faithfully served this house for five years.”

  “Who do you really work for?” Lorton asked.

  The woman looked from side to side, but there was no exit. Oscar stood at the door leading out.

  “How did she get in there?” Sera asked.

  Lorton tilted his head. “Good question. Let’s look at the room a little more closely.”

  Jack used a wizard’s light and rapped a few of the boards until the sound changed. He fiddled with the flooring a little more until the outline of a trap door appeared. He lifted the door revealing a ladder leading down to a rough passage.

  “Were you going to clean that too?” Lorton asked.