Palace Intrigue

by Lina J. Potter

  Told by Leis, the story was that not long after Lily moved to Earton after her marriage, Fred had to go to Altver to buy some things at the market. While he was there, he met a stranger who offered him good money to report at regular intervals on the countess’ doings. The man gave him pigeons and money, and Fred, who could read and write a little, started sending reports. He told Sara to get a job at the castle in order to provide him with information.

  He often went to Altver or sent one of his sons to pick up the money, which always appeared on time. Payment was handled by a merchant named Karl Treloney. Fred left most of the money with Treloney to invest in trade since he quite sensibly reasoned that there was not much he could do with cash in Earton.

  At some point, the client sent Fred a bottle containing a mysterious liquid, along with instructions to put it in the countess’ food. That worried Fred. He tried the potion out on one of his dogs. The animal stumbled around looking confused but otherwise showed no ill signs. Fred concluded that the potion was some kind of intoxicant and instructed Sara to use it liberally.

  Sara did her best, only leaving off when the earl was at home.

  Ha! I was suffering from withdrawal symptoms whenever my husband was around. That’s just fantastic.

  When Lilian got pregnant, Fred’s client grew worried. He instructed them to increase the dose, sending a larger bottle of the potion from Altver. When Sara ran out of that, she started buying from the local herbalist.

  If they’d managed to kill me, old Moraga would have been next.

  Sara did everything her uncle told her and then some.

  Leis’ face was haggard. “My Lady, she confessed that she rubbed bacon grease on the staircase. That’s why you fell. You were pregnant, and your head was thick with an intoxicant.”

  Lily forced herself to wipe away imagined tears. She had seen enough Mexican soap operas where things like this happened, so she knew how to behave. Inwardly, however, she was ever so slightly grateful to Sara. If the girl hadn’t done her darnedest to kill the old Lily, Aliya never would have found her way into this new world.

  I could have wound up dead instead of reincarnated. That’s a pretty big difference!

  “What about the poison?” she asked.

  Taris leaned up against the wall. “They had already been drugging you, so they just asked the old woman in the forest for something stronger—something deadly.”

  “Why didn’t they kill her once they had the poison?”

  “They were planning to.”

  Lily wiped her nose and looked away. I would have gotten rid of her right away, just to be safe.

  “What were they waiting for?”

  Taris raised an eyebrow. “What if the poison didn’t work, My Lady? Where would they have gone for another potion? Nobody in Fred’s family knows the ways of herbs. They aren’t smart enough. And there’s another thing; you weren’t the only intended victim.”

  “Who else were they after?”

  “The earl’s daughter.”

  Lily’s hands balled into fists. “Mirrie?” she growled. For an instant, both men thought Lily was ready to leap down the stairs and kill the plotters with her bare hands, but they were wrong. She regained control of herself just in time.

  “They were thinking ahead, I see,” she said gruffly.

  In an instant, she saw how it would have played out. In the days after her death, there would have been enough confusion in the castle for the plotters to get to Mirrie. Then they would have mourned the tragedy of the little girl’s death. “She followed after her stepmother,” they would have said. Lily forced herself to breathe slowly.

  “What shall we do with them, My Lady?”

  “Did Fred give you the name of the man who hired him?”

  “He said his name was something like Kerens, but we have no way to know if that’s true or not.”

  Lily stared at Taris for a moment. “Have you written to my father yet?”

  “Yes, My Lady.”

  “Send another letter with all these details, please. And one more thing…” There was something predatory in her green eyes. “I believe it would be difficult for anyone to get here before spring, wouldn’t it?”

  Taris and Leis nodded, confused.

  “Send the client a letter using one of Fred’s pigeons, and sign it from Fred. Does anyone know what he used to write?”

  “Yes, My Lady.”

  “Good. Write that I am at death’s door. Then wait to see what happens. I’ll smoke the bastard out of his hiding place if it’s the last thing I do. And he’ll pay me for it, too! You just watch.” The men stared at her. “Meanwhile, my father can ask questions while he’s in the capital.”

  Taris blinked. “In the capital, My Lady?”

  She sneered. “Taris, use your head. They weren’t planning to kill me because I’m blonde. This is the work of my father’s enemies or my husband’s enemies. I hope my father can learn something over the winter. We’re stuck out here, but we can keep playing the game and see how much of the client’s money we can get our hands on. I’ll write to Torius Avermal. I want to know everything about Karl Treloney—what line of business he is in and who he drinks with.

  Leis stared at her as he tried to catch up. Taris had been looking down at the floor during Lily’s tirade, but when she was done, he looked up with shining eyes. At that moment, Lily realized she was really and truly in charge. She was the pack leader. She would decide what they did, and the others would follow her. Why? Because I’m smart.

  ***

  A letter, supposedly from Fred Darcey, to the unknown client:

  “Sir, the cow is near dead, She has no hope to live, but the girl is alive. What should I do?”

  Lily read it and approved wholeheartedly. Taris had not wanted to show it to her, for fear that the word “cow” would offend her, but Lily couldn’t have cared less. They can call me a crocodile if they want, as long as I win in the end! I’ll write to Torius while I wait for this mystery man to reply.

  The countess had no intention of allowing anyone to hurt her or Mirrie. Whoever this mysterious enemy is, he’s in a heap of trouble. Lily was confident she would find him and store him away in her laboratory—in little pieces in glass jars! There will be no appealing the sentence I hand down! People are always hanging the heads of innocent deer on their walls. Why can’t I display my enemy’s liver in a jar? At least that way, he’ll be of use to science.

  ***

  Pigeon mail for Torius Avermal:

  Baron Avermal,

  I need you to find out everything you can about Karl Treloney. It’s an important matter. I’ll explain in a letter.

  L. E.

  ***

  The main question that bothered Lily (other than finding her mysterious enemy) was what to do with the Darcey family. She could send them to their deaths, but there were small children among them. That gave her pause. Lily considered executing the adults and telling the children they were free to go if anyone would have them, but winter was coming, and some of the children would certainly die of exposure. And again, those children that survived would grow up to hate her for killing their parents.

  She considered keeping the Darceys in the dungeon over the winter and then letting them go, but that went against one of her fundamental beliefs: if you tried to kill someone, your punishment should be death. In her own world, she had seen too many murderers freed. That would not happen in Earton.

  Lily had no problem with executing Sara, as well as Fred’s wife since he was already dead. Both women were in on the plot, as were his older sons. But the village elder had a large family, and his youngest child was just three years old.

  In the end, Taris suggested a way out. She could keep the family together over the winter, and when spring came, she could execute the adults. The smaller children could be given to other families to raise, and the older children could be given to Ali on his next visit. It wouldn’t be slave trading since Lily would have no material gain, and it
would ensure that the older Darcey children would be taken far enough away that they would not be able to cause her trouble in the future. Lily didn’t like the plan, but she had no better ideas.

  ***

  Richard had every intention of getting better, despite the dire warnings of the healers. His fever still returned sometimes, but less often. His wounds were still infected, but they looked much better after being cleaned and dressed with bandages made of spider webs and moss. Slowly but surely, the prince was regaining his health. True, he was still so weak that he could barely lace up his own pants. Anna sat by him days at a time, wiping away sweat (his) and tears (hers).

  Jess was concerned for his friend. The ambassadors were all in a twitter, afraid to find out what Edward would have to say to them. In their minds, it was impossible to keep watch over a red-blooded young man during a royal hunt. He was old enough to watch out for himself, and Gardwig’s huntsmen should have chased after the princess. Their reasoning was sound, but it provided them with little comfort. Heads were sure to roll.

  When Edward’s letter was finally received, Richard was surprised by his father’s reaction. True, he was reprimanded for his carelessness and reminded that he was the only hope of the Ativernese dynasty. The king was angry, but Richard could read between the lines. His father felt that, since he had to spend the winter in Wellster anyway, he should put the time to good use and get to know the princess. A man can learn a lot about a woman when he is sick.

  Richard followed his father’s advice. It wasn’t hard since he had little else to do. He saw that Anna did her best to imitate a servant of Aldonai—gentle, sweet and attentive—but that with every passing day she was less and less able to hide her true feelings. As he watched her, he began to notice the occasional angry expression, impatient gesture or look of fear that broke through the mask she wore around him. At times, Anna reminded him of a cornered rat. As he lay in bed and looked out the window, Richard found himself pitying the princess. He suspected Gardwig had not been a good father to her but had no desire to marry her because of it.

  ***

  Edward read Gardwig’s reply with great interest. After again apologizing for Richard’s hunting accident, the king of Wellster abandoned all subtlety and openly proposed a union between their two houses. He also promised to give Anna the province of Balley as a dowry. The way he described it, such a marriage would be profitable for both kingdoms. As neighbors, they could protect each other from invasions by outsiders. At the end of his letter, Gardwig reminded his dear neighbor and respected friend that both of them were getting on in years and that this matter should be decided as soon as possible.

  Edward gave the letter much thought. He was inclined to believe that Richard’s mishap was truly an accident. It was impossible that a wild animal was working in the king’s hire. He would have heard about it before (Edward had spies of his own, and they did their jobs well).

  However, in the end, he decided to write to Richard and suggest he do no more hunting until he got home.

  ***

  “You’re a stupid fool!”

  “At least I’m not a cheap whore!”

  “Eveer trash!”

  “Hussy!”

  “What on earth is going on?” This last was said by Lily, who had slipped into the kitchen in hopes of finding a piece of cheese. She knew it wasn’t good for her, strictly speaking, but she had decided to give herself a treat. When she opened the door, she found Loria and one of the servant girls in the middle of a loud argument.

  “Everything is fine, My Lady. I’m used to it. Nobody cares for Eveers.”

  “And why is that?”

  Lily soon learned that in addition to all the other reasons the locals disliked Eveers, they hated them because it was impossible to steal from them. Loria managed the kitchen with an iron fist. The servant girls were used to helping themselves from the pantry, so they started talking back and causing trouble when Loria punished them for it. Helke’s sister had put up with their behavior as long as she could, but her patience had finally run out.

  The countess decided her patience had run out, too. The women were not fired, but Lily transferred them to what she called “new opportunities.” In such a big castle, she explained, there were always plenty of places in need of a good cleaning. Once the rebellious servants were gone (mops and buckets in hand), Loria chose some of the quieter maids to help her in the kitchen.

  That evening, Emma sat down with the newly minted janitors and made sure that they understood they were still better off than if they had been fired or sent to care for the livestock. Grudgingly, they saw the logic in her argument and agreed to make no more trouble.

  As an added benefit, the quality of the meals improved and Lily relaxed…but not for long.

  ***

  Day followed day. Lily worked, cared for Mirrie, waited for news, taught lacemaking, wrote down everything she knew about glass, and spent long evenings talking with Helke and Tahir. She was as close to happy as she had ever been in that world.

  Then one day, a letter arrived that shook up her happy state of mind.

  “Finish off the cow and kill the girl. Karl will pay you one thousand gold coins.” Lily whistled. I had no idea that a countess and her stepdaughter cost that much.

  She soon sent back Fred’s reply:

  Sir, I want half upfront for the cow.

  And then something else happened…

  ***

  If you want to hide something, ask an adult; if you want to find something, ask a child. One morning, Lily decided she didn’t know her castle well enough. She knew all the official rooms by heart, but she was sure there were secret passages somewhere. There just have to be.

  She started by gathering the children in the long, dark evenings and telling them mystery stories featuring a hero named Sir Holmes. It didn’t take long for the children—who were completely unspoiled by media or devices of any kind—to get hooked on her stories. Even Jaimie sat listening with eyes wide whenever the countess regaled the roomful of children with another episode in the life of Sir Holmes. After a while, other members of the household started to join them for story time. It turned into quite the event.

  Soon, the children were spending all their free time running around the castle in search of hidden rooms and passages. They knocked on walls and jumped out at the servants from around blind corners. The servants complained, of course, and Emma reprimanded the wildest of the young detectives, but Lily just smiled and kept telling stories. One day, her work paid off; Mirrie came to her with a downcast face and announced that, “there weren’t any skeletons at all in the secret passage…” The child was beyond disappointed.

  Lily suggested that Mirrie show her the passage and perhaps, they could look for skeletons together. She soon learned that the children had discovered three secret passages: one from the kitchen to the second floor, another from the family wing to the outside, and a third in the guest wing of the castle. The third passage had caved in. To Lily’s mind, all three made perfect sense. The kitchen had a door to the outside, making it an ideal destination for an escape route. The passage from the family wing to the outside served the same purpose. She assumed the passage in the guest wing was used to keep an eye on what visitors were up to, which also made sense.

  The passages were such in name only, so narrow and low that Lily almost got stuck. She also got filthy. Her suffering was richly rewarded, however, when she tripped over something in the passage to the kitchen. Looking down, she saw exactly what she expected—a small barrel. It was new and still shiny.

  Of course! A trunk or chest would attract attention, but a barrel looks like something you’d put dried apples in.

  It was such an ordinary looking barrel that the children had ignored it.

  I wonder what’s in it?

  Lily soon had her answer when the servants pulled it out of the passage. The lid was on tight, but when they pulled it off…

  ***

  Silver coins are a str
ange thing. Even a small handful of them can make people stare. Jaws drop when you have a whole barrel of silver coins mixed with chunks of amber. Etor was a saver. When Lily fired him, he didn’t bother to take the largest share of his savings with him. Why bother? He could always get back into the castle, either through the passage or straight over the crumbling wall. The barrel would have been easy enough to roll away, too.

  When they counted it all, there were over two thousand silver coins and a sizeable quantity of amber. Lily sighed in relief. Now, she was confident they would survive the winter. The weather had already turned cold.

  Taris interrupted her pleasant daydreaming with a question. “My Lady, did you ever receive your bride’s share?”

  Lily could only shrug. She had no idea, but she did have an excuse—the Darceys had been drugging her. That gave rise to another question. Why didn’t the medicus Jess sent notice his patient was under the influence of an intoxicating herb? The Virmans worked over Sara and soon got an answer—someone paid the medicus to look the other way. Lily wondered who had the time and money to go after her from all sides. She also began to worry about her trip to the capital.

  Sounds like survival classes would be more useful than dancing lessons!

  For the time being, however, she decided to focus on investing her newly discovered profits. After considering the matter with Helke, she gave him the amber to turn into jewelry and hid the money in the earl’s study, where no one would find it.

  ***

  Erik was soon back from Altver, where he had winterized Lily’s new ships. The Virman had accomplished everything she had asked of him, and he brought with him several nice-looking mares. Lily and Mirrie were disappointed when he told them that a mare stays pregnant for almost a year. If the Avarian stallion covered one of the mares that winter, they would still have to wait a long time for a foal. Lily told Mirrie that they wouldn’t wait that long; she would order another Avarian from Ali. Mirrie had no doubt that her stepmother would do as she promised. The little girl had grown so attached to Lily that she thought her stepmother had hung the moon in the sky. Lily felt the same about her young charge.