“I see.” Bella took a deep breath. “You said I couldn’t tell him, and then that I must tell him, why?”
“I have a devious plan.” Ellie’s eyes twinkled. “I mean to give him something to live for.”
Bella knew her face must show her confusion. “What?”
“You. He will fight, for you.” Ellie squeezed her hands, and then let go of them. “But you must come back.”
Bella smiled. “Of course. Shall I tell him now?”
Ellie cocked her head. “Someone is coming.”
Bella went to look, and saw two men outside the door. She hurried to let them in.
“Joe! I’m sorry I didn’t stay to talk...” the words died on her lips as she saw who the heavily cloaked man was, behind him. “Come in,” she finished woodenly. The last person she wanted to see had just landed on her doorstep.
Joe proclaimed loudly “We are here to visit Lom, my friend Tim and I.”
Bella looked at him in astonishment. Then it dawned on her that there might be watchers, or listeners, outside here where the house did not dampen other magic. She stepped back to allow them in and pull the heavy door closed on those intruders.
“We need to talk.” King Trytion did not pull back his cowl. Under it the shadows made his face look threatening.
“Haven’t you done enough?” Bella couldn’t stop her sharp words.
“Not nearly so. And you don’t know enough yet.”
She nodded. “Come into the kitchen, it has no windows.”
They followed her in, and she found that Ellie had vanished, leaving a tray full of tea and cookies ready on the table for them.
“Please sit.” Bella tried for hospitable, at least.
Joe positioned himself facing out the door, but the king reached for a sand tart.
“I have done you a great injustice,” he began. Bella poured tea. “You don’t know how power flows in the court, and you can’t thus see and be prepared for the undercurrents. You were caught in the riptide today, I am afraid. I can’t alter that, but I can assist you with your mission.”
Bella took a deep breath. “I do feel like I am over my head, sir.”
King Trytion pulled back his cowl, and she could see his expression. He looked sad, and tired. “The Council is very strong right now. The last consort was... easily led. Usually, historically... we provide a balance, the king and queen against the council. In practice, it results in very little getting done, but this is not a bad thing.”
Bella felt her lips twitch. It sounded like he was describing the US congress. “So today was not your idea?”
He nodded. “You are very perceptive. The Council... well, some are the parents of princesses you displaced. Others resent your being so very different, and outside their control.”
“So I am unwelcome, and this was a way to eliminate me.”
He winced a little. Bella picked up her teacup and sipped, buying some time to gather her thoughts. She set it down again carefully, feeling as fragile as the thin porcelain. “I am not going to decline the mission. But I could certainly use some help.”
He nodded. “I am going to have Melcar come here to watch over Lom. And for you, I cannot do much, not with Buckingham’s restrictions, but I can send some of Lom’s contacts to you. I don’t know who, above, to recommend to you. He was close-mouthed about his sources, for good reason.”
Bella nodded, much making sense to her now. Lom liked and trusted his king, but with the Council’s power over him, giving him too much information would have been bad, and Trytion obviously understood this as well. She decided not to mention her family to him.
“But you know of some Underhill. Thank you.” She contemplated asking about Alger and Mark, then decided she had better not push the issue.
“Bella,” he began, obviously a little awkward with the informality. “I would not have us at odds. I hope to create a partnership, if you will, that will last a long time. You seem to be what my kingdom needs, a strong, sensible woman.”
“I am...” she took a breath, and went on more slowly. “I am willing to try, sir, but it will need to be a mutual trust and honestly, I don’t know you well enough yet. I’m not sure if I am supposed to treat you like my boss, a colleague, or my husband. The word “consort” has a different meaning, above.”
He winced again. “You are Lom’s lady. I could see that as soon as I met you. There is a... bond between you that he has never had before.”
“Before?”
“With his first wife?” He stopped, the look on her face registering. “You didn’t know.”
She shook her head, not trusting her voice. She had suspected, but... Well, when had they had time to talk about this sort of thing? “It’s been a fast development, Lom and I. I didn’t... I don’t like to pry, sir.”
“Oh, er...” She could tell he was trying to make a decision. The steely-eyed king off balance struck her funny bone, and she felt herself relax.
“Don’t worry about it. I am sure in time I will learn from Lom, himself.”
He drew a relieved breath and his face relaxed. “As for our relationship, I would like it to be more... informal. You have much to learn, but I do not want to make you feel lesser than I. Otherwise, I would suggest you think of me as more... a professor.”
Bella suddenly felt that she understood much. This was not a man who had had choices in his life. Bounded by duty and honor, he was tied to the throne, despite what he may have wanted in his younger years. She reached across the table, and he accepted her handshake. “That I can do. I must learn, I can see, to do the job properly. And in time, who knows?”
“May I see Lom?” His change of subject surprised her, but she understood their personal conversation to be at an end, for now.
“Of course, sir. He was asking for me, as well, shall we go up together?”
He offered her his arm at the foot of the staircase and his eyes twinkled when she took it.Corwin spoke to his majordomo, “Joe, could you send that message, and come along, if you don’t think it will tire Lom excessively, m’dear?”
Joe smiled very slightly, and made the flicking gesture of a released message spell.
Bella reassured them, beckoning for Joe to follow them up the stairs, “I think he is much stronger, Joe, you are always welcome, you are his friend.”
Joe followed obediently. Lucia came out when they could be heard from the room, and Bella could see her composure rattled for the second time that day. She dipped a little curtsey.
“M’Lord!”
Trytion waved her off gently. “Lucia, we must speak soon, but I have little time before my minders will miss me. Is he awake?”
She nodded. “Anxious about Bella and grumpy, I will warn you.”
Bella broke in, “Perhaps I had better warm him up and warn him.”
She slipped through the door.
Setbacks
I knew something was going on. First of all, Ellie and Mother both had been stalling, and looking nervous, when I asked for Bella. Secondly, that was a male voice in the hall, and Alger had left me a note that he would be away a few days and was taking Mark.
So when Bella came in I was lying on my side trying to figure out how much it would hurt to sit up. She was a sight for sore eyes, magnificent in a gown I hadn’t seen before. She rustled as she walked, and the dress was long enough she seemed to glide across the room to me. She bent to kiss me.
This I could get used to, the gentle warmth of her touches. But now I was alarmed. She should not be dressed as though she had gone to High Court, and she should not look worried.
“Help me up. Who is out there?”
She put her arm behind my back and gave me leverage to get up on a few pillows. “The king, and Joe.”
“Oh, shit.”
“Lom...” she started to say something, but I put a finger to her lips.
“Will we have time to talk after?”
She nodded.
“Then let them in and let’s get this over
with.”
She retreated to the door and swung it open. The king, incongruously clad in a flowing cloak that was more suited to Alger’s robe affectation, and Joe, looking stiffer than usual. I’d been right, I wasn’t going to like this at all.
“How are you feeling?” The king spoke first. All right, this was a courtesy call then. I’d seen Bella’s warning glance at him.
“I’ve been better. You look oddly not-yourself, today.” I tweaked him.
He chuckled hollowly. “I am playing hooky.”
“To see Bella, or me?”
“To see you. I officially saw Bella earlier today.”
Well, that explained why Bella was dressed for Court, she had been there. I looked at her, and could see her distress. She had said we would talk. I stopped trying to pump the king for information.
“I appreciate your concern, sir.”
“You’re on the mend, I can tell. The prickles are back and at full array.” He stepped closer and patted my shoulder gently. “Lom...”
“Forget it, sire. This could have been any mission, any given day.” I hadn’t been expecting it, sure, and went over it again and again. The bubble collapsing, the shotgun blast taking the Low King to hell. I’d kept that look on his face with me through all that followed; shock and surprise, in the instant he realized I really was that crazy, to kill him in spite of the personal danger I was in.
King Trytion looked stricken, and then put on his Court mask. Oh, damn, what had he done?
I looked at Joe, who was imperturbable as always. “Take care of him, will you?”
He nodded once and they left, the king having gotten my unsubtle hint.
“Bella, what the hell?” I tried to stop myself, gasping for breath. Damn, I was weak.
“Lom...” she came and sat on the bed next to me. “I will be fine. I’m not going to go charging into this. You taught me how strong I am, now let me test myself.”
I could feel all the blood drain out of my face, and from the look on hers, she no doubt thought I was going to keel over on her.
“You’re the Consort-elect. There’s no way...” I had to gasp, and she broke in.
“The council insists that as I am your partner, it is my duty to take this mission on, and it cannot wait until you are recovered. Lom, my dear man, I want to do this.”
She laid her head gently on my chest and I wrapped an arm around her. Movement was easier, today.
“There are humans, above, in my world, in danger. I have the power to help, and you know what my training is. Now I’m a magical first responder. Can you accept that?”
Yeah, I had to. It wasn’t like I could get out of bed and stop her. I tightened my arm around her. “What can I do to help?”
She looked up at me. “Advice on how to hide magic above?”
I could do that. And I needed to get better, fast, so she wasn’t alone for long. I might not have any magic, but at least I could shoot straight. “I have so much I need to teach you.”
She smiled impishly, “And there is so much I want to learn.”
She surprised me with that look, and its hidden meaning. “Woman, you want to kill me?” I smiled and it felt good. I wasn’t happy about the situation, but having her in my arms was intoxicating.
“How much time do we have?”
“Not nearly enough,” she sighed and tried to pull away to sit up, but I held on. She could have escaped me, in the state I was in, but she followed my lead, and I kissed her.
I hadn’t really had the chance to do this the way I would have liked, to take my time and be the lead dancer in an embrace with her, and I didn’t want to let her go without taking my time to remind her how I felt. Words simply weren’t enough in this case. Well, one would do. I released her lips and whispered, “Mine.”
She shivered with pleasure, and I let her sit up. I didn’t have the strength to follow that statement with direct action, not just yet.
“Lom,” she started and I hushed her again.
“Bella, call Raven. And...”
Just to see if I could, I tried to summon a spell message. The pain was instant, and blinding. I thrashed on the bed, trying to make it stop. Bella made a short squeak of alarm, and then went into medic mode. Pulling the pillows away, she got me onto my side and far enough off the bed that the vomit hit her, and the floor, but not the sheets.
“Ellie!” She shouted. “Lucia!”
I couldn’t stop twitching. Every muscle was on fire, and it wasn’t stopping. All I had wanted... the world faded to black.
Trying Too Hard
Bella felt Lom go limp, and Ellie ran through the door. “Help me get him back on the bed.” Bella gasped, the effort of holding his dead weight straining her. She didn’t dare use magic with him in this state. Ellie hurried, and between them they got him rolled onto the bed, on his side, so he wouldn’t aspirate vomit if he did that again.
“I need to get this off me and clean up. Don’t take your eyes off him, if he throws up...” Bella broke off. Ellie had nursed him before.
“Go. Lucia and I will take care of the mess.” Ellie reassured her, hands fully occupied with Lom.
Lucia walked in the door and took in the situation at a glance. “What happened?”
“He tried to access magic. He can’t do that again.” Bella knew her voice was clipped but couldn’t help it, she was afraid.
“I would hope he’d know better!” Lucia spoke sharply, but Bella knew it was distress, not anger.
Bella held up a hand. “Lucia, I reek and this must be cleaned. Not now.”
Lucia fell silent, and Bella left the room. In her own bare room she used magic to clean the dress, before stripping it off and leaving it in a heap on the floor. She knew it was an inanimate object, but just at the moment she didn’t care if she ever saw it, or another dress, again in her life. Now that she was alone, she couldn’t stop the tears. Through the sobs, she went to the wardrobe and started pulling out more practical clothing.
The crying was annoying, but she couldn’t stop it, and she wasn’t about to throw herself on the bed and “have a good cry.” What would happen if Lom died? She remembered the letters she had written before the king’s arrival. One was for Lom, should she not return. The other had been in case he didn’t awaken before her departure, so she didn’t need that anymore. She was fairly sure that her not telling him she was going on a mission would have been a huge mistake. He was not a man who trusted easily, and having been given his trust, she treasured it.
Bella blew her nose, pulled on a sweater and jeans, and mopped her eyes. Finally, they were drying up. She was going to look a wreck, but it was done, and it hadn’t slipped out in public. She took a deep breath. Time to pack, and leave. If she delayed to wait on Lom’s recovery, she might never leave, and this needed to be done.
She did walk across the hall and into his room before she left. He had stopped twitching and was lying still, with Ellie hovering over him.
“Lom?” She wasn’t sure he could hear her.
He opened his eyes a little. “I promise not to die,” he whispered.
She kissed him on the forehead. “I promise to come back.”
He was barely audible, “Call Raven. And call Dean. He’ll bring the sprites.”
“Thank you. Please try not to worry, just get better.” She kissed him again and slipped away before he could protest.
Bella went straight to her armory. Across the hall from his armory, in the basement, it had been the gift from Lom which had told her wordlessly how he felt about her. No-one was allowed into his inner sanctum, but she had the keys. His trust was sweeter than any spoken declaration.
With the spells on the upper door, she knew she could be completely alone, and it was time to make a list and stop thinking about anything other than the mission. She now knew who to call in, and hopefully the king could provide addresses, or something. Which meant it was time to think about equipment and money. Even if she could somehow magically conjure gold from thin
air, which wasn’t possible, she’d need to convert it without raising eyebrows, and...
She put her head down on the workbench. This was impossible. How did Lom fund his work? She needed to get above and try some things out, like transportation bubbles. She sat up straight and summoned the briefing portfolio she had stowed in her library earlier. How well would this work, above? She was rather spoiled, she admitted to herself. Being able to stash materials in a magical library was certainly convenient. Could she do it above? One more thing to experiment on.
Reading through the briefing yielded the information that no one knew how many ogres there were in the Mount St. Helens nest, as she dubbed it, but there had to be several. She and Lom had had a brush with them, a true running fight, during their escape from Alaska to Underhill. Lom had engineered most of it, and she had been in on the last part, with the very special weapon he had gifted her only the day before. She couldn’t remember how many she had seen in their fight. There had been too much movement and she hadn’t been close. Which had been fine with her. Bella looked around to see the ugly black multi-grenade launcher on the rack. For sure her “little friend” was coming along on this mission. And that was another thing, how did Lom carry around weapons that were as illegal as hell?
Sometime after their fight, most likely allowing for recovery time from the wounds she and Lom had inflicted, the ogres had taken a hiking couple, leading to an extensive manhunt. This had alerted Underhill, through some process that was not clear to Bella, although it might have been a news-clipping service, from the articles included in the portfolio. There were older articles alluding to disappearances, and some were of shaky provenance.
“The Enquirer? Bigfoot? Sheesh...” Bella dropped those clippings back and wrinkled her nose. Sure, she was family with a trickster spirit and a fairy princess in her own right, but some things were obviously delusions intended to protect the collective psyche of humanity.
In the end, what she was left with was an unknown number of the enemy, an unknown location, (although helpfully narrowed down on the included map to several square miles of some exceedingly rough country) and unknown resources. She pulled a blank piece of paper from her workbench notebook and started to make a list.
Trickster Noir (Pixie for Hire Book 2) Page 3
