The others began to look up at the storm clouds nervously. Pryce quickly pressed his advantage. “You always felt that you came second in your father’s life,” he accused Dearlyn. “You didn’t really want his magical artifacts, which is why you never tried to block our moving of the Ambersong legacy to Mount Talath. No, you wanted your father’s respect and his love. And ultimately you murdered out of love!”
“But what about Fullmer?” Lymwich called over the continuing thunder. “Wasn’t he killed to prevent his robbery of the workshop?”
“Yes,” Pryce answered, “but not because his killer wanted the spells for herself. She killed him to protect her family’s good name. Had Fullmer, Turkal, and Hartov gotten away with their thievery, the name of Ambersong would have been forever besmirched … especially if his stolen magic was ever used against Lallor or Halruaa.”
“But Fullmer wasn’t killed with magic!” Witterstaet said.
“Killed, no,” Pryce explained. “But moved into the workshop, yes!” He turned to explain to Turzihubbard. “Sadly, a locked room mystery is essentially pointless in Lallor … there are too many magicians who can easily accomplish the feat!” He turned back to Dearlyn, pointing her own horsehair staff at her. “You were the only one left besides me with the magical knowledge necessary to circumvent the workshop’s special door. You couldn’t gain entry yourself, but you could magically move a dying body into the room!”
At that moment, the first fat bead of rain slapped into the deck. A rapid-fire barrage of lightning and thunder sent the suspects scurrying. Pryce stood his ground, however, and shouted the rest over the noise of the storm. “Luckily for you, your father’s own haunt overwhelmed any echo of your magic. Even if Witterstaet had perceived its shadow, it’s likely that he would have recognized it only as Ambersong magic, not Dearlyn Ambersong magic!”
At the mention of her name, Dearlyn suddenly grabbed the shank of the staff and tore it from Pryce’s grip. In a split second, she had it whirled around and pointing directly at Covington’s heart.
“Dearlyn Ambersong!” Turzihubbard boomed from the rail as more rain began to smack onto the deck. “Threatening Darlington Blade will gain you nothing!”
“Darlington Blade?” Dearlyn cried as another thunderbolt filled the sky. “This isn’t Darlington Blade! He told me so himself!”
Gheevy gritted his teeth and sucked in his breath, but Pryce held his ground, his palms up in innocent supplication.
“Come now, Miss Ambersong,” Lymwich said, both threateningly and soothingly. “It’s too late for wild accusations. They won’t help you now.”
Dearlyn laughed into the rain, which now pounded the deck like thousands of tiny fists. “No! Nothing will help me now!” she screamed into the wind.
Lymwich took another step toward her, but the deck was getting slippery and the storm was becoming blinding. Dearlyn backed up, keeping the staff between Pryce, who hadn’t moved, and Lymwich, who wouldn’t stop moving.
“I won’t be enfeebled,” the daughter of Geerling Ambersong warned. “Not by the likes of you.” But she saved her greatest animosity for the man who had accused her. “You!” she said miserably. “So the ‘great’ Darlington Blade triumphs once more. I’m ‘behind’ you again, am I? Well, at least this will be the last time!”
Dearlyn hurled her staff with all her might. It sliced through the air, started to curve, then went directly between Lymwich’s legs, tripping her. The inquisitrix went down in a heap.
Dearlyn turned and raced toward the bow of the skyship as the Verity entered into the very worst of the storm. Lightning bolts danced around her as rain splashed and thunder rolled. Pryce charged after her, the lightning bolts slashing vengefully across his path.
Dearlyn leapt atop the railing, holding onto the figurehead of Mystra with one hand. She turned to see Pryce diving after her just as a lightning bolt smashed down directly into his chest.
The others gasped and fell back, their hands and arms shielding their eyes. Pryce danced in place, his toes actually leaving the deck as the bolt crackled and coursed … into the cloak clasp.
For a second it was hard to tell whether the bolt was going in or coming out of the sea of brilliant sparks. But then the lightning was gone, and Pryce stood six feet from Dearlyn, completely unscathed. The only evidence of the strike was a small wisp of smoke rising from the cloak clasp.
Covington blinked in surprise as Dearlyn threw her head back, laughing hysterically. “The great Darlington Blade! Even the gods can’t touch him!” Then she looked at him evenly, all hysteria leaving her voice. “I knew there was good reason to hate you.”
And with those final words, Dearlyn Ambersong stepped off the rail and disappeared into the clouds below.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The Pryce Is Right
“Twenty-five,” said Gheevy Wotfirr.
“Wrong,” said Pryce Covington.
It was a beautiful autumnal afternoon, and they were walking through the rolling green hills southwest of the Lallor Gate. It was in the direction completely opposite from the Mark of the Question Tree. Behind them, beyond the Lallor walls, the Fall Festival was in full swing. Even from here, the two could hear the music and revelry that marked the celebration.
“Divide thirty by half …” Gheevy considered again.
“Yes?”
“And add ten.”
“Yes.”
“Twenty-five.”
“No.”
“Argh!” Gheevy groaned, balling his little fists.
To say that the remainder of the voyage to Mount Talath had been uneventful would be an understatement, considering what had come before. Incredibly, within minutes of Dearlyn Ambersong’s leap, the Verity had cleared the storm clouds, and the rest of the journey was made in blue skies and sunshine.
No one on board, however, was in a mood to appreciate it Karkober couldn’t stop crying, while the rest of the people who had once been suspects either sat in motionless shock or wandered around in a reflective fog. Despite that, the grandeur of Mount Talath was such that even the most aggrieved individual couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by its majesty. Then there was the powerful presence of Priestess Greila Sontoin.
Wearing spectacular ceremonial robes, she had swept down a long runway that was swathed in thick blue velvet. There was a big smile on her pale, lined face, but she looked remarkably good for a person rumored to be more than a hundred and twenty-five years old. To the crew’s surprise, and Pryce’s shock, she opened her arms to welcome the great Darlington Blade, who shyly came forward, falling to his knees before her.
“ ‘One knee,’ ” he later told the enraptured crew on the trip back. “She actually whispered to me, ‘One knee is all that is required. One knee looks like I’m going to bless you. Two knees and you look like you’re going to be sick all over my shoes!’ ” But no matter how they begged and entreated him, he wouldn’t tell them the subject of their short, but extremely private, talk.
“Rest assured that the legacy of Geerling … and Dearlyn … Ambersong is in the best possible hands,” he told them. “And that you are all welcome to visit anytime … and perhaps even enter the Order of Mystra to learn the wisdom of the ages.”
That was when Matthaunin Witterstaet finally gave Pryce the answer to his conundrum.
“Think, Gheevy,” Pryce insisted, making it to the top of another green, grassy hill beyond the Lallor Gate. “Half. By half. What’s half?”
“Of thirty? Fifteen.”
“Yes and no. You’ll never get anywhere if you don’t listen. Fifteen is half, right? So?”
“So … thirty divided by half is fifteen!”
“No, no! You’re not listening to the actual problem!”
They kept going at it until they came to the crest above a low, rolling valley. There, nestled in the gentle slope below, was a small but comfortable-looking abode made of stone, wood, and plaster.
“There it is,” Pryce said. “Teddington Fullmer’s cot
tage.” He started down toward it, the wind rippling his clothes and hair, but Gheevy had only one thing on his mind.
“All right, I give up,” said the halfling, coming up from behind Pryce. “You tell me. What’s the answer to your conundrum?”
“I’m not telling.”
“Oh, come on, Blade!”
“No,” Pryce laughed and then began to run. “You have to get it yourself!”
And so it went, until they reached the cottage’s unlocked door.
“Half is half,” Gheevy was saying as Pryce stepped inside. “You cut something in half …” Then he, too, stepped inside. All conversation stopped as they looked in awe at the inside of the cottage.
The furniture wasn’t much—a simple but comfortable table, utilitarian chairs, a writing desk, and a bed—but all four walls, including the windows, were lined with row upon row of bottles of every shape, size, and color. Light from the windows shone through the bottles, creating a rainbow effect.
“This has to be the most complete collection of bottled liquor anywhere in Lallor,” Gheevy breathed in wonder. “Maybe in all Halruaa!”
“Well, he was a trader in liquid refreshments,” Pryce said, “when he wasn’t plotting the theft of magical items, that is.”
“So the Mystra Superior told you you could have first pick?” Gheevy asked.
“He’s a convicted conspirator,” Pryce told the halfling as he walked slowly around the large single room, “and a murder victim. She said I should at least come out here and see if there was anything of interest for the castle in my capacity as Lallor’s new primary mage.”
Gheevy laughed in mirth and amazement. “Blade, Blade, Blade. How on Toril are you going to—”
“I haven’t officially accepted the post yet,” he interrupted.
“But you must!” Gheevy contended. “You’ve come this far. What else would you do?”
“Hey, I’m Darlington Blade!” Pryce reminded him. “I’m supposed to be a great wandering hero, a legendary traveling adventurer, remember? Besides, I think I’d have more luck playing off my reputation to a new audience every night I think the element of surprise is kind of lost here.…”
“Nonsense!” Gheevy jovially argued. “You’re a part of Lallor history now … and what a history! To these people, a man who has had a private audience with Greila Sontoin can do no wrong.” Then his voice became serious. “And, remember, you have friends here, too. Where else, in all of Halruaa, can you say that is true?”
Pryce looked askance at the halfling, one eyebrow raised. “Well, if I’m going to even think about staying here,” he exclaimed, “I’ll need to know that my friends are smart enough to figure out a simple conundrum!”
“Blade, I tell you I can’t—”
“Come, come. I’ll make it easy. What do you do when you divide by half?”
“Half of thirty is—”
“No, no, no. Stop thinking that way.”
Gheevy Wotfirr grew silent, thinking. Finally he ventured, “Divide thirty by half? Half of thirty is fifteen.”
Pryce shook his head with a grin. “Not half of thirty. Just half.”
“Half?” Gheevy said in wonder. “Half is … half is—”
“Yes?”
“Half is … zero-point-five.”
“There!”
“Thirty divided by zero-point-five is … sixty!”
“Now add ten.”
“Seventy. The answer is seventy!”
“Excellent, my dear Wotfirr,” Pryce said proudly. “Elementary numerology.”
Gheevy laughed. “Amazing, Blade. How do you do it?”
Pryce waved a hand airily. “It’s a gift. Or a curse, depending upon your point of view. After a hard life and a tough job, I’ve learned that little things are almost always important. Things that don’t add up logically or psychologically pinch at my brain.”
“I’ll tell you one thing,” said the halfling, beginning to study Fullmer’s collection in earnest. “Your brain is certainly well connected to your mouth. On the skyship? I never saw such a thing. You were so convincing I almost believed you were Darlington Blade!” He laughed in honest appreciation. He only became serious while studying an extremely rare bottle of Jhynissian wine. “Where do you think Geerling Ambersong’s body actually is, anyway?”
Pryce’s words were quiet and flat. “What? You don’t believe me?”
“Come along now, ‘Blade,’ ” Gheevy stressed without interrupting his examination. “We both know who those bodies actually were—”
Pryce’s next words succeeded in getting the halfling’s attention. “Well, actually, that’s not exactly true.”
Gheevy looked at his associate in surprise, then tried to smile. “What are you talking about? We both saw Darlington Blade’s corpse.”
Pryce was standing just inside the door, leaning his back against the wood. “You’re not listening again, Gheevy. You said we both knew who those two bodies were. To say that is not true is merely a statement of fact. I only knew who one of those bodies was. You told me who the other one was.”
“Is this … is this another conundrum?” the halfling asked weakly.
“In a way. Santé wrote, ‘Never trust what a person says, only what a person does.’ Remember? You told me that yourself. You didn’t attribute it to the source, but there you go.”
Gheevy stood straight, his shoulders back. “I have been nothing but loyal and straightforward with you!”
“Now, now, my friend, don’t get defensive. Santé also wrote, ‘Never trust what a person says about another, but always trust that what he says about himself may be just the opposite.’ ”
“I’m beginning to hate this Santé,” the halfling muttered darkly.
“No need, since it seems you have read him yourself. And since Geerling Ambersong had the only complete works that I’ve ever seen, I wonder how it came about that you know his writings.”
“Oh, for Sontoin’s sake!” Gheevy erupted in exasperation. “It’s only a phrase, Blade! I don’t know where I got it. It’s such a universal sentiment, I may have made it up. There! I made it up. Are you satisfied?”
“Well, if you want to know the truth … no.”
Gheevy stared at him for a few moments, then began to laugh. “Oh, I know what this is all about,” he said. “You’re feeling guilty about Dearlyn killing herself, aren’t you? So now you’re rooting around for some other explanation—any other explanation. You’re seeing murderers everywhere, aren’t you? All right, then, it’s your turn to think. Because really, does it matter whose body it actually was? Gamor killed the real Darlington Blade, Dearlyn or Geerling killed him, then maybe Geerling killed himself, and Dearlyn killed Teddington. Maybe the jackals got Geerling; I don’t know. I don’t care! The haunt proves that Geerling is dead, so it’s over! Everyone got justice, everything is taken care of, so face it. It’s over. We’ve won. You’ve won! So just let it be, can’t you?”
Pryce wasn’t impressed. “Y, Gheevy.”
“What?”
“Why? It’s the very first, and the very last, question. Why? You want to know the biggest why in this case?”
Gheevy sighed elaborately and rolled his eyes. “All right, Blade, if you must. What is this case’s biggest why?”
“I must,” Pryce Covington said quietly. “The biggest why is why would a hero as famous as Darlington Blade insist on remaining unseen?”
Gheevy reacted like a talentless entertainer caught in the eye of the Lallor Gate. “What did you say?”
“It was what was bothering me from the very outset,” Pryce explained. “Why would a valiant, celebrated adventurer hide himself from his admirers? Why would a mage as beloved as Geerling Ambersong teach such a heroic figure in secret … secret even from the knowledge of his cherished daughter?”
Gheevy’s mouth flopped like a fish in the sand. “But—but you said—”
“My explanation was feeble even to my ears. At last year’s Fall Festival, Geerling an
nounced that Darlington Blade would appear this year to take his place as primary mage. I said that I, ‘Darlington Blade,’ appeared only to find my master’s murderer. Of those two sources, who would you believe?”
“But—but we saw Darlington Blade’s body!”
No, you saw Darlington Blade’s body! I saw the body of a complete and utter stranger! A stranger who I thought had absolutely no reason to shield himself from the eyes of the residents of Lallor. So why? Why had no one—no one alive, that is—seen Darlington Blade except you?”
Gheevy Wotfirr’s voice, when he finally replied, sounded different. It was no longer light or helpful or eager or friendly. Gheevy Wotfirr’s voice was now flat and deep and dangerous. “Why don’t you tell me?”
Pryce Covington moved his face into a shaft of multicolored light. “Because you are Darlington Blade.”
Gheevy Wotfirr didn’t laugh. He didn’t try to defend himself. He didn’t even try to dissuade Pryce of his contention. Instead, he asked for an explanation. “How do you figure that?”
Pryce cleared his throat and leaned against the door. “It’s all about fashion, really,” he said diffidently. “You know what a fashion plate I am, Gheevy. I want everything to be just so. So it really bothered me that the one thing I couldn’t afford to take off or change was this cursed cloak.” He fingered the clasp even now. “And while everyone treated me royally, I actually felt a tinge of jealousy that every other cloak in Lallor nearly reached the ground, while mine stopped above my knees.”
Gheevy couldn’t help shooting a glance at Pryce’s legs. Sure enough, the bottom of the cloak ended midway down his legs.
“Think back, Gheevy,” Pryce continued. “Even Dearlyn’s cloak reached the ground. So why didn’t the supposed matching cloak of Darlington Blade also reach the ground … unless the real Darlington Blade was almost two feet shorter than a normal human?”
Gheevy remained silent, still holding the bottle of Jhynissian wine.
“Remember when I first fell to my knees in front of you, begging you not to give my identity away? That was the only time we ever saw eye to eye. If you wore this cloak,” said Pryce, nodding with certainty, “it would reach the ground.”
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