Wicked Chill (Away From Whipplethorn Book Four)

by Hartoin, A. W.

  Rickard came around the corner and stopped so quickly he tripped over his own feet. “That…that isn’t the dress I gave you.”

  I glided past him with my nose in the air. “Of course it is. Just needed a little sprucing up.”

  He ran to catch up and tugged on my voluminous sleeve. “You couldn’t do that in ten days much less ten minutes.”

  “It helps to have a seamstress in the family. Congratulations.”

  He narrowed his eyes at me as we reached the door to the tomb. “For what.”

  “For making me look so good for the cardinal at the palace.” I fluttered off, only looking back at Rickard’s astonished face one time.

  I flew down the nave in big swooping glides, enjoying the early morning but mostly my triumph over Rickard. Not the best side of my nature, but there it is.

  Horc patted my cheek. “Why would you be nice to that sniveling worm?”

  “I wouldn’t. Rickard will go straight to the master secretary and tell him what a wonderful job he did with my dress. He’s much too vain and stupid to realize that all his bragging makes him look bad.”

  “You gave him the sword, so he might stab himself.”

  “Yep. With any luck he’ll do it six or seven times, the moron. You heard what he said. Rickard thinks he’s going to be master secretary someday. Can you think of anything worse for Vienna?”

  “You think this will hurt his chances?” asked Horc.

  “It won’t help him. That’s for sure.”

  My brother smiled so wide that I could see the meat in his second row of back teeth. “Devious as a spriggan. You are a sister to be proud of.”

  It was a dubious honor, but I didn’t regret my decision. Rickard was the last thing the fae of Vienna needed. If he wanted to brag his way out of the running, so be it.

  Horc hugged me and I was about to wonder out loud where the cardinal’s carriage might be when I saw it in front of the pulpit by Anton Pilgram’s portrait. Horc let go of me and leaned forward swiftly, nearly tumbling out of my arms. “Meat!”

  Chapter Twenty-two

  THE MASTER SECRETARY stepped out from behind the carriage and frowned at my approach. Horc was snarling and straining in my arms. It would’ve been embarrassing if I had any pride left. I squeezed him and whispered, “Stop it, you freak. Those horses are alive.”

  “So hungry.” He drooled, but managed to miss my dress happily.

  “You’re going to ruin everything. Be a proper wood fairy,” I hissed.

  That snapped him out of it and he drew himself up in my arms with considerable dignity. “I am an excellent wood fairy.”

  “Then act like it.” I took a deep breath and flew down to the carriage as slowly as possible. The master secretary looked like something terrible had happened and I was the cause of it. The extra few seconds gave me a chance to look at the cardinal’s carriage. I’d never seen it before. The cardinal preferred to get around under his own power. The carriage was lovely but simple, only big enough for two passengers and made of burled walnut that would’ve had my dad purring in woodworking delight. But the carriage, as lovely as it was, wasn’t the main attraction. In black velvet harnesses were six horses so beautiful I was left speechless and Horc starving. How he could see them as meat was well beyond me. They were deep red, the same shade as the cardinal’s robe, with long elegant legs, and hooves that sparkled like they were covered in glitter.

  The horses saw me and stamped their lovely hooves. Tiny flames lit in their nostrils as they eyed me with large, intelligent eyes. I landed in front of the master secretary and did my required and hated curtsy.

  The stern line of his mouth softened as he looked me over. “Where have you been?”

  “Getting dressed. Sorry for the delay,” I said, smoothing my windblown hair.

  The cardinal looked out of the window of the carriage and lit up. “Mattie, you look marvelous. Where did you find that uniform?”

  I opened my mouth, but before the words escaped, Rickard dashed up. “I found it, Your Grace. Me. In storage.”

  The cardinal’s brow creased and he looked at me. Rickard rushed on. “She has to look good at the palace, even if she’s only a maid of no importance.”

  The cardinal frowned, but Rickard continued, only noticing himself. “The ribbon makes the difference. It’s almost as if she’s attractive in a sort of low class way.”

  The master secretary cleared his throat. “Yes, Rickard, the dress is acceptable.”

  “I’m thrilled that you are pleased with my work.” Rickard beamed at him expectantly. Whatever he thought would happen didn’t and the master secretary turned away. He put his foot on the carriage step. “Are you ready, Your Grace?”

  The cardinal held up his hand. “I am, my friend, but today you are needed here.”

  The master secretary sputtered. “But, Your Grace, the mood in the city is exceedingly dark. I must accompany you.”

  “I will be fine with Mattie riding along. The damumoto will look after me.”

  The horses snorted and tossed their beautiful heads in response.

  The cardinal smiled and held out his hand. “Come, Mattie. It’s time to go.”

  Rickard stepped in front of me. “I will go with Your Grace. I can protect you if something happens.”

  I rolled my eyes and the master secretary saw me. I think I caught a hint of amusement in his eyes, but I wasn’t sure it was possible. He snagged Rickard’s sleeve. “You will attend your duties, which do not include protection of any kind.”

  “Neither does Mattie’s,” said Rickard. “She cleans chamber pots.”

  Flames sparked in my palms and I squeezed my hands into tight fists to contain them. The cardinal was looking at me and I tried to appear innocent. He shook his head slightly. Not buying it. I guess innocence wasn’t my thing.

  The master secretary ordered Rickard to supervise the Home Depot fairies to get rid of him and he pompously announced that he would ensure that all repairs would be done swiftly and economically before he flew off. The master secretary rubbed his forehead. “We’re going to have to do something about him, Your Grace.”

  “Can’t be soon enough for me.” It just slipped out.

  His head jerked in my direction as if he’d forgotten that I was there. “Mattie.”

  “Yes.”

  “You give your opinions freely.” There was an expression of surprise on his face that irritated me because I’d been a mostly obedient servant, I didn’t have opinions.

  “When it comes to Rickard they’re hard to contain,” I said.

  “Try harder. He’s the cardinal’s valet,” said the master secretary.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “The look on your face says you won’t.”

  “I will, sir. Rickard speaks for himself.”

  He sighed. “He does indeed.” Then he turned to the cardinal. “If Mattie is to go with you, I must instruct her.”

  The cardinal nodded. “I doubt she needs any instruction, but if you must. Give me your brother, Mattie. I do like the young spriggans. They are so full of life.”

  That’s one way to put it.

  I handed a very haughty Horc over and followed the master secretary. I expected him to take me to the servants’ entrance, but instead we ended up in a broom closet in the base of the pulpit. I wasn’t crazy about being that close to the master secretary, but he’d never done anything weird like Rickard, so I went in and waited in the dim light of a small foxfire fungus. He started to speak, but kept hesitating. If it’d been anyone else, I’d have told him to get on with it. I had a life to live, such as it was.

  “Mattie, word has come about your actions at the opera last night,” he said finally.

  “Oh,” I said. It seemed like a long time ago and what he heard probably wasn’t accurate. At least I hoped not.

  “You acquitted yourself well and for that reason I’m allowing you to ride with the cardinal.”

  Yeah, right. You’re allowing it.

&n
bsp; “Okay. Can I go now?”

  He reached into his pocket and pulled out a slim leather sheath containing a silver dagger. “This is my dagger. It has been carried by every master secretary there has ever been.” He pulled the dagger out of its home and there was no blade, only a handle. He pointed it at me.

  “Are you threatening me?” I asked.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m giving it to you for the trip to the palace, since I have been forbidden. The incident at the opera has thrown the city into turmoil. The cardinal isn’t safe and he won’t have any guards with him. He thinks it makes him look like he doesn’t trust the people.”

  “He shouldn’t. Hasn’t he read all those papers I bring him?”

  “He sees the goodness in everyone he meets.”

  “Like my sister.”

  He looked intensely into my eyes. “Yes, like your sister.”

  I wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but the closet was getting hot and I don’t want to say the master secretary smelled like old asparagus, but he did. “So what am I supposed to do with a knife with no blade?”

  “There is a blade. It will only materialize when the cardinal is threatened. Beware it’s very sharp and deadly to anyone cut by it.”

  “Have you used it?” I asked.

  His face grew hard and his bulbous nose reddened. “No, until the French revolution got going again our city was peaceful. Take it and be careful.”

  “This is a magical blade for your use. How do you know it will even work for me?”

  “I don’t, but it’s the best protection I have.”

  I took the handle and put it back in the sheath. I wasn’t sure how it was staying there, since there was nothing to hold it, but it did stay. “I better go.” I opened the door and morning sunlight flowed in, making the master secretary’s face seem haggard and worn.

  He touched my arm. “Hide the dagger and don’t let anyone see it. They’ll know you’re in my service and that you are not only a maid.”

  I tucked the dagger in with the bags of rejuvenation spell and nodded.

  “One more thing, Mattie,” said the master secretary. “No one in the palace should see you in the carriage with the cardinal. There will be questions and we don’t want any questions, do we?”

  “I should go separately then.”

  “The cardinal insists. At times he can be…unreasonable.”

  “People will see me get in here. What about them?” I asked.

  “Those in the service of the cardinal are loyal.”

  I grimaced.

  “They are loyal, Mattie, even Rickard.”

  “Let’s hope so,” I said.

  His nose grew redder. “It is not your place to doubt me.”

  “I know my place.”

  He drew back in surprise. Maybe it was my tone, which, I admit, wasn’t the tone of a maid.

  “Go.” He gave me a little push out the door. He probably wanted it to be a shove.

  The cardinal waved from the carriage and I started to walk over when the horses began stamping their feet and craning their necks in my direction. The flames in their nostrils glowed brighter. Fantastic. Not another creature with an affinity for me.

  The master secretary went to the lead horse and made a short bow. “You will take the cardinal to the palace without delay or diversion.”

  I looked for who he was talking to when the lead horse turned and said something. At least I think he said something. It certainly looked that way.

  “Yes, Volotora.” The master secretary glanced at me. “She will be riding in your carriage.”

  The horse looked at me again. “She’s more interesting then you let on.”

  “Is she?”

  They both, horse and master secretary, looked me over and I hurried inside, sitting opposite the cardinal. I sat down breathless. I didn’t know what bothered me more, the fact the horse could talk or that he found me interesting.

  “What is wrong with you?” Horc sat on the cardinal’s lap with a smug look on his face and biting a large applewood biting stick. I could barely understand him through the splinters in his teeth.

  “Where’d you get that?” I asked.

  “I thought your brother might be accompanying you this morning,” said the cardinal. “So I had some presents prepared.” He gave me lovely new cloak trimmed in ermine.

  “Thank you, Your Grace, but it wasn’t necessary. I am in your service and indebted to you.”

  He laughed and shook his head. “You are not and I don’t want to hear anything about that again. You’ve done your job and more. There is no debt involved. Put on your cloak.”

  I hooked the cloak’s golden clasps together under my chin. I’d never wore anything so fine. The cardinal tapped the side of the carriage and it began rolling forward and not fast, I must say. At our size getting to the palace was going to take forever and two days.

  “Your Grace?”

  “Don’t worry, Mattie. We’ll get there faster than you imagine,” he said.

  That wouldn’t be hard, because I was imagining it to be pretty slow. “How fast is that?”

  “Wait for it.”

  The carriage began to pick up speed and I leaned over to look out the window. Soon we were racing down the center nave as fast as I could fly. The carriage gave a jolt, like it had hit something. I looked at the cardinal and he just smiled. Another jolt and then my stomach went all floaty like it did when I did a nosedive suddenly. I looked back out the window and we were airborne. I gasped and leaned out. The horses were running on thin air. I expected to see wings sprouting out of their backs, but there were none. Instead, their hooves were emitting a burst of glittery dust that seemed to form a kind of road under them. It went all the way under the carriage and the large wheels were turning away, just like they would on a real road.

  We went faster and faster. I looked back toward the horses. We were headed straight at the main doors and they weren’t open.

  “Watch out! Stop! Volatora!” I screamed.

  The cardinal pushed me back into my seat. “It’s fine. Just wait.”

  I sucked in my lips and forced myself to stay in my seat when everything in me said to break open the door and get us out.

  “Calm,” said the cardinal.

  He must’ve been talking to Horc, who looked totally unconcerned. He gnawed on his stick with relish as I was freaking out. I grasped the edge of the seat, my fingernails digging into the upholstery, and pressed myself against the seat back, bracing for impact. But it didn’t come. Everything slowed down. Horc spat out a glut of splinters and each of them hung in the air for what seemed like a minute as they slowly arced down to land on the thick carriage carpeting. A wave of something went through my body. I watched a distorted line ripple down my lap, cross the floor, and pass through Horc and the cardinal’s bodies, before passing through the back of the carriage. Time sped up again and Horc’s splinters hit the floor as they normally would. I gasped. We were outside, winging our way through the Stephansplatz Christmas market. Icy air flowed in, instantly turning our breath to mist.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  “You’ve never heard of damumoto horses before?” The cardinal patted my knee. “I should’ve warned you. I thought you would enjoy the experience.”

  I would’ve, if I hadn’t been terrified. “What exactly are damumoto?”

  “Roughly translated damumoto means hot blood. I thought they might interest you.”

  I kept my face still and hopefully disinterested. “Why?”

  “Most people find…flying horses interesting,” he said with a rather impish grin that made me nervous for some reason.

  “Um…they are, I guess. They don’t have wings.” I wasn’t mentioning the fire in the nostrils thing if he wasn’t.

  “Not all the wingless in the fae are flightless. The opposite is also true.”

  “So there are winged fairies that can’t fly.”

  “Certainly.”

  “What’s
the point of wings, if you can’t fly?” I asked.

  Horc spat out some more splinters. “Swimming.”

  “Who told you that?’

  “Gerald in a long lecture about varietal differences in the fae.”

  “You asked him about that?”

  “He lectures when he is scared, which is most of the time.” Horc resumed gnawing on the nub of his stick and I avoided the cardinal’s eyes. I didn’t want him to see my distress. Scared most of the time? I didn’t know that. I should’ve known that.

  The cardinal shifted Horc into the small space left beside him and put a large warm hand on my stockinged knee. “Mattie, won’t you tell me what has happened to you? I can’t help you, if I don’t know.”

  I wanted to tell him about Gerald. Clearly, I wasn’t helping him like I should. The cardinal would know what to do. But if I let that trickle of information out, the rest might come out in a flood. I couldn’t take the chance. The cardinal had power, but it wasn’t the kind that could protect us from the horen. As far as I knew there was no such power.

  “Nothing happened, Your Grace,” I said, looking him in the eyes.

  “I swear to you that I will keep your secrets. I swear on my faith, my very soul.”

  That brought tears to my eyes, but I couldn’t do it. Not only to protect us, but to protect him. He would try to help us. I was certain he would. Even if it was only a simple inquiry into the whereabouts of our parents, it was a hint to our location. I didn’t want to bring the horen to St. Stephen’s. They’d kill anyone to get to me. Heck, they’d kill the cardinal just because they could.

  I patted his hand. “It’s not necessary, Your Grace.” I glanced out the window. “So we’re almost there. Are we going to fly through the wall of the palace?”

  The cardinal leaned back. “I wish. It would be much more direct, but the walls and doors are impregnated with a spell that blocks magical passage. We’ll have to go in the old-fashioned way. Now pull down your shades, Mattie. Casper has asked that you be concealed.”

  He handed me Horc and I pulled down the carriage shades until only one was left open on the cardinal’s side. We made a graceful arcing turn and then we dropped about fifty feet. I couldn’t see out the window, so I had no idea where we were.