Around one, Chris came in with a plate of finger food and a big mug of scog. “Thought you might be hungry.”
“How am I doing?”
“You’re ten minutes ahead of schedule, which is why you have ten minutes to eat. How’s it going in here? Anything major?”
Kevin shook his head. “A few minor complaints but most of them just wanted to say things are going okay. A few asked if we knew of any sorcerers who might be interested in working for a town or picking up some odd jobs. I made of list of who wants what and told them we’d get to it next week.”
“Sounds like a job for Elin.”
“But let’s wait until the conference is over. She’s got her hands full right now.”
Chris nodded. “If she gives us a list of sorcerers for each of those ministers, Jenni can write the letters.”
“She’s doing pretty well, isn’t she?”
Again, Chris nodded. “But we still need to get someone else in here before Cameryn leaves.”
“Any idea who?”
“Not at the moment, but that’s going to move to the top of my list once this week’s over. And speaking of over,” Chris got up, “your break’s over. Time to get back to work.”
The afternoon went along much like the morning until a little after five. Conner, the minister of Marmont, was Kevin’s last appointment. As he shook Kevin’s hand, he said, “I’m here on a personal matter, not a district matter, which is why I asked to be last. I probably shouldn’t bother you with this, but I don’t know where else to turn.”
“Have a seat, and tell me what I can do to help.”
“I’m not sure you can, but I’m hoping you have something around here my daughter could do, maybe help with the housekeeping, or the gardens, the kitchen, or the stables, anything to get her away from my wife.”
Kevin raised his eyebrows. “Mind if I ask why?”
Conner shook his head. “I thought I knew my wife, but I’m beginning to wonder if I ever did.” Conner sighed. “It all started this past March, when Anya turned thirteen. Up until then, Sassie let her be who she wanted to be. Anya wanted to learn how to throw a dagger, so I bought her one and set up a target. She’s also pretty good with a bow and arrow, at least with a stationary target. And she likes numbers. She likes to go over my books and read my notes to see if she can catch a mistake.” Conner grinned for the first time since he’d walked in the door. “I usually make a few on purpose to see if she can spot them. She’s gotten pretty good at it. She’s even found a few I didn’t make on purpose. I’m not the world’s best when it comes to spelling. Anyway, Anya was happy, and I was too, and I thought Sassie was too, right up until the day Anya turned thirteen. That’s when things changed.”
“How? What happened?”
“Sassie made arrangements for Anya to take lessons on how to be a lady. She has to go see this woman who helps girls find husbands. She teaches them how to dress, how to walk, how to sit, how to hold their hands, how to hold a cup of tea, how to talk, and what to talk about. My wife wants my daughter to pretend she doesn’t understand the simplest things, like how to add numbers or keep records. She makes her wear fancy dresses all the time. I think they’re too tight and the neckline’s too low, but Sassie says those dresses are what men like and the only way our daughter will attract the right type of man is to dress and act right.”
Kevin frowned. “What type of man is your wife trying to attract?”
“I asked her. She said she wants Anya to marry a man with a title. I asked what kind. She said it didn’t matter as long as he had a title.” Conner shrugged. “But I don’t see how what she’s making Anya do will get any man to pay attention. To me, it’s making her look like a helpless ninny. When they’re at home she makes Anya sit in the parlor with her hands folded, and she won’t let Anya eat much of anything at dinner. She says ladies nibble in public, dine in private. After we’re done with dinner, she wants us to have tea in the parlor and talk about the most ridiculous things until ten, which is apparently the hour when a gentleman says goodnight and leaves. Then, after Anya escorts this imaginary gentleman to the door, she lets her go in the kitchen and eat. The whole thing’s absurd.” Conner shook his head. “Anya’s always been happiest when she’s outside, but Sassie won’t let her go anywhere unless she’s with her. She won’t even let her ride Star, her horse. She says a lady rides in a buggy, not on the back of a horse. Anya loves that horse. The other night after Sassie had gone to bed, I was in my office and saw a shadow near the stable. When I got out there, I saw Anya sitting on some hay in Star’s stall talking to her. I turned around and went back to my office. She stayed out there a couple of hours. Right now I think Star’s the closest thing she has to a friend. The only children she’s allowed to be around are clients of that woman, and she doesn’t like any of them. She thinks they’re silly. Anya’s so miserable I’m expecting her to jump on her horse and ride away, and the worst of it is I wouldn’t blame her if she did.”
“I don’t understand. Your daughter’s only thirteen. Why is your wife doing all of this?”
“She wants Anya to be betrothed before she turns fourteen. I have no idea why. Anya’s not the least bit interested in getting married, and I don’t want my wife pushing her into something she’s not ready for.”
“Can’t you talk to your wife?”
“I’ve tried. She tells me I don’t understand, to go back to my office and let her deal with Anya.”
“All right,” Kevin said slowly, “what do you want me to do? If your wife’s determined to follow this path…”
“I’ve come up with a plan I think will work. I want to tell Sassie that while I was here, I heard that someone was looking for a young lady to work here, and if she wants Anya to catch the eye of a man with a title, this is the place for her to be.”
Kevin laughed. “Do you think she’ll fall for that?”
Conner shrugged. “Half the people who work here have titles. And the ones who don’t, like the guards, are considered good catches as far as Sassie and her friends are concerned. She’d love to brag that her daughter was invited to live at the castle, and that’s the way she’d put it, not that our daughter is working at the castle.”
“If you think you can get your wife to go along with it, I’m sure we can find something she could do.” Kevin stood up. “Let me think about it. I’ll get back to you before you leave Friday.”
~~~~
Later that night, Kevin told Chris about Conner, his wife, and Anya. “She might be a good fit for our office.”
“You didn’t mention that to him, did you?” Chris asked.
Kevin shook his head. “I thought we’d bring her here in some other role and see what she’s like, but according to him, she’s good with math and spelling.”
Chris laughed. “That’s a definite plus. So where are you thinking of putting her to start with?”
“I don’t know. I thought I’d talk to Cryslyn tomorrow and see if she has any ideas. We’ll figure out something before he leaves Friday, but before she comes, I’d like for you to meet her, see what you think.”
Chris nodded. “I’ll talk to Petri and make sure Conner’s on my list to take home.”
~~~~
Wednesday morning, while the ministers were meeting with Karl, Kevin went to see Cryslyn and explained about Anya. “There’s a good chance she’ll end up in our office, but I don’t want her or her parents to know that until we get to know her. Do you have anything she could do in the meantime? From what her father says, she can keep books and is better at spelling than he is.”
Cryslyn nodded. “I’ve been thinking about getting someone to take over the inventory of the storerooms. Sounds like she’d be perfect.”
“Good. Then that’s the job I’ll tell her father about.”
Later that morning, when the ministers broke for lunch, Kevin found Conner and told him about the opening for someone to handle the inventory of the storerooms.
Conner smiled with his
whole face. “That would be perfect, and it’s prestigious enough for Sassie. She’ll be thrilled. Thank you so much.”
“Chris will take you home Friday. I’d like for you to introduce Anya if she’s home when you get there.”
Conner nodded. “When can she come?”
“First you’ll need to find out if your wife will go along with it, and if Anya wants to come.”
“They will. When can she come?”
“How long will she need to get her stuff packed and see everyone she wants to see before she leaves?”
Conner laughed. “If it’ll get her out of that lady stuff, she’ll be ready in twenty-four hours.”
Kevin paused. “Let’s give her a week. How about a week from next Monday?”
“That’s plenty of time.”
Kevin nodded. “Just let us know one way or the other after you talk to them. And by the way, if she’d like to have her horse here, it’s fine with me, but someone would have to bring it. That might not be feasible, but if you decide you want her to have it, there’s plenty of room.”
“Thank you,” Conner said. “I don’t know if we’ll take you up on that, but I appreciate the offer.”
~~~~
Late Friday afternoon, Kevin was leaning back in his desk chair daydreaming about Rhianna when he heard the sound of his door opening. With a sigh he sat up, and then smiled when he saw Chris. “All done?”
“All done.” Chris plopped down in a chair. “And I’m beat.”
“Did you meet Anya?”
Chris nodded. “And Conner’s right. That is one unhappy kid. Her mother had her all dolled up in a formal dress with her hair piled up on top of her head. No longer than I was there I could tell the kid was miserable.”
“Did you get a chance to talk to her?”
Chris shook his head. “The whole thing was an exercise in stilted formalities. To be honest, I got out of there as fast as I could. We’ll have to wait until she gets here to decide what to do with her.”
“Okay. Anything else interesting happen this afternoon?”
“Not that I know of.” Chris handed Kevin’s gate key back to him and stood up. “I’m going upstairs and lie down. Wake me up for dinner.”
Kevin nodded. “See you later.”
Chapter 50
A Departure
Friday evening, after all the ministers had been taken home, Ariel went to Kevin’s office to return the key to Terah. As Kevin put the key back on his chain, he asked Ariel how he thought the conference had gone.
“As far as I know, everything went fine,” Ariel answered.
“So you think Petri’s ready to take over?”
Ariel took a deep breath and nodded.
“I guess we should make it official tomorrow morning.” At the look on Ariel’s face, Kevin smiled. “Hard to let go, isn’t it?”
“Yes, sir,” Ariel answered. “And scary. I’ve been a page so long it’s hard to imagine doing something else, especially when I don’t know how to do the something else.”
“I know the feeling. Scary and exciting at the same time.”
“Yes, sir, but more scary at this point.”
Kevin chuckled. “Are you ready to go?”
Ariel hesitated. “Most of my stuff’s ready. It won’t take me half an hour to pack the rest, but I was wondering if I could have a week before I go. There are a lot of people I’d like to see before I leave.”
Kevin nodded. “That’ll be fine. I’ll get the stuff that’s ready to go out of your way tomorrow and then I’ll take you out there next Friday.”
~~~~
Kevin and Ariel had picked out furniture for his cave after Kevin had shown Ariel the caves in Rainbow Valley. Then Kevin took the furniture to the cave Ariel would use on the island and scattered the pieces around the room, figuring Ariel could decide how he wanted it after he got there.
Saturday evening, after Kevin took Ariel’s personal belongings to the cave, he dropped by Warren’s to let him know Ariel would be arriving Friday. While he was there, he mentioned he’d put Ariel’s stuff in the cave.
“Where did you put his bags?” Torrey asked as she poured Kevin some coffee.
“On the bed.” Kevin sat down across from Warren. “He can sort it all out when he gets here.”
Torrey shook her head and sat down beside her husband. “He’ll be too tired by the time he gets a chance. He’ll be up all day in Camden, then all day here. By the time he gets back to his room, all he’ll want to do is sleep. I’ll take care of it.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Kevin started, but Warren shook his head.
“Don’t waste your breath. Once her mind’s made up, it’s made up.”
Torrey laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll have plenty of help. Once word gets out, his arrival will be the talk of the island. Do you know if he needs anything? Sheets? Blankets? Pillows? Everyone will want to give him something to make him feel welcome. Might as well be something he can use.”
Kevin shook his head. “He’s probably got everything he needs. He had the castle storerooms at his disposal.”
“Did he have a room at the castle?”
“All the pages do.”
“Then the housekeeping staff made sure he had everything he needed. And when he wanted something to eat or drink, he went to the kitchen. He might not think of things like a pitcher and mugs. His cave doesn’t have a kitchen, but he’ll want some snacks around. You did bring a table didn’t you?”
Kevin nodded. “Two. One to go by his bed and one by his chair.”
Torrey frowned. “Only one chair?”
“Only one person.”
“What if someone visits? Where are they supposed to sit? Isn’t that cave large enough for a sitting area?”
“I guess,” Kevin said, looking at Warren, who shrugged.
Torrey rolled her eyes. “I’ll go look at it after breakfast. Are you going to be around for a while or are you heading back to Milhaven?”
“I’m just staying long enough to see Cpt. Garen for a minute, and maybe Callie.”
Torrey nodded. “Check with me later this week and I’ll let you know what else he needs.”
When Kevin left Warren and Torrey, he went in search of Cpt. Garen. He found him in the dining room. “Can I see you for a moment?”
“Sure.” Cpt. Garen led the way to his office.
After they were seated, Kevin said, “I wanted to let you know Ariel will be here next Friday.”
“Do you want to tell my men? Or do you want me to?
“You can.”
Cpt. Garen nodded. “I’ll make an announcement today. Do you know what time you’ll bring him out?”
“Around this time. Why?”
“I think you should introduce him and explain that you’ve asked him to help Landis with the administrative side of being a sorcerer. That will clarify things for my men and their families and make it clear he works for you, that he’s part of your staff, and that what goes on between him and Landis isn’t any of our concern. That way if any disagreements erupt, my men will stay out of it.”
Kevin nodded. “But I want you to introduce your men. He’s used to working with guards and understands chain of command.”
Cpt. Garen nodded. “He probably won’t remember me, but I saw him every once in a while in Milhaven. I think some of the others did too, but I’m not sure they knew his name.”
“Callie knows him,” Kevin said. “At least I think she does. I know he wasn’t happy to hear she’d left Fenway’s.”
Cpt. Garen laughed. “I imagine quite a few people were unhappy about that, including Fenway.”
Kevin nodded. “And Ainsley. Fenway put her in charge of the kitchen and she nearly burned the place down. We were lucky no one got hurt. But they’ve got a new cook now. She was one of the captives we rescued, and to be honest, it would be hard to say which one’s a better cook, Blair or Callie. They both work wonders in the kitchen.”
Cpt. Garen smiled. “All I
can say is we feel very fortunate she decided to come with us, and I can’t believe she’s still willing to cook for us every day. Petar’s a lucky man.”
Kevin laughed. “Better not let Gilean hear you say that.”
“Why not? She’d be the first to admit Callie’s a better cook than she is, and she’s said how lucky Petar is on more than one occasion.”
“Callie may be a better cook, but I saw how your wife stepped up and took charge of getting the women and children ready to move here. You’re a lucky man, too.”
Cpt. Garen grinned. “I know. And if I didn’t, she’d remind me.” Then he got serious. “Actually, all the women out here are special. Picking up and moving your family to some unknown place miles away from everywhere? Not once, but twice? And not one word of complaint from any of them. I’d say we’re all pretty lucky.”
Kevin nodded. “You are.” Then he stood up. “I’ll check in with Callie and then I’m heading home. Does anyone need me to bring anything next time I come?”
“I think a couple of the women had Callie add some material to the grocery list, but that’s it as far as I know.”
“All right.” Kevin opened the door to leave. “See you later.”
Callie was working in the kitchen when Kevin walked in. She glanced at him, poured a cup of coffee, set it on the counter, and went right back to what she was doing.
Kevin picked up the coffee and took a sip. “I’m bringing Ariel out here next Friday.”
“Ariel?” Callie turned to look at Kevin. “Why?”
“To help Landis understand how things work in a province, things like who’s responsible for what and how to run her office.”
“He would know. Badec said the boy was sharp and a natural leader.”
Kevin nodded. “He is. If it hadn’t been for him when we first got there, I don’t know what we’d have done. He was a tremendous help. I hate to let him go.”
“Who’s your head page now? Isak?”
“No, he doesn’t want it. He’s interested in working with horses and likes to spend his spare time out at the stable. He’ll probably be leaving us soon to apprentice, hopefully with Shadron.”
The Rambling Spy Page 53
