Reign of Beasts

by Tansy Rayner Roberts

  Livilla wore a glittering cocktail dress that most definitely did not suit the occasion. She posed, as ever, like she expected a chorus line of men to carry her from place to place, lighting her cigarette and kissing her feet. She also looked worried. That was new.

  ‘I suppose you’d better come in,’ said Velody, standing aside.

  She was alone in the house. Delphine was out doing something stupid to prove how over Macready she was, and Rhian was just gone. She came and went as she pleased, and while Velody would never get used to that, she had grudgingly accepted it. The world was different now. Everything was different. Rhian and Delphine had, after all, accepted what she’d had to do when she was Power and Majesty. This was no different, except that it was Rhian and it was all Velody could do not to wrap her in a quilt and drag her home from wherever she was.

  Livilla graciously stepped into the kitchen, and looked around once as if wondering how people could actually live in such a hovel. ‘I need your help,’ she said.

  ‘Shouldn’t you ask your Power and Majesty for that?’ Velody couldn’t help saying. ‘That’s what he’s there for.’

  Livilla turned on her, unsmiling. ‘My Power and Majesty has abducted a thirteen-year-old courtesa and is holding her prisoner in the cage. You know the cage I mean.’

  Velody kept her face as composed as she could. ‘What is it you expect me to do? Go to war against Garnet for the sake of one courtesa?’

  ‘I expect you to live up to your promise,’ Livilla snapped. ‘Heliora believed in you. Ashiol believed in you. You were supposed to change everything for us, and what have you done so far?’

  ‘You walked away from me,’ Velody accused. ‘You turned your backs and ran to Garnet the first chance you got, every single one of you. You left me bleeding on the ground. Why should I be loyal to you after that?’

  ‘Because,’ said Livilla with a shrug, ‘you’re nicer than me.’

  Hard to argue with that.

  ‘I can’t fight Garnet alone, you know that,’ Velody warned.

  ‘Well, then,’ said Livilla. ‘We’d better get Ashiol back, hadn’t we?’

  Velody had visited the Palazzo several times before, as the Duchessa’s dressmaker. This was altogether different. She was passed from secretary to secretary, none of whom was prepared to answer her question about the whereabouts of the Ducomte d’Aufleur.

  It was hard to tell whether the presence of Livilla helped or hindered. Her casual, moneyed air did indeed make Velody feel more confident about being here, but on the other hand there was the possibility that she might start screaming randomly or breaking things and that was enough to make anyone nervous.

  ‘I don’t see why Ashiol should be the one to live in a Palazzo,’ Livilla drawled during one of the many gaps between secretaries. ‘He doesn’t appreciate it. Not in the least.’ She moved to the window and let the thin muslin of the curtain swish over her hand. ‘All these fine things. This would make a dreamy dress.’

  Velody laughed suddenly. ‘I thought I was the only one who wanted to strip this place of its furnishings and make them into frocks.’

  They shared a startled look of mutual appreciation.

  A young, rather stuffy factotum in a bright cravat stepped into the room and regarded Livilla with distaste. ‘Demoiselles, I regret to inform you that the Ducomte is unavailable.’

  Livilla let the curtain fall from her fingers. ‘Do I remember you? That spotty little face seems familiar.’

  The factotum screwed up said face, which was indeed rather mottled. ‘It would be for the best if you left, demoiselle. Immediately.’

  ‘No,’ Velody said quietly. The man had barely acknowledged her presence. ‘I’m afraid we can’t leave until we’ve spoken to the Ducomte.’

  ‘The Ducomte is away,’ said the factotum between his teeth. ‘He accompanied my mistress to Bazeppe on a diplomatic mission.’

  ‘Your mistress returned for the games,’ said Velody, still calm and reasonable. ‘Word in the marketplace is that the Ducomte returned with her.’

  ‘I cannot be expected to respond to what is said in the marketplace,’ he sneered. ‘The Ducomte is not available to you.’

  Velody despaired, just for a moment. This ridiculous petty bureaucracy was so unnecessary. She needed Ashiol, and if this ridiculous man wouldn’t give him to her, she was going to have to try another way.

  She reached out blindly for the nearest object and her hand closed around the cool surface of a vase. Animor swelled up under her skin. Velody had barely used it for so long, but there it was, an old and reliable friend.

  ‘You stand there, so smug and self-satisfied,’ she said. ‘As if keeping me from the Ducomte is some kind of achievement. The city could fall and burn if you don’t help me. It’s my job to save it.’

  The glass of the vase crumbled into powder. The floor rippled under their feet. Plaster peeled from the ceiling. The glass-drop beads of the chandelier above their heads began to pop, one after another.

  Livilla giggled.

  ‘How … are you doing that?’ said the factotum with a gulp.

  Velody smiled. ‘I very much wish to see the Ducomte. If you won’t bring him to me, I’ll have to call him. I think he’ll recognise the tone of my voice.’

  The window broke, one pane at a time. Livilla threw up her own animor and the glass hovered around her like a cloud of interesting flies.

  ‘You could warn a demme before you do that,’ she grumbled.

  ‘No time,’ said Velody, eyes on the factotum. ‘I’m sorry, did you say you were bringing Ashiol right away?’

  He turned and fled.

  ‘At least being thrown out of a Palazzo by a horde of lictors will be a new and exciting experience,’ Livilla mused, clearing away her halo of broken glass with a flick of her wrist.

  ‘At the very least,’ said Velody. She sat down to wait.

  Ten minutes later, the Duchessa d’Aufleur entered the room. She was alone. No secretaries or lictors to protect her. No Ashiol, either.

  ‘Is this how you behave in your world, dressmaker?’ she demanded of Velody. ‘If you cannot have what you want, you break things like a child throwing a tantrum?’

  ‘That’s a pretty accurate summary,’ said Livilla.

  Velody stood up. ‘I’m sorry your factotum was distressed, high and brightness. I’m sorry your room was damaged. But my cause is rather more important than correct paperwork and I trust you understand that.’

  Isangell stared at them, every inch the Duchessa. She seemed more confident for her trip away. ‘I understand that you believe your cause is just. But those of us who have to live in the daylight world do not take kindly to visitors who track mud and broken glass through our homes like ill-bred peasants.’

  ‘I need Ashiol,’ Velody said simply.

  ‘You cannot have him,’ said the Duchessa, just as simply. ‘He did not return to Aufleur with me.’

  This was a blow, but Velody rallied. ‘When will he return? He is needed here.’

  ‘My cousin is not returning from Bazeppe.’

  The words fell like screechbolts around Velody. ‘Never?’ she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

  ‘He believes that the place is healthier for him, and I agree. I am to marry the son of the Duc-Elected of Bazeppe, and Ashiol will remain there as my emissary. An ambassador, of sorts, between our two cities.’

  The Duchessa’s voice was cool, as if she was dismissing one of Ashiol’s many mistresses on his behalf. Livilla began to laugh, softly, in the background.

  Velody felt hot and cold all over. ‘He is needed here,’ she said.

  It was true. So true. She couldn’t take Aufleur back from Garnet without him, and what was her other option? To join with Garnet and take part in his ridiculous sacred marriage? No, that was beyond imagining.

  ‘Ashiol will not survive Aufleur,’ the Duchessa said firmly. ‘I know that now. There is something about this city that tears him into pieces. He is glad to be
useful elsewhere.’

  ‘Useful?’ Velody said furiously. Useful. As if anything was more important than Ashiol being here, fighting the sky, dragging Garnet from power, saving the souls of the Creature Court. Useful.

  ‘Thank you for telling me,’ she said finally, forcing her anger down, resisting the urge to flay the Duchessa’s skin from her body. ‘I won’t bother you again.’

  The Duchessa nodded. ‘I enjoyed your dresses very much. I will recommend you to my friends among the Great Families.’

  ‘So kind,’ said Velody, and left the room in a rush, dragging Livilla behind her.

  Ashiol wasn’t coming back. It was just Velody, four wounded sentinels and the craziest of all the Lords. Oh, and a mad Power and Majesty who wanted to marry her.

  ‘What do we do now?’ Livilla asked as they walked away from the Palazzo. She smiled toothsomely at a passing maidservant. ‘If you want to burn the place to the ground, I know some people.’

  ‘Not today,’ said Velody, her mind working fast. ‘We’re going to have to do this without him.’

  25

  ‘She’s a spy,’ said Macready. Of all the Court, the last one he was prepared to trust was this venomous bint.

  ‘Dearling,’ said Livilla, ‘if you’re going to accuse me of vile things, at least wash your hands first. I’m as trustworthy as they come.’

  Macready and Kelpie had been working the docks. Kelpie had rope burns on her palms from a careless moment, but otherwise had fallen into the life of a working cove far more comfortably than Macready had. He was almost embarrassed by how long he had railed against making an honest living. He still drank, but not so much he had to hide it. It made a difference having Kelpie working at his side. Like maybe this new life made some sort of sense.

  Now here they were, back in Velody’s kitchen, facing a battle all over again. Livilla sat there all smug and full of herself. Crane was hunched against the back wall, looking about as happy to be there as the rest of them. Delphine had managed to sit as far from Mac as possible without making it look deliberate. Clever lass that one. He missed her, but not as much as he’d thought he would. Letting her go was a fecking relief in the end. Someone else’s problem. Unless it was himself who was someone else’s problem.

  Velody looked the same as ever: calm and steady and expecting them all to jump when she snapped her fingers. Of course they would. She was still a King if not the Power and Majesty. Even if the old rules were no longer supposed to apply.

  ‘Where’s Rhian?’ Delphine spoke up, the first thing she’d said since they’d all gathered together. ‘Should we be starting without her?’

  Velody looked uncomfortably at Livilla.

  ‘The Seer is not on your side,’ said Livilla. ‘Just so you know.’

  ‘Don’t you mean “our” side?’ Macready said sharply. There she was, proving his point already. ‘Rhian wouldn’t throw her lot in with Garnet. That’s crazy talk.’

  ‘Livilla’s sanity is not the issue here,’ said Velody with a sigh. ‘I believe she’s telling the truth. About Garnet, and her captured courtesa. About Rhian. Something bad is coming, we know that. It might be sooner than we thought.’ She took a deep breath. ‘It’s time for me to take the city back from Garnet.’

  Macready wanted to argue further about Rhian, but they had moved on. Fighting Garnet. He felt himself spark up at the thought of it, though practicalities took over soon enough.

  ‘He has the other Lords,’ he reminded her.

  ‘I know,’ said Velody. ‘But I have the sentinels. Also, I actually want to keep the city in one piece. I no longer know what Garnet’s motivation is.’

  ‘We don’t have our blades,’ said Crane suddenly. They all looked at him. He coloured a little, but continued. ‘We don’t have our blades. Ashiol is gone, and Garnet is crazy. We’re exactly where we were a year ago.’

  Macready gave him a light shove on the shoulder. ‘We have Velody, lad.’

  Usually he and Kelpie took turns to be the cynic. It wasn’t Crane’s job.

  ‘And that’s enough, is it?’ The lad sounded angry now. ‘We’re not Creature Court any more. We walked away. We chose that. It’s not honourable to try to get it back. We lost the fight.’

  Macready let his hand fall, staring at him. ‘Got something better to do, have you?’

  ‘It’s all very well, this honour of yours,’ said Livilla. ‘But Garnet has none.’

  ‘You were happy enough to throw your lot in with him until he stole one of your toys,’ Kelpie said sharply.

  Livilla’s eyes went cold. ‘And these are your precious sentinels, Velody? So very compassionate when it comes to the needs of a vulnerable child. Topaz is a person, not a toy. And she is mine.’

  ‘Don’t you act the high and brightness with us, love,’ said Macready. ‘You haven’t exactly been a saint over the years, have you? If there are lads and lassies in danger, it’s because you brought them into the Court.’

  ‘I saved them,’ Livilla said huffily. ‘Devils only know what Poet had in store for those lambs.’

  ‘And you have such a history of keeping your courtesi safe,’ Macready said, and watched hatred flash in her eyes. Good to know he still had the touch.

  ‘You’re not helping,’ said Velody.

  ‘And you’re trusting too easily.’

  ‘It’s what I do, Mac. Are you still angry at me for bringing him back?’

  ‘Apparently.’ He sat back and folded his arms.

  ‘I need Topaz home,’ said Livilla, starting to sound desperate.

  ‘Why?’ broke in Kelpie. ‘Because you’re worried about her? Or because you need your secret weapon?’

  Macready glanced at her. ‘What are you on about, love?’

  ‘Topaz. She’s the salamander, isn’t she?’

  Macready blinked. That was a word he hadn’t heard in a long time. ‘Salamanders don’t exist.’

  ‘This one does. I’ve seen her. She controls fire. She can shape herself at any size. And she’s loyal to you, Livilla.’ Kelpie’s voice shook only a little. ‘She carried the poison cup directly to me. The one meant for Garnet.’

  ‘Why do you let them ask all these questions?’ Livilla flung at Velody. ‘They’re not our equals. They’re dirt. No wonder you never get anything done.’

  ‘I tried demanding that everyone follow me blindly,’ said Velody. ‘It didn’t work out well. Now I listen. Is Kelpie right about this Topaz of yours?’

  ‘She’s been holding Garnet at bay with that little demme,’ Kelpie said scornfully. ‘He was afraid of her.’

  ‘Exactly,’ said Livilla. ‘So who knows what he will do now he has her in that damned cage.’

  ‘I know,’ said a voice.

  Macready looked up and saw Rhian. She seemed taller, her wide shoulders filling the doorway. She was blazing bright, as if she had swallowed sunlight and it was shining out of her skin. The room smelled of smoke. Then she blinked rapidly and stumbled into the kitchen, herself again.

  Delphine darted forward to help her. Macready hung back so as not to get in her way. ‘Quite an entrance,’ he noted.

  ‘What do you know?’ Livilla demanded of Rhian. ‘What has he done to her?’

  Rhian pushed Delphine carefully away, keeping a distance between them. ‘I know what Poet and Garnet have in mind for the salamander demme,’ she said clearly. ‘They’re going to kill her on the Kalends of Saturnalis.’

  ‘It’s the Kalends today,’ said Velody.

  Rhian nodded. ‘That’s right.’

  ‘You look pale,’ Delphine accused. ‘And all bony — have you been eating?’

  Velody stood up slowly, looking at her friend. ‘If you’re here, it’s because he wants you to be here. He wants you to tell me what they’re planning to do.’

  ‘That’s not true,’ said Rhian. ‘He doesn’t know I’m telling you his secrets.’

  ‘How can you still be so naive? He’s using you. He uses everyone. It’s how Garnet operates.’

/>   ‘As opposed to you, who only wants the best for us all? Saint Velody, the queen of everything.’

  With that retort, worthy of Delphine, Rhian turned around and walked right back out of the house.

  ‘You can’t let her leave,’ Livilla insisted. ‘Not if she can help us save Topaz.’

  ‘I’ll go,’ said Macready, and darted out the door before anyone could debate it. He caught up with her in the alley.

  ‘Rhian, lass! Don’t huff off like that right when we need you.’

  ‘Keep your distance, Mac,’ she flung back at him, still walking. ‘Velody’s right. You can’t trust me.’

  ‘Hogshit,’ he said, and took her hand in his. It was warm, but no one got set on fire. Good result. ‘Why did you come back?’

  ‘This is my home.’

  ‘Haven’t noticed you around much.’

  ‘Do I have to defend myself to you, too? We were all so understanding when Velody got swept up in the Creature Court. Why has no one got the same patience for me?’

  ‘To be fair, Delphine wasn’t all that understanding with Velody …’

  Rhian had no time for jokes. ‘They both have their roles — Velody, Delphine. You, too. Why can’t any of you see that what I’m doing is important?’

  He kept holding her hand. ‘No offence, my lovely, but it looks a lot like you’re collaborating with the Power and Majesty who threw us all out of the Creature Court.’

  ‘Threw you out?’ Rhian snorted. ‘Garnet can’t do that. You did it to yourselves.’

  ‘Will you listen to what you’re saying?’ Macready said in disbelief. ‘Velody and Ashiol were this close to death.’

  ‘Their choice,’ she insisted. ‘I don’t have time for all this game playing and duels. The futures have no patience for such things, and neither does the Seer.’

  Oh, it was never a good thing when anyone started talking about themselves in the third person.

  ‘This is pretty much what it’s always been like in the Court,’ Macready said carefully.

  ‘I know that. Do you think I don’t know that? I know everything, Mac. I have a dozen voices in my head, all telling me the same things, just in slightly different words, and some days I think I’m going to explode with them all.’