by Guy Antibes
“I’ll arrange an interpreter to take you around Okalla. Perhaps you can see how the common people live in this city. Perhaps take in some factories and schools. I doubt if I’m going to get much opportunity to learn more about the normal Belonnian from here on.”
Meldey glanced at the schedule that Lily had thrown on the table. “Nothing useful for me to do for Miss Evertrue, so if you’ll let me I’d like to accompany Willa.”
Lily looked around the room. “Of course. But you’re not to go off and ask about your relatives. I don’t want you to waste my time trying to see them.” She looked pleadingly at Meldey to continue the story that she obviously had just come up with.
“I’ve come all this way and if I don’t get to visit I’ll feel as if I failed them, but if those are your wishes, my lady…” She gave them all a half-smile. “I’d like to see how they dress and eat in Okalla, as well, since I’ve never been here. I’m certain it will be different than the inns we used.”
“That’s settled then. We don’t have much time to ourselves according to this. Our first appearance is at a reception in three hours in this very hotel,” Sara said, taking a deep breath. “I enjoyed our trip here, rubbing shoulders with the common people. I’m not looking forward to mixing with the elites and our University boys.”
~
Neither Lily nor Sara brought any clothes in black. Sara felt like the flame of a candle in a large dark room. It seemed the male students had been given the message. The isolation she felt reminded her of Belting Hollow. If she were to return tomorrow, she doubted if she’d feel much different.
“Ladies,” a woman with a frilly black overdress came over to them during the reception and spoke in perfect Parthian. “We have food at the buffet table. Feel free to eat and drink. All is provided courtesy of the Imperial Government of Belonnia. May I introduce myself? I am Linssa Pockmakle, Matron of the University of Okalla. Which of you is Lily Evertrue and which of you is Sara Featherwood? Forgive me, but we shun titles in our country.”
“Lily.” She gave Linssa a bow of her head. “Matron.” Lily smiled surreptitiously at Sara.
“Linssa. Call me Linssa. We girls must stick together.”
“I am Sara Featherwood and I am glad to make your acquaintance.” Sara spoke Belonnian to the woman. She wondered if Linssa could be related to Henker Pockmackle, Belonnia’s Foreign Minister.
Linssa’s eyes widened. “Spoken like an Okallan, Miss Featherwood.”
“Sara.” She gave Linssa a slight bow as well.”
“Sara, it is. Does Lily speak Belonnian as well as you?”
“No, I don’t,” Lily said in Parthian. “I can understand it better than I can speak.”
“I’ll have to watch what I say around both of you.” The woman lifted the corner of her mouth in the semblance of a smile. “After you have samples of our best fare, I will introduce you to our professors.” Linssa walked away to introduce herself to a clutch of Parthian men.
“A complicated woman,” Lily said.
Sara couldn’t agree more. Linssa might control what she said, but her facial expressions told them more. The Matron seemed almost giddy, yet her strength struck Sara. The woman couldn’t be an academic. She reminded Sara more of Grianna Worthy than Banna.
The foods were much richer than what they ate at the inns—another channel for indulgence? Sara could taste the similar spices that the commoners used, but with added dimensions of flavor. She preferred the simpler cuisine.
A tap on Sara’s shoulder made her jerk.
“Nerves?” Hans said.
“You can say that, Master Dairy.” She refused to call him by his real name Dairyman—that would keep him firmly in his place. “We’re still wound up from our trip from the coast. The inns were atrocious and I thought it might be another bed bug the size of a small cat taking a bite out of me again.” Sara would let the men think they had a hard trip. Let them experience false enjoyment.
“Oh. That was Ferdik Heathergate.”
“Short, sandy hair?”
“I didn’t know you met. I can’t imagine him sullying himself with your acquaintance. I say that, of course, in jest.”
Sara smiled with her mouth only. “Of course. I know him by description only. What do you think of what we will do during our stay?”
Hans made a face. “It seems like more school.”
“I doubt if you will be the student this time. I would say that we’ll be the teachers and the Belonnians will be the students, trying to learn as much about us as possible. Duke Northcross will likely be doing the same at the University.”
Hans grunted. “That won’t happen.” Sara wondered why it wouldn’t.
Sara knew better. The Duke had all of their investigative work on the professors including a thorough file of the Dean. She also suspected that Lily and she weren’t the only ones told to keep their eyes open. The Duke wouldn’t waste this opportunity to pull as much information as he could from their counterparts that currently were talking to University scholars. Banna hadn’t been included in the exchange, of course.
Hans looked at her and furrowed his brow. “Somehow I think you two know more about what’s going on here than I do.”
“How could that be? We’re just women,” Lily smiled at him and batted her eyelashes. It seemed to unsettle the seemingly debonair young man, but Sara put it down for an act. He had to be the Duke’s plant. Meldey had her mission and, most likely, Hans had his.
Sara noticed the furtive looks given Hans by his fellow Parthians. The students tolerated him, but the Belonnians in the room wouldn’t come near him. They wouldn’t associate with a known spy, so the Belonnians must know that he worked for the Duke.
Linssa walked up looking at Hans’ retreat. “It seems that at least one of the men is willing to talk to you.” She frowned and cleared her throat. “None of them think much of women as students. In Belonnia, there are no differences between men and women. Legally, of course.”
Sara nodded. “I’ve read the packet. Just exactly how is this exchange going to work?”
“The first week we will bring in our scholars who concentrate their studies on basic Belonnian culture to teach you how we live here. Everyone will attend those. The classes will be in Parthian so all of you can understand. There will be some cultural events on Sixday and Restday.
“The last week will be learning what differences there are in the various disciplines. The Sciences, Practical Mathematics, Interpretive Listening, History, Geography, Biology and the Medical Sciences, Language, Belonnian of course, Politics.”
“No Philosophy?” Lily said.
“Politics and Philosophy are the same things in Belonnia, my dear,” Linssa said breezily. “What interests do you two have, Practical Mathematics?”
“I’ve always been interested in Interpretive Listening and Politics,” Lily said. “I’m attracted to powerful men.”
“I’m sure you are,” Linssa said. Sara could see the bloom in Lily’s pale cheeks. The woman had struck home. “And you, Sara?”
“You might think it odd, but I have an interest in the Physical Sciences, Chemistry especially. Any of the other subjects are fine, as well, except for Biology. I’m not too interested in the sight of blood.” Sara said that thinking of the knife currently strapped to her leg.
“That’s unfortunate for you, but we have an excellent Chemistry department at our University. I’ll assign one of our top professors when the time comes. He doesn’t speak Parthian very well, but that is no barrier to you.”
“No,” Sara said, smiling as sweetly as she could muster.
The only men who came their way were Belonnians. Nice enough men, but their eyes kept drifting to their dresses. Sara didn’t know if they were lecherous old men or the colors excited them like moths to a flame. The men liked to ask questions about Parthy. Neither of them shared anything particularly insightful.
Back in their room, Lily kicked off her shoes. “How boring. Don’t the Belonnians h
ave any nice looking young professors? Most of them were old enough to be my father.” She winked at Sara.
“Hans tried to be nice.”
Lily put a pout in her lips. “How could that be? We’re just women.” She laughed. “He managed to scare off the Belonnians. I noticed that, other than us, he only talked to the University boys. The Belonnian professors left him alone.”
Sara shrugged. “He’s the only one who has shown us interest. Perhaps we can give him a better impression of us.” If Sara truly believed that, then why did she cut him to ribbons with her tongue on the voyage? “Perhaps we can still use him as an ambassador.”
Lily pulled out the hair piled on top of her head and let it fall down her shoulders. “I reluctantly agree with you. One never knows when an ally might be needed.” She looked at Meldey, who had entered the room to pick up Lily’s shoes.
“One never knows, my lady,” Meldey said.
~
Sara walked out of the University building. The latest session bored her to tears. If the Belonnian professors weren’t acting, they were no more erudite than the professors at Tarrey College. From the comments by the students, if they weren’t acting, none of them were as smart as Klark. She didn’t see any point of continuing her stay except she really did want to attend the Sciences exchange next week. What kind of emphasis did Belonnian scholars put into their Chemistry program? Doctor Hedge would die to know that.
She walked through the streets of Okalla. The bright-colored dress beneath her black overcoat would scandalize a Belonnian woman. Sara found it easy to classify the citizens of the city by their clothes. If some one resembled a Parthian in dress, they were commoners. As the citizenry became more affluent, they wore more black with frills on the outside of the cloth.
No one seemed as carefree in Okalla as in the inns they had frequented in their carriage ride in. It’s as if a cloud covered the city and Sara could see why. She entered the area Meldey had described and everything was transformed. The Black Market seemed to be a misnomer as the vendors wore colorful clothing. Rebellion? Perhaps that’s how these people expressed their displeasure with the unrelieved black buildings.
Some of the stalls sported bright awnings and Sara found her spirits rise a bit. She strolled through the various market lanes. The goods didn’t look as fresh or appealing as what she’d seen in the inns, but she guessed the supply lines into the city were longer.
A person perused the stalls up ahead and Sara walked a little quicker to see Meldey, all bundled in black.
“Don’t greet me, Sara. Pretend you’re asking me for directions,” Meldey said quietly in Belonnian. “I’m slipping a package in your pocket. You won’t see me again.” She nodded to Sara and quickly slipped into the crowds.
Meldey’s departure deeply saddened Sara and the Black Market lost its interest. She turned around and left for the hotel. As she walked, the package seemed to call to her. Could she freely examine it in her room? She decided to stop at a teashop. There were enough people inside that she wouldn’t be bothered by anyone, if she didn’t remove her cloak. She ordered some tea and a sweet biscuit as she sat at a table with her back to the wall.
Sara untied the string and unfolded the paper to reveal a black notebook, a pen and a vial of dark ink. So far, the package seemed quite innocuous. She thumbed through the first few pages and found maps with letter designations. The tattoo book. Meldey had secured a copy after all.
Remembering the letters on Otta’s wrist, Sara located the district that contained the inn and the letter designation she had memorized matched. This book seemed to be genuine. There were more detailed maps and in the back were instructions on the style of lettering to be used. The ink’s label said it would dry quickly and any common alcoholic beverage would erase the ink.
She had seen enough, so Sara carefully rewrapped the package and it’s contents. The tea arrived as she finished tying the package back up with the string and put it into her cloak pocket before she took her time with the tea. The Duke would be pleased to see the book. But, knowing Northcross, he most likely had one or more.
Sara finished the last of her sweet biscuit and her tea and walked out of the tearoom, reminded of her duty to the Duke.
“Have you seen Meldey?” Sara said as she entered the hotel room. Lily was drawing in her notebook as Willa knitted in a corner.
“Not since morning,” Willa said.
“I swear I saw her on the streets. I actually stopped a woman who looked just like her for directions, but it wasn’t her.”
Lily put her notebook down and yawned. “I’m not worried. She promised she wouldn’t try to contact her relatives. I do hope Meldey’s trustworthy. I think I’ll retire for a pre-dinner nap. You haven’t been asked to dinner?”
Sara shook her head. “Another night shunned by the men,” she said. “I’m getting used to Belonnian spices so I don’t mind another meal in the hotel.”
A knock brought Willa to her feet. She rushed to the door and adjusted her hair before she opened it slowly.
“A message for Misses Evertrue and Featherwood.”
“Thank you.” Willa replied in poorly pronounced Belonnian. After she shut the door she brought the message to Sara. “I don’t know what the man said, but I know a delivery boy when I see one.” She gave Sara a squint and then a smile. “What does it say?”
“Another night of room service, for you, Willa. Our hostess, Linssa Pockmakle, has requested our company at a small dinner in her home. A carriage will call for us at eight o’clock.”
Lily sighed. “A late dinner. Wonderful, it won’t disturb my nap.” She closed the door to her room. Willa went back to her knitting and Sara thought the news about the tattoo book would wait for a more opportune time.
A few hours later, Sara began to dress for dinner. Willa had purchased black lace coats to wear over their dresses. It seemed that women did wear colored frocks at home. She moved her cloak from her chair and felt the package. Where could she hide this?
She looked at her trunk and wondered if she could slip it in the trousers of her riding outfit. No. She looked at the bottom of the trunk and didn’t want the package floating around with her shoes. Sara put her hand to her chin and wondered if the trunk had any pockets in the back or sides to store things.
She pulled back her clothes and found a lever in the back of the clothes rod. She pulled it and nothing happened, but then she felt a button hidden underneath the dark felt fabric of the lining. She pushed it and the seam parted around the top of the trunk. She recognized the shape of a few guns and other small boxes covered in velvet on a tray just underneath the lid. The package joined them and she quickly pushed the false top back into place.
Did Willa know of the secret compartment? Did Lily’s trunk have such a device? Sara would have to check another time. She finished dressing by having Willa help with her hair and then her overdress and cloak covered her. She patted her knife, strapped to her leg and waited for Willa to help finish up with Lily.
“I don’t know what’s happened to Meldey.” Lily said as she walked out of her bedroom. “Did she say anything to you, Willa?”
“Not a word, lady. Only those few words on the ship. I wonder if we’ll see her again?” Willa gasped and put her hand to her mouth. “Poor thing. I hope some thug didn’t overpower her!” The alarm in her voice didn’t match the look on her face.
“Calm down, Willa,” Sara said. “She’ll probably spend a cold night out on her way to some village and then she’ll return. In the meantime, just as you did tonight, you can help the both of us. With the academic sessions, you have more than enough time to yourself.”
“Yes, your Excellency,” Willa said, winking and sat back down, returning to her knitting. “I’ll see to getting some dinner after you’ve left. It’s time you met the carriage.”
“Indeed it is,” Lily said. “Thank you, Willa.”
Sara wanted to get the both of them alone, but perhaps they’d be able to have some lunc
h together tomorrow. Curiosity began to burn brighter, now that she had two things to share with Lily and Willa and perhaps Willa had something to share with them.
On the way to Linssa’s house, Sara thought of Klark and his carriages. The quality of Belonnian carriages did not match Klark’s—inferior fittings and a distinctly rougher ride. Klark. She wondered what he was doing. Winter’s Rise came in two weeks and it looked like they’d be spending it on a ship, sailing back to Parth.
Their Okalla experience had distracted Sara. From Klark’s angry missive to Nona’s letter Sara worried about life in Shattuk Downs. A year ago, Doctor Miller had talked the Grand Duke into seceding from Parthy. West had begun to take over Belting Hollow. After her Shattuk Downs experiences life hadn’t slowed in the slightest.
She wondered what Linssa was up to as the coach stopped at their destination. Lily had dozed on their way.
“Not enough sleep during my nap, I guess,” she said and proceeded to yawn as they clambered out of the carriage. Sara noted men littering the streets. They all looked like guards and all had their faces pointed towards them as they made their way into the house. Her husband had to be the foreign minister, but why so many guards in the capital? Surely he would be safe enough in Okalla.
The Pockmakle residence seemed typically Okallan from the outside, if a bit on the large side. Wrought iron vines covered the entire front winding over the first two stories worth of windows. They walked into soft baby blues and light browns for the decor. The wooden floors were a stained oak that contrasted with furniture painted in a soft yellow. Now this was a tastefully decorated house similar to a noble’s townhouse in Parth.
If the decor was a window into Linssa, the woman was more centered than she thought. It impressed Sara that Linssa had more control over her environment than the average Okallan.
The woman swept into the room. She wore a pale yellow silk gown under a black lace overdress. Lily and Sara would fit right in.
Linssa smiled as their cloaks were removed. “Gorgeous. Perfectly executed, ladies. I admire how quickly you’ve picked up on our customs.”
