[Brat 01] - Princess Brat

by Sharon Green

  “I agree,” Elissia said with a thoughtful nod. “It would be too much of a coincidence otherwise. Can you show me where this warehouse is? And do you know anyone else who could be of help in freeing Prince Gardal if he is there?”

  “There are a lot more men in this city in my position than there used to be,” Wyole said with a sigh.

  “Every time Prince Waysten passes another law, whole groups of innocent men suddenly become lawbreakers. And those lawbreakers aren’t sent to work gangs anymore. They’re sent as levies to the prince’s army, where they’re stuffed into uniforms and taught to march. I managed to avoid that with the help of friends, and now I also help others to avoid it. Yes, I think I can find men who are willing to help.”

  “Good,” Elissia said with a smile. “And hopefully they’ll be helping themselves at the same time. Let’s finish our drinks and get going.”

  It didn’t take long to finish those drinks, so Elissia and her new companion left the cup and flagon in the kitchen and then set out. Wyole seemed to know every back street and alleyway in the city, and once they threaded through most of them he finally stopped to point.

  “That’s the warehouse I meant,” he said in a very soft voice. “Do you see that man in the torn coat, the one standing not quite casually in front of the building? He’s a thief, and he looks that uncomfortable because he isn’t used to being out in broad daylight without also being in the middle of a crowd that he can steal from.”

  “So they must have Gardal hidden somewhere in that building,” Elissia agreed, trying to consider the entire situation. “If we try to break in and free him, they could well kill him before we find the place he’s hidden. We need someone to find that place before anyone knows we’re around.”

  “Which means we have to get people into the warehouse without the thieves finding out about it,” Wyole said with a nod. “I think one or two of my people might be able to manage that, but I’ll have to talk to them first. I’ll take you back to the inn, and then I’ll call a meeting. I should have definite word of progress for you by tomorrow morning at the latest.”

  Elissia would have preferred to be able to do something to free Gardal immediately, but even her impatience understood that doing the job hastily would be worse than not doing it at all. For that reason she simply nodded, then let Wyole lead her back to where she was staying.

  By the time they got back it was beginning to get dark, and Elissia was definitely hungry. Renni was busy cooking for the supper crowd the inn attracted, but not too busy to sit Elissia down in a corner of the kitchen with a meal of her own. The food was just as good as Elissia remembered it to be, and by the time she’d finished it all she felt happily stuffed. When she’d swallowed the last of her tea, she interrupted Renni briefly to give her a hug goodnight, and then Elissia went back up to her room.

  That part of the inn was really very quiet, and even the sounds coming in through the open window were no more than muted night noises. Elissia carefully locked her door before getting out of her clothes, and once she was in bed it didn’t take long before she fell asleep. It had been such a long day that she felt worn out despite the short nap she’d had in the afternoon

  The sound of a door slamming somewhere brought Elissia awake with a jerk, but her heartbeat slowed to normal when the sound wasn’t repeated. She had just begun to drift off again when she heard footsteps out in the hall, but the steps didn’t come to her door. They went to the next room instead, and then Elissia heard the door being opened.

  “I’m assuming from that slam that Rossor tried to resist being thrown out again,” a soft female voice said in the next room. “If he ever stops getting drunk here before going home at night, it will probably mean the world is about to end.”

  “Or that his wife has finally found a way to keep the coin out of his hands,” a male voice replied with a chuckle. “We’ll have a bit of a smaller income, but she and her kids will be able to eat on a more regular basis.”

  By then Elissia had tiptoed out of bed and over to a slit in the wall through which lamplight gleamed. She hadn’t lit the lamp in her own room even when she’d first come back, and certainly didn’t do so now. Peeking through the slit showed her Orra and Camdin, the two owners of the inn, but the room didn’t look like one the owners would use for themselves. It was just as small and undecorated as her own room, so Elissia had no idea what they were doing there. No idea to begin with, that is

  “Now, then,” Camdin said to his wife in a stern tone, no longer looking friendly and welcoming. “Isn’t there something you have to tell me?”

  “Yes, I’m afraid there is,” Orra replied in a very meek voice, looking down at her hands rather than up at her husband. “I was very bad today, but I didn’t do it on purpose, and I promise it will never happen again.”

  “A likely story,” Camdin returned with a snort as he looked down at her. “Bad girls don’t just stop being bad on their own. They need a reason to stop, and I’m more than prepared to give you one. Come over here.”

  He turned to walk to the room’s chair, then sat in it as he looked at Orra again. She’d followed him slowly and reluctantly, and when she reached him he took her by the waist and positioned her across his knees. She’d been making small sounds of dread, and when he raised her skirts the sounds turned into words.

  “You don’t have to spank me to make me remember not to be bad again,” she begged softly as he ran his hand over her now bare bottom. “I’ll remember without it, really I will!”

  “You’ll remember even more thoroughly with it,” he countered, still caressing her. “Are you ready?”

  “No!” Orra answered in a low wail, but the denial did her no more good than Elissia’s had ever done with the savage. Camdin raised his hand and struck her hard on her seat, and she jumped and began to struggle against being held like that. By the third stroke her breath drew in and she struggled even harder, but it just wasn’t possible for her to escape the punishment. Camdin’s hand kept striking her bottom, sometimes landing on one cheek or the other, but for the most part warming her entire seat to a flaring red.

  Elissia felt a good deal of empathy for the woman being punished, but there was something she didn’t entirely understand. Orra hadn’t been forced to come to that room, she’d been there waiting when Camdin arrived. And the words they’d exchanged, about the man Camdin had had to throw out they hadn’t sounded like the prelude to something like this. Orra was crying softly now as her seat was warmed more and more by the stern spanking, but Camdin just kept on with it. And the expression on his face showed such satisfaction

  The punishment continued until Orra was twisting with the ache in her bottom and begging softly to be allowed to show how sorry she was. At last Camdin relented and gave her seat a final three smacks, then she was allowed to stand again. As Orra rubbed at her bottom through the skirt and cried quietly, Camdin also stood and took her in his arms.

  “Are you going to be a good girl from now on?” he asked as he held her close to comfort her. She nodded against his chest, and he patted her shoulder. “Good, I’m glad to hear it. You go down to our rooms now, and I’ll be along in a minute to comfort you a bit more thoroughly. Go on, now.”

  Orra nodded meekly before raising her face to his for a brief kiss, and then she left the room. She continued to rub her bottom with one hand until she was out of sight, and Camdin watched her gone before going to the lamp by the door and blowing it out. Then Elissia heard the sound of a key in a lock, followed by unhurried footsteps going by in the hall. Once the footsteps had faded to nothing, Elissia went back to bed, but not to try falling asleep again.

  It was fairly clear they hadn’t realized that Renni had put Elissia in the room she had. They’d obviously come up to the third floor for some privacy, and probably would have chosen a different place if they’d known they were being watched. Elissia’s first urge had been to turn away from what she wasn’t meant to have seen, but then the questions had started which ke
pt her from moving away.

  Elissia had known more than one woman who was beaten by her husband, but Orra had nothing of the same telltale marks. She wasn’t overly silent or withdrawn, she didn’t cringe in the presence of her husband, and she certainly didn’t seem to fear him. But she had said something about being bad, and then she’d let herself be spanked without more than a token protest. Camdin hadn’t just been pretending to spank her, he’d really done it, and then he’d sent her to get ready for him in bed.

  So what in the name of all the gods was going on? Orra couldn’t have enjoyed that spanking any more than Elissia had enjoyed having a hairbrush used on her earlier in the day, but she still must have gone to that room willingly. Was it possible that Orra had enjoyed the spanking, and she and her husband were playing some kind of game? But what kind of game was that, and why would people play it? It simply didn’t make any sense

  Elissia lay awake for some time trying to find an answer to calm her confusion, but there didn’t seem to be an answer. And thoughts of Orra and Camdin in bed together were even more upsetting, but Elissia flatly refused to think about why that was. Instead she forced herself to thoughts of sleep, and finally managed to find it.

  Chapter 9

  copyright 1999, 2002 by Sharon Green

  When Elissia went down to breakfast the next morning, everything seemed returned to normal. Orra and Camdin were busy being warm and gracious to their guests, just as if nothing at all had happened the night before. Elissia slid past them and into the kitchen, where she had her food at the small table to the side. By the time she was through eating she’d almost decided to discuss what she’d seen with Renni, but that was when Wyole appeared at the kitchen door. When he saw her he came over and sat opposite Elissia at the table.

  “We’re all set,” he murmured just before Renni came with a cup of tea for him. He smiled and nodded his thanks and waited until she was gone again, then added, “We’ll be going into the warehouse in a couple of hours, and everyone agreed that you ought to be with those who go in first. If for some reason there’s confusion about who to rescue, we need someone on the spot who knows Prince Gardal by sight. You do know him by sight, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I certainly do,” Elissia agreed, feeling rather wonderful. They actually wanted her there in the thick of things, needing her there for a reason. For the moment she wasn’t useless at all, and there was no feeling in the world like it.

  “Good,” Wyole said with another nod and smile after sipping at his tea. “I thought you might, and that’s what I told the others. As soon as we finish our tea we can get going.”

  Elissia nodded her agreement, and it wasn’t long before they were leaving the inn by the kitchen door. Renni had hugged Elissia and whispered a wish for good luck, just as if she knew what was about to be done. It was likely Renni did know in general, just as she’d always seemed to know what went on around her. But she also seemed to find it unnecessary to mention aloud what she knew, not unless someone else mentioned it first. Renni was sure enough of herself as a person that she had no need of something to increase her stature in the eyes of others.

  As Elissia followed Wyole through the back streets and alleys, she wished she could have the same kind of confidence. She knew well enough how capable she was, but the fact that no one seemed to want her ability tended to make her less than sure of herself. She not only wanted to do something productive she needed to, but those around her never seemed to understand that. Except for her present companions

  They reached the warehouse district a bit faster than the day before, but didn’t stop in the same alleyway. Wyole led the way to a place behind the warehouse they wanted, then into a nearby building. There were quite a few men in that building, and one of them stepped away from the others to greet the newcomers. He was a man of middle years with a dignified bearing, which helped him to rise above the ordinary brown hair and eyes of his appearance.

  “I’m glad you’ve returned so quickly, Wyole, my friend,” he said as he shook hands with Elissia’s guide.

  “And this must be the boy you mentioned. Does he know what his role in this is to be?”

  “He does, and he’s more than able to play it,” Wyole answered with a smile. “This is Torban, Sentor, the man who has made himself guide and mentor for every ‘outlaw’ in the city. Sentor knows what the prince looks like, Torban, so we have no worries on that score.”

  “That’s a great relief,” Torban said pleasantly to Elissia, offering his hand to shake. “And I’m in no way as important as Wyole implied. I’m simply a teacher who taught the wrong thing - in Prince Waysten’s opinion - so my career was abruptly shortened. Welcome to the ranks of the unwanted and unappreciated.”

  “Thank you, but I’ve been in those ranks for most of my life,” Elissia answered in her boy voice as she took Torban’s hand in a firm grip. “This undertaking, though, will change things at least temporarily for most of us. If we manage to free the prince, the king of Sollera will be very grateful. I’m sure he’ll be willing to welcome anyone from your group who wants to relocate.”

  “More than one of our people will be delighted to hear that,” Torban said with deep satisfaction. “They yearn for the ordinary life they were forced to abandon, and those with families miss them sorely. They’ll gladly relocate to a place they’re no longer hunted.”

  “Then we’ll make sure it happens,” Elissia said with a reassuring smile. “Right now I’d like to hear the plans you’ve made.”

  “Of course,” Torban agreed at once. “The plans are relatively simple, in that we’d like to have the prince before anyone knows he’s gone. There are a limited number of places he can be hidden in the warehouse, and we have two men who are very familiar with the place from having worked there. You and they will look in each of those places in turn while making very sure that the current workers don’t become aware of your presence. When you locate the prince you’ll bring him out the same way you and the others went in, and no one will be the wiser. If they do catch you in the act, so to speak, the rest of us will be poised to come to your defense. Do those plans suit you?”

  “Very much so,” Elissia said as she thought the thing through. “If the prince is able to move on his own, he’ll simply leave with us. If he’s drugged or otherwise incapacitated, the men with me will carry him while I act as scout and open doors as necessary. We’ll get a lot farther if we get him out before they know he’s gone.”

  “I’m delighted to hear you say so,” Torban said with what looked like real relief. “So many young men today want nothing more than to charge into a situation with sword swinging, declaring strategy and tactics to be useless. It’s a true delight to meet one who knows the advantages of discretion. And if we’re all agreed, there’s no reason not to get to it.”

  The other men in the building had been standing around listening, and now they came closer. Two of them stepped out in front, and Torban gestured to them.

  “Istlan and Morgis are the ones who will be going in with you,” he said, then turned to the two. “Men, this is Sentor, who knows what the prince looks like. Your team should be very effective, but if something goes wrong the rest of us will be there to help. Wait five minutes before you begin, to give us time to get into position. All right, everyone, we all know where we’re supposed to be, so let’s get there.”

  Everyone including Torban and Wyole left then, all of them silent and moving as quietly as possible. When they were gone Elissia looked at the two men waiting with her, and they both gave her smiles of encouragement. She tried to send the same back, but nervousness had begun to turn her insides. This was so very important, but what if something went wrong? Or what if Gardal wasn’t being held in that warehouse after all?

  It took some effort, but Elissia pushed away as much of the doubt and fear as possible. Worrying about something going wrong was the most likely thing to turn that awful end into reality, and bad situations needed no extra help in happening. She would antic
ipate success instead, and worry about failure only if it happened.

  The five minutes took a very long time to pass, but finally it was Elissia’s group’s turn to leave the building. The man Istlan went first, gesturing Elissia after him, and Morgis brought up the rear. They moved silently to an almost-hidden door in the warehouse, a small door that had crates stacked up very close to it. It seemed to be a way into the warehouse that was rarely used, which made it perfect for their purposes.

  Once the door was closed again behind them, the gloom in the large building thickened. They’d come in behind tall stacks of bales and crates and sacks, and the lantern light in other parts of the warehouse was completely absent. Istlan paused for a moment, but whether it was to let his eyes get used to the gloom or to make sure no one was very close, Elissia wasn’t sure. Whatever the reason, after the moment they moved on again.

  What they moved through was an outer aisle of sorts, Elissia finally realized, an aisle that wasn’t visible to the inner part of the warehouse where people walked around and worked. Once they passed a gap in the stacks, a crooked path that seemed to lead with twists and turns to the warehouse proper. If the path continued completely through it could be used to reach the aisle from the main part of the warehouse, but Istlan ignored it and just kept going as he had been.

  It took them a number of long, anxious minutes to work their way around to another part of the warehouse, but finally they did it. It looked no different from the rest of what they’d passed, but Istlan stopped and gestured Elissia closer.

  “This’s th‘ first place, and that big crate there ain’t really a crate,” Istlan whispered once Elissia had reached him. “That there section as looks like a door is a door, but there ain’t much room inside f’r more’n one. You wanna take a look inside, or you want me t’?”

  “I’ll do it,” Elissia whispered back, her insides now twisting into knots. If Gardal wasn’t there, or if they’d done something really horrible to him “But you and Morgis stay close just in case.”