Fey 02 - Changeling

by Rusch, Kristine Kathryn

  A shiver ran through Nicholas. Suddenly he saw Jewel's face, melted and twisted beyond recognition. "Swords. But no holy water. If I see any holy water, I'll kill the carrier myself."

  Charissa followed him to the door. She was asking something, but he no longer heard it.

  A Fey was after his daughter.

  He headed for the stairs in a sprint.

  No one, absolutely no one, would take Arianna from him. The Shaman said she had to stay in the palace, and she would stay.

  Nicholas would do whatever he had to in order to guarantee that.

  SIXTY-SEVEN

  After the nurse left, Solanda paced the room. The lump continued his odd crying. He hadn't even made that noise when Jewel died. Then he had been sobbing — a dry, almost silent sound — but this was the cross between a wail and a scream.

  Arianna was sobbing. Solanda had placed her back in the crib and every time Solanda passed, Arianna raised her tiny hands, begging for comfort.

  Solanda had none.

  At least, not yet.

  She wasn't quite certain what to do. The guards would bring weapons, but if the foe was magical, that might not be enough. She could get into her cat form and hide, but that might not allow her to protect Arianna.

  She did take off her robe. Sometimes during a quick Shift, clothing buried her. She couldn't afford to lose her vision for one moment. She was at least that prepared.

  There were no weapons here except the fireplace equipment. The tongs, the poker, and the wood itself. Those were stored high enough so that they wouldn't be a danger to the lump. Everything else was soft and comfortable because this was a nursery.

  Sebastian let out a loud scraping cry.

  Arianna shrieked.

  Solanda turned as the door opened.

  An Aud stood in the doorway, his hands in his pocket, his cowl draped over his face.

  Solanda grabbed a blanket and threw it over Arianna. It wouldn't be much protection against holy water, but it might be enough.

  The Aud brought his hand out, threw back his cowl and grinned.

  Rugar.

  Solanda's entire body became very cold.

  Sebastian stopped screaming. He rolled himself up as tightly as he could, his head buried in his knees. He looked like the rock he had been formed out of. He blended into the wall. If Solanda hadn't known he was there, she would never have seen him.

  Rugar came into the nursery and closed the door. "I need the child."

  Solanda swallowed. Arianna was silent too. Solanda wanted to lift the blanket, to see if Arianna had Shifted, but she didn't dare.

  "The Shaman said the baby is supposed to stay here."

  "The Shaman is wrong."

  Solanda shook her head. "She's happy here. Let her be."

  "We need her, Solanda. The Fey can't survive without her. She's the only viable heir to the Black Throne."

  "What about Gift?"

  Rugar made a dismissive gesture with his hand. "Gift is a traitor."

  "Gift is a child. Children can't be traitors."

  "Children that brilliant can," Rugar said. The pale robe made his skin look dark, almost black, and his eyes glint evilly.

  "How do you know then that Arianna won't turn out the same way?" Solanda stayed beside the crib.

  "Because I'll raise her," Rugar said.

  "Where?" If she stalled long enough, the guards would arrive. Rugar had no magical defensive powers. A knife, a sword, a blow to the head would stop him as quickly and easily as the poison would.

  "In Shadowlands."

  Solanda shook her head. "The Shaman said she must not go to Shadowlands."

  "The Shaman." Rugar's voice had a sneer in it. "When did you start listening to the Shaman?"

  Solanda licked her lips. "When it became clear that she was the only one remaining with Vision."

  "You're fickle, Solanda." He inched closer.

  "It's my nature," she said. She had a tight grip on the edge of the crib.

  He glanced at her hand. "Right now you look like a lioness guarding her young."

  "Apt," Solanda said. "Arianna is my sister under the skin. I care for her."

  "You can care for her in Shadowlands."

  Solanda shook her head. "She stays."

  Rugar walked toward the crib. "You can't disobey me," he said. "You owe me."

  "I have paid my debt to you," Solanda said.

  Rugar smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile. "You haven't paid until I say you have."

  Solanda was shaking. She had given him her word so long ago that it felt normal to listen to him. But Arianna had no one. Nicholas couldn't help her. The Shaman didn't want her in Shadowlands. Rugar only wanted to use her. Solanda knew that.

  She took a deep breath. "The Shaman says I never owed you. The Shaman says you set the entire attack up. She says you had those people, those dogs try to kill me so that you could save me."

  He blinked, then frowned. "That's silly," he said, but his tone was off. He had planned it. He had used her all these years.

  Made her feel a debt to him that she had never ever owed.

  All these years of running, of spying, of using her talents for petty theft instead of being a Shifter, one of the greatest of the Fey.

  "You're not taking Arianna," she said.

  "Yes," he said. "I am." He moved twice as fast as she expected, shoving her out of the way with such force she lost her grip on the crib. She tumbled toward the fireplace, grabbing at anything to stop her fall.

  The lump looked up, his empty eyes filled with terror.

  He picked up the baby along with the blanket. For a moment, Arianna looked like herself. Then she Shifted, a full-strength Shift that happened rapidly. One moment she was a Fey baby, the next a tiny white kitten.

  Rugar dropped the kitten. It mewled all the way down and landed with a thud. A kitten only a week old was blind. She had given herself movement, but not the vision.

  He crouched and grabbed for the kitten, but Solanda flew at him and knocked him out of the way. He grabbed her upper arms, pinching the flesh, and pulled her down with him as he fell. He landed on his back, grunting as the wind was knocked out of him.

  Solanda wrenched her arms free. The pain was excruciating. She looked for the kitten, but instead saw the lump crawling across the floor. He scooped the kitten in his right hand and, cradling it gently, returned to his corner and his former position. Solanda almost cheered, but Rugar grabbed her and tried to throw her aside.

  She kneed him in the groin and he cried out with pain. Then she rolled away from him, and grabbed the poker, holding it like a club. He rose to a sitting position, one hand up as if to block her.

  "You can't hurt me," he said.

  "You stay away from Arianna."

  "Solanda, you know this is best for the Fey."

  "I know that you taking her is wrong. The Shaman told me that. I listen to the Shaman. She has Vision. You don't."

  "You don't know that."

  "No," Solanda said. Her arms ached from holding the poker in the ready position. "No, I don't know that for sure. But it seems obvious. You're pathetic, Rugar. You want a power you'll never have."

  "Give me that child."

  "You're not in a position to bargain," Solanda said.

  "Neither are you," Rugar said and with his booted foot, kicked her legs out from beneath her. She landed with a thud that jolted all the way up her spine.

  He lunged for the center of the room, only to pause in confusion. He didn't know where Arianna went. Then he saw the lump rolled up into a ball in the corner.

  "Where is she?" he said to the lump.

  Solanda got to her feet. Her entire back ached. She could barely move. She grabbed the poker. "Leave him alone, Rugar."

  Where was her help? She had sent the nurse for help. How long did it take people to run up those stairs?

  The lump whimpered. Rugar moved closer to him. He grabbed a block of wood. If he hit the lump — Sebastian — in the wrong way, the b
oy would shatter, and maybe kill Arianna in the process.

  "Leave him alone, Rugar."

  "You tell me where the baby is, Golem," he said, ignoring Solanda.

  Sebastian whimpered again.

  Rugar reached toward him —

  — and Solanda swung the poker at the back of Rugar's head. The sharp end hit his skull with a smacking thud and he fell sideways toward the wall. He hit the wall and didn't move.

  Sebastian scrambled out of his way, Arianna still cupped in his hand. She was mewling, her tiny blind face searching for the source of the sounds.

  Solanda had lost her grip on the poker. It was sticking out of the side of Rugar's head. His neck was turned at an odd angle, the cowl of his robe turning black with blood.

  She crouched beside him. His eyes were open.

  He was dead.

  She let out a small sigh, then shivered. The punishment for killing a member of the Black Family was severe. She glanced at Sebastian. The intelligence she feared was not in his eyes. He was holding Arianna close to his face and petting her with his index finger. She was still crying and moving around.

  "Solanda!"

  Nicholas's voice made her turn. She stood, naked and blood-spattered, trembling in the room's sudden chill.

  He had flung open the door and strode into the room. The guards were following him, as was the nurse and a chambermaid. He held up a hand. "Everyone out."

  "But, Sire, we don't know what's happened," one of the guards said. He meant whether or not Solanda was dangerous.

  But Nicholas was far enough into the room to see whose body it was. "I'll take my chances," he said. He closed the door. "Where's Arianna?"

  "Sebastian has her," Solanda said. "She Shifted."

  Nicholas crouched beside Sebastian and put his hand beneath the one holding Arianna. She mewled at him piteously.

  "I think she's stuck in the form," Solanda said.

  "Is that unusual?"

  Solanda shook her head. "Not when a young Shifter is frightened."

  "We'll have to Shift her back."

  "In a moment," Solanda said. She wanted to calm herself first. She needed to know what Nicholas would do to her. With her ash-stained hand, she pointed at the body.

  "Rugar?" Nicholas asked.

  She nodded.

  "Dressed as an Aud. That doesn't look good, does it?"

  "He wanted to take Arianna to Shadowlands."

  Nicholas moved Rugar's chin. Rugar's head lolled. "He's dead."

  "I know," Solanda said. She could barely get the words out. Fear tightened her throat.

  "What's the penalty for killing the Black King's son?"

  "What would the penalty be for killing you?" Solanda asked.

  Nicholas sighed. "Then I guess his death is my fault."

  It took Solanda a moment to follow his logic. He meant to take credit for the death. "You can't," she said. "You're related by marriage. The Powers would be offended."

  "Wouldn't your powers know that I didn't do it?"

  She didn't know the answer to that. She stared at Rugar's body. When he had his Vision, did he know he would die like this? Or had his Vision disappeared so long ago that he never saw his own death?

  "I did it," Solanda said. "I'll take the punishment."

  Nicholas shook his head. "My daughter needs you. We need you. You can't turn yourself in." He stood and pulled the poker from Rugar's head. Bits of blood and brain spattered Nicholas's robe. "We'll say that it was an accident. Nothing will happen then. No one will question. I doubt anyone will miss him."

  Solanda doubted that too. But she wasn't certain. The Black King's son was still important, no matter what he had done.

  Nicholas stuck the tip of the poker into the fire and let the blood and hair burn off. The stench was slight, but enough to make Solanda wrinkle her nose. Then Nicholas placed the poker where it belonged.

  "Better put on a robe," he said. "I'll let the others in."

  She had forgotten she was naked. She shook her head. "First," she said, "let me help Arianna."

  She took the kitten from Sebastian's hands. Glossy tears covered his cheeks. He still looked terrified. Even though she knew he wasn't a real being, she couldn't help feeling pity. He had saved her life, and quite possibly saved Arianna's as well. Solanda brushed off a tear with her thumb.

  "You're a hero, Sebastian," she said quietly. And when it looked as if he hadn't understood, she added, "You're a real good boy."

  Then he smiled at her, slow and sure and sweet. Solanda smiled back.

  The kitten's tiny sharp claws dug into her palm. She put Arianna back into the cradle, then held her and Shifted her own hands into paws. Then, carefully, she Shifted back. Arianna the Fey baby looked up at her, lower lip trembling. For a moment, Solanda thought she was going to cry. Then she giggled, the happy baby sound that had become her trademark.

  "So much death around her," Nicholas said as he came up behind Solanda, "and still she finds joy."

  His body was warm near hers. She let go of Arianna, and picked up her robe, slipping it on and reveling in the warmth. "She doesn't understand that death is an ending yet," Solanda said. "She sees it as change, and to her, change is fun."

  Nicholas let out a laugh, more of surprise than anything else. "Would that it be for all of us." He put a hand on Solanda's back. She turned in surprise.

  "I owe you," he said.

  "Me?"

  He nodded. "I didn't think you would care for my daughter, risking your life like this. I thought you would be with her for a while, and then go."

  "It would have been easier," Solanda said. "But it wouldn't have been right."

  "I owe you not just my protection," he said, "but my daughter's life."

  Solanda put a finger on his lips. "Don't promise her life to anyone. It is her own. It will be better that way."

  Nicholas nodded, then took her hand away from his mouth. "I'm sorry I ever doubted you," he said.

  "That's all right," Solanda said. "I doubted myself."

  SIXTY-EIGHT

  The road was flat and wide, an immobile version of the river. Adrian, Coulter, and Scavenger had emerged from the woods not far from Scavenger's home. They wore the clothes and the hats that Scavenger had stolen. If the Riders saw them from the air, the Riders wouldn't think twice. If Fey found them on the road, Scavenger would claim he was bringing them back to Shadowlands. His assumption was that none of the Fey knew him by name; that they would assume he was a Red Cap from Shadowlands if that was what they had told him.

  The second part of the plan did not give Adrian confidence. After the incident near the river, he couldn't tell if Scavenger was paranoid or if the Fey really would recognize him. Adrian's own knowledge of the Fey in this area was scant.

  They walked in silence. The other two were as frightened as he was. Scavenger's place was still too close to Shadowlands to give them any comfort. Adrian was shocked when he finally reached the road. It had felt as if he and Coulter had gone a long way that first day, but they hadn't gone far at all.

  He was also surprised that Scavenger had chosen to live so close to Shadowlands. Almost in its shadow, as it were.

  But where else would he go? And where else would he be safe? That would be something Adrian would have to deal with when he got Scavenger closer to Jahn.

  Of course they would stay out of the city. Adrian had finally decided that going directly to the King would be difficult and hard on Coulter. Besides, he would have a better chance of getting news about Luke at the farm. His family would know what happened. If they didn't, then Adrian could go into Jahn alone.

  Getting his family used to the small Fey, on the other hand, would be an even more difficult trick, but it would probably be easier than traveling through Jahn with him.

  Scavenger scuffled his feet as he walked, his boots raising small clouds of dust. Coulter would stop every time he saw something which caught his fancy. That would slow them down again, but Adrian was happier to see Coulter
's interest than his fear.

  Suddenly a large boom echoed through the woods, followed by the sound of exploding glass. Adrian, Coulter and Scavenger turned at the same time. Behind them, light shone up and outward through cracks in the sky, like sunlight did through huge gray clouds. As they watched the cracks grew bigger. Thumps and thuds reverberated as chunks of the sky fell.