"I'm still not sure about this," Kalina said uncertainly as their carriage wound its way to the Dancing Swan. Keritanima had chosen it because it was large, it was expensive, it was opulent, and it was well known for being a good place to conduct business. The staff was famous for their silence, their tact, and their loyalty to that silence, allowing any number of people of high station to discuss business not meant to be bandied about court or in the parlors of noble homes. Kalina was dressed up as Keritanima, complete with bandages under her plain brown dress. Keritanima wore the plain, elegant gown, subtle make-up, and severe hairstyle that would make people identify her immediately as Lizelle Sailmender. Miranda, Azakar, and Binter were also along, seated with them in the carriage. All of them had strict instructions to keep quiet. Miranda wasn't supposed to know what Keritanima was up to, to keep her somewhat safe, and her bodyguards wouldn't speak anyway.
Getting out had been no problem. When her father commanded her to court, he had also lifted the restriction against staying in her room. He was letting her out to let her go about her scheming, and she had no doubt that he had a veritable pack of spies and observers ready to follow her every move.
"Don't worry at it, Keritanima," Keritanima said pointedly. "You remember what to say?" Kalina nodded. "Then there's nothing to worry about."
"How are we going to explain how we picked you up?"
"We're not," Keritanima said calmly. "It'll give them something to stew over."
"Oh. Alright." Kalina gloomed a moment. "If I'd have only known," she sighed.
"You'd never have pulled it off," Keritanima grinned. "You do good with me, but you'd never fool my employees. Even if you did, the first time you demanded money, they'd know you were an imposter."
"I could have tried."
"And been executed for grand thievery," Keritanima winked.
"It would have been worth the risk."
"Don't worry. After all is said and done, you're going to be a very, very rich little girl, Kerri."
Kalina absolutely beamed.
The interior of the Dancing Swan was made for nobles in mind. Gold gilded frames held within breathtaking works of art. Ancient tapestries vied for wall space with those paintings, and the floors were covered with Eastern and Arakite carpets. The inn was arranged with a long, narrow common room with elegantly built booths lining each wall. The booths were large, voluminous, and they had ivy-covered walls to separate them from one another. That ivy also helped muffle sound, protecting the privacy of each party. Well-dressed servants glided from table to table, serving sumptuous meals or rare and expensive wines and liquors to the patrons. Keritanima simply waited for Kalina to demand a booth, and a thin, graceful little deer Wikuni woman curtsied deeply to her and showed them to a booth about halfway down on the right side of the wall.
Kalina sat down first, and Binter immediately sat down beside her, to block her off from the outside. Azakar sat beside Keritanima, to protect her should someone attack her and allow Binter to reinforce the image that Kalina was actually Keritanima. Miranda sat down beside Azakar and made a show of looking bored, when she was actually watching out for eavesdroppers.
Just not too hard. Keritanima wanted them to be overheard.
"It is not often I am called to an audience with Royalty," Keritanima began in that stiff-necked voice that Lizelle owned. "However, whatever immature flights of fancy you possess are of little concern to me. I am a busy woman, your Highness. State your business."
"How would you like to see the commoner's tax repealed?" Kalina asked in a mild voice.
Keritanima raised a brow. "You have my attention," she said calmly.
"I've always been very curious about you, Lizelle," Kalina said in her excellent imitation of Keritanima's voice. "And not because we're both foxes. You've managed to come a very long way without a title, and I can respect you for it. But I feel that you could go alot further if the commoner's tax was removed. It would make things an even game between you and the businesses of the noble houses."
"I've made no secret of my outrage over those taxes, your Highness," Keritanima stated. "They are nothing but a chain locked to my leg, to keep me in my perceived place. But as much as I would like to see the repeal of those taxes, it makes me wonder what I would have to do to gain it."
"Nothing dangerous," Kalina assured. "I only need a message delivered to someone on Sennadar. A message I would prefer not be intercepted. I can't trust any noble-backed house or ship to do that."
"That is all?"
"That's all."
"I will not risk my position or my business over something I don't know," Keritanima announced. "I will know the content of this message. If I find it safe to deliver, then we have an agreement. If not, we'll leave here with my promise that the message will go no further."
"I find your terms one-sided."
"You deal from a weak position. Since I have something you want, you must be prepared to pay for it."
"They said you were a wolverine," Kalina grunted. "I should have listened to them."
"I am a businesswoman, Highness," Keritanima said calmly. "No more, no less."
Kalina frowned. "Alright. The message is for a man named Darvon. He's the Lord General of the Knights of Karas. You'll find him in Suld. I want to know if he can spare a hundred Knights to journey to Wikuna."
"A strange request."
"Just tell him I found what Tarrin is looking for," she said calmly. "I need the Knights to retrieve it and take it back to Suld, so they can get it to Sharadar. That's the only place it can be kept safely, and the Knights are the only ones trustworthy enough to carry it."
"Will he understand the message?" Keritanima asked.
"When he hears it, I guarantee you he'll lose ten years off his age and do backflips," Kalina replied with a toothy grin. "But I want the message delivered by you personally," Kalina demanded. "I'll give you a letter of introduction that will assure him you're there on my behalf."
Keritanima leaned back and thought about it. "I find your proposal...intriguing," she said finally. "I will accept."
"Good, but you have to leave today," Kalina insisted. "And you have to be careful. You may not want company following you."
"I will not risk my ship or my men for a simple message," Keritanima said stiffly.
"I'm not asking you to," Kalina said smoothly. "The message has no real importance for anyone in Wikuna, Mistress Lizelle. It's a matter between me and my brother. I'm doing this for him."
"I didn't know you had a brother," Keritanima said.
"Not by blood, but he's as close as a brother to me," Kalina said calmly.
"Why would this message need me to be careful?"
"Because right now, the seas are a dangerous place," Kalina told her. "There are Zakkite triads everywhere. Travelling alone would give you a better chance of getting through unmolested."
"I sense deception, Highness, but a little danger is worth the profit of being freed from the commoner's tax," Keritanima said after a moment. "I accept your proposal."
"Then let's go visit your trading company and select a good ship," Kalina proposed.
"Indeed. I suppose I can have my man arrange for my absence."
"You'll need clothes."
"I keep a packed trunk at my trading company, Highness," she said calmly. "Sometimes the pursuit of profit requires unexpected trips. It's not the first time I've dropped everything for a sudden voyage."
"Then let's get started."
The group got up without so much as buying a drink and quietly filed out the door.
And left unmitigated chaos in their wake.
"How did I do?" Kalina asked when they were in their carriage and safely on the move.
Keritanima laughed and patted her hand. "Kalina, you were perfect!" she announced with a wide grin.
"I have to admit, Kalina, you really know how to impersonate Kerri," Miranda praised. "I was starting to wonder who was who."
Azakar was brooding a bit. "I'm starting to feel
left out," he grunted. "I don't understand a word of what anyone says."
"I told you that Wikuni takes time to learn," Keritanima told him patiently.
"What did we just do?"
"Keritanima is having Lizelle go to Suld, and tell Darvon to send Knights, because she knows where the Firestaff is," Miranda told him with a cheeky grin.
Azakar gave Miranda a wild look, then he laughed. "Kerri, that's awful!" he said with a huge smile. "You're going to turn all Wikuna inside out!"
"And your point is?" Keritanima winked, then she laughed with him.
"What is this Firestaff?" Kalina asked.
"Just the most powerful magical artifact in the world, Kalina," Keritanima replied easily. "Right now, half the world is hunting for it, and kingdoms are getting into wars over mere rumors of where it lies. My father will have a fit when he hears that, because he wants the Firestaff for himself." She picked at her dress absently. "He knows that I was travelling with people looking for it. He'll bite at my bait."
"So will half the noble houses," Miranda added with an evil little smile.
"And they'll all be looking right at me," Keritanima grinned. "They won't dare touch me, because if I die, then my secret dies with me. And they'll do almost anything to hear that secret. I expect to become a very popular girl by late tomorrow afternoon." She looked at Binter and Azakar. "And you two have a very important job."
"What is that, Highness?" Binter asked. He never liked riding in carriages, for few could make him sit comfortably in their tight confines.
"Protect Miranda," she said bluntly. "I'm safe. She is not. They'll come after her to get to me, so you two have to keep a very careful eye on her for me."
"It will be as you command, Highness," Binter said easily.
"What about me?" Kalina demanded.
"You'll be safe enough, Kalina," Keritanima grinned.
"Why do you say that?"
"You'll see."
Keritanima moved swiftly into the trade compound when they arrived, all but running up to her private office. The others had to follow behind, and notice the strangled looks and hasty bows as some of the workers identified Kalina as Keritanima. She was tearing into her closet, pulling out her clothes trunk she kept there and having Binter put it up on her desk. Rallix nearly ran into the room a moment later, giving the scene a startled look as he closed the door. "Well, your Highness," Rallix said calmly. "I never expected to see you in the same room with Lady Lizelle."
"And why is that, Rallix?" Keritanima asked in her stern Lizelle voice.
"I'm not a fool, Lizelle," Rallix said to her directly. "Or, should I address you as Princess Keritanima?"
Keritanima stared at him.
"I must admit, you did do wonders at making Lizelle look much different from Keritanima. Seeing the two of you in the same room reminds me of how different you two appear, and yet also so similar. She's very good, your Highness," he praised, motioning at Kalina. "Where did you find her?"
Miranda laughed, and that drew a curious, confused look from Azakar.
"You knew?" Keritanima demanded indignantly.
"Of course I knew," he replied easily. "I'm not an idiot, your Highness. If I were, you would never have hired me."
Keritanima stared at him, which made Kalina shuffle a bit and Miranda laugh even more. Then Keritanima sighed lustily. "I always thought I did better than this," she grunted.
"Oh, it's a masterful identity, your Highness," he assured her. "It took me nearly a year to discover the truth. After I realized who you were, I realized that I found working for you to be both profitable and curiously satisfying. You may be the princess, but you made Lizelle a success without any help from your title. That's something to be very proud of."
"Well, I appreciate the complement, Rallix, but now that I know that you know, it just feels...wrong, to pretend to be Lizelle around you anymore."
"You are Lizelle, my Lady. You simply have more than one hat."
Keritanima stared at him a bit more, then she finally laughed. "Well, I guess this will make this much easier," she said. "Lizelle is going on a trip, Rallix. A very sudden and hasty trip."
"I deduced as much from the trunk, my Lady. Where are you going?"
"As far as the world is concerned, Lizelle is going to Suld," she replied. "In reality, she's going to hide at Falcon's Roost."
"A smart move," Rallix commended. "I take it that I should turn around now?"
"Why do that?" Kalina asked curiously.
"So we can switch dresses, Kalina," Keritanima winked.
"What?"
"Haven't you figured it out yet, girl? I thought you were smarter than that."
"You mean I'm going to--"
"Of course, you ninny," Keritanima grinned. "You'll be in danger if you stay in Wikuna, because people will mistake you for me. You're going to a secluded country estate, where you'll be treated like a queen for several months. You'll have all the pretty dresses you could ever wear and a fifty room house staffed with servants that will do anything you want. You just have to stay out of sight until I send a message telling you it's safe to return."
"Oh. Well, in that case, I think I could use a vacation," she smiled.
"I saw five ships in. Is that all we have right now, Rallix?"
"Yes, my Lady."
"Then pick the fastest ship with the best crew and start getting them ready to set sail," Keritanima ordered her agent.
"I'll have it ready before you change dresses," he assured her.
The exchange of dresses was a quick affair, but doing Kalina's hair so she looked more like Lizelle took some time. "You won't have to pretend to be Lizelle, Kalina," Keritanima assured her. "You'll just be dressed up in case anyone sees you leave. Falcon's Roost is only a day's journey north, so you won't really have to worry about pretending to be Lizelle on the ship. I'll have Rallix send instructions that you're to be treated as my guest and have the run of the house."
"Are there men there?"
"Some servants," Keritanima told her. "You'd think that a girl in your profession wouldn't think about men."
"Just because I sell a good time doesn't mean I don't have a good time myself, Keritanima," Kalina said with a naughty grin. "With the right customer, anyway."
"Well, just remember that Lizelle isn't a prostitute," Keritanima snorted. "You'll ruin my reputation."
"I was wondering something, Keritanima."
"What?"
"Why did you try to run away? Why didn't you just become Lizelle instead?"
"Because I'd have eventually been found out, Kalina," Keritanima sighed. "Lizelle gets away with it because people rarely see her. If I were Lizelle all the time, someone would eventually discover the truth. Rallix did, so that means that others would have too." She finished the bun and pinned it into place. "I never thought I'd be Lizelle again. I already had a will made out for her that they'd find when they realized that she'd just vanished, leaving my business to Rallix. At least I managed to get back before people began to wonder what happened to her."
"How did you arrange that? You were gone a long time."
"By doing exactly what you're doing now, Kalina. I'd ride a ship to Falcon's Roost, and it would go on without me while making people think that I was on board. I'd ride a horse back here, and everyone would think that Lizelle Sailmender was out on a business voyage. That particular one was to Valkar. At least a six month journey, possibly as long as a year. I set it up that way in case something did go wrong and I had to come back, Lizelle and her resources would be here in case I needed them."
"Clever."
"I didn't get this far by thinking like celery, Kalina. I planned ahead."
Rallix returned. "The ship will be ready to receive you in a moment, my Lady," he said pointedly to Kalina. "By the way, where did you find her, your Highness? She is so much your twin, I thought you were the same person when I first saw her."
"Just another person, Rallix," Keritanima grinned. "Someone who helps me p
retend to be in two places at once. Often when Lizelle was here, Keritanima was at the Palace."
"Very clever, your Highness."
"Thank you," Kalina and Keritanima said in unison, their voices mingling together so perfectly that they were impossible to tell apart.
Rallix laughed. "I'll have men take your trunk, my Lady. You'll be under way by the end of the hour."
Keritanima backed up slightly as sailors filed in and picked up the trunk, giving her and Kalina wild looks, then they carried the trunk out. Keritanima closed the door and regarded Rallix calmly. "I think I can depend on your discretion, Rallix," she smiled. "If people ask, just say that Lizelle and the Princess reached some kind of agreement, and Lizelle set sail quickly after getting here."
"We have known each other a long time, your Highness," Rallix smiled. "I've always looked out for your interests, and your secret will be safe with me. I'll arrange it so Lady Lizelle here is very comfortable while she hides out."
"I appreciate it. Leave no debased amusement untried, Rallix."
"Hey!" Kalina snapped. "I'll choose my own debauchery, thank you very much."
"Just watch out for the masseuse, Lizelle," Keritanima winked. "So much as smile at him, and he'll be trying to drown you in sensual delight."
"I think I can live with that," Kalina grinned wickedly.
"We're running out of time, Highness," Rallix warned.
"Of course, Rallix," she smiled. Rallix. She shouldn't have been all that surprised that he knew her secret. He was a very intelligent, unassuming man that was very good at his job, and part of his job was to be observant. It warmed her heart that he had been loyal to her, even after discovering just who he was working for. He had been a steadfast pillar, just as dependable as Ulfan, nurturing Lizelle's investment into an impressive fortune. She owed him a great deal. She wondered what made him stay with her, knowing who she was and the danger it posed to him, how much he really knew about her. He had to know that the Brat was just another act, like Lizelle. And he had kept that a secret too. Even after it became apparent that Keritanima--and Lizelle--had run away, he remained at the business, running it for her, not telling anyone that Lizelle was unavailable. He could have taken ownership of the entire company then--she had little doubt he didn't know about her will--but he did not. He had continued on, abiding her possible return, showing a loyalty to her that stirred her soul to consider its depths. Rallix wasn't just loyal to her, he was devoted to her. She wondered what had spurred such a devotion. "I want to thank you again, old friend," she said sincerely. "It's becoming plain to me just how much you do know, and I can't thank you enough for your support through it all."
The Questing Game Page 64
