by Karen MacRae
Another visitor was announced by a heavy knock on the door. Spider stood in the doorway holding an enormous steaming bowl of food. “I thought you might be starving. You usually are after you conk out like that. I can’t come in without either Chiara or Aibreann leaving though, sorry. They’ll only allow two visitors at once.”
Aibreann stood. “I have a few things to do so you can take my place, Spider.” She leant over to give her new friend a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t fret on things. All will be well once the King wakes. Have faith in him.”
Despite the fact Anna had eaten a pile of bread and cheese, she tucked into the thick, meaty stew with relish, groaning in delight when she tasted the gravy.
Chiara raised an eyebrow at the younger man. “I begged and begged for something hot. No one would help.”
“You have to ask in the right way,” he grinned.
Anna and Chiara had no doubt that a fetching, young cook was even now gloating to her friends of how Spider Peyton, yes, the Spider Peyton, had kissed her in the larder.
“I must go,” said Chiara. “I left Luciado with Lady Braxton. I doubt she’s bored, but I’m sure she must have other things to do than sit and listen to a Singer all day.”
Spider and Anna watched Chiara leave, Anna making excellent headway on her second meal of the day.
“You’re a complete idiot, you know,” Spider teased.
“I know. I was only just saying that to Aibreann and Chiara.”
“I was sure you’d make it to Manson, but I thought you’d spot he was spinning you a tale straight away. At the very least enough to check those supposedly dying guards before you’d go anywhere else.”
Anna groaned. “Don’t make me feel worse than I already do!”
“I lost five golds to Finn and Sy will never let me forget it.”
Anna laughed. “Serves you right for gambling.”
“No, serves me right for placing the bets too early. My gift was spot on once the whole thing got underway,” he said proudly. “How’d you think I got there so quick to help with the King’s helmet?”
Anna laughed. “Hang on. Does that mean Sy and Finn thought I’d fall for it?”
“Sy thought you’d knock out all the black armbands except the King. Finn thought you’d knock out everyone. He’s less than impressed with the King’s new armour. ‘It’s full of damned holes, Spider. Holes!’ he kept saying.”
“How did he know I’d knock them all out? I didn’t know myself until I was standing there.”
“I have no idea. He just said it was what he would do.”
Anna allowed herself a small smile. She hadn’t done all bad. Then she remembered that the King was sleeping somewhere in this keep and might not wake up. Her face fell and tears welled in her eyes. “What if he doesn’t wake up?”
“Then it was his own damn fault!” snapped Spider. “A more hare-brained, moronic idea I have never come across. Putting himself at risk, for light’s sake. What was he thinking?”
“He was thinking that the armour only fitted him,” came a soft, deep male voice.
Spider jumped up and spun around to the privy door. “Sire!” he gasped, dropping to one knee and bowing his head.
Anna threw back the bedcovers and flung herself on the floor, imitating Spider’s posture. She was elated: the King was aglow with a strong, golden aura.
“I think you and I have a lot to talk about, Miss Northcott. Spider, make yourself scarce. Go out through the privy though. I left the panel open. I want this visit to remain private for now.”
“Yes, sire. Em, I meant no disrespect, sire.”
“Yes you did, you annoying puppy. You were quite right too. Now hop it.”
Anna stayed kneeling as Spider exited. Elation had been replaced by terror. She could feel her body shake.
“Please rise, Miss Northcott.”
Anna stood to see the King indicating that she should take the chair next to him.
“I swear I didn’t know it was you, sire,” she said, frozen to the spot. Her voice was weak, but ardent with honesty.
“I know, child. Come, sit.” Rybis paused while Anna joined him at the table. She sat quietly, her hands in her lap, her head slightly bowed as she waited for the King to continue. “The whole thing was a foolish attempt to test the armour. And you.” The King laughed quietly, careful not to alert the guards outside the door to his presence. “Well, we certainly did that so it wasn’t a complete failure. I doubt the Queen will ever forgive me though. She watched from the battlements and didn’t have the benefit of Lady Braxton’s commentary. She thought me dead.”
Rybis held up a hand to prevent Anna from apologising once again. “No apologies are necessary, Miss Northcott. I only have myself to blame. You were an innocent pawn. However, I wish you not to be taken in so easily again.”
Anna blushed.
“You’ve been thinking it through I see.”
Anna nodded.
“Good,” came the beaming reply from the King. “You aren’t much good to me if you don’t learn from your mistakes.” He leaned closer to the girl. “I felt your oath. No Black Shaper would swear it. It binds you to my family till death. Unless there’s a way to break it?”
“I don’t know, sire. I’ve never tried,” she said honestly.
Rybis nodded. “Then we must give you occasion to do so.”
“Yes, sire.”
“Finn tells me you were going to Ionantis when you met Masters Ffion and Peyton?”
“Yes, sire.”
“What did you plan to do there?”
“I was going to tell them the truth, sire. I wanted to learn. I still do.”
The King nodded, his face pensive. Suddenly, he stood.
Anna didn’t know whether she should stay where she was, stand and curtsey or kneel. He put his hand on her shoulder. That answered that, she thought.
“My thanks, Anna, for saving my life. I am in your debt.”
Anna gaped after the departing King, astonished to receive gratitude rather than punishment. Her heart glowed with love for the man.
CHAPTER 21
A ibreann burst into the room an hour later. “The King’s awake! He’s fine!” she cried. Anna grinned. She tried to hide the fact she already knew, but Aibreann saw it immediately. “You’re not surprised. Who got here before me?”
“Spider was here,” Anna tried.
Aibreann shook her head. “Uh uh. You are a terrible liar. Spill the beans.”
“I can’t. Sorry.”
“How did he get in here without the guards seeing him? Ooo, there’s a secret entrance, isn’t there? The castle’s riddled with them. How exciting! But where is it? The privy? Good grief! I’d never have guessed that. So what did the King say to you? He thanked you? Really?”
Anna sat in shock and wonder at how easily Aibreann Read her aura.
She finally interrupted the rush of words. “How do you do that?”
Aibreann giggled. “It’s a mixture of guesswork, body language and aura response as well as knowing aura anatomy. It’s easiest when you know someone well because every aura is different and the area that reflects, let’s say… music appreciation in one person may not be in exactly the same place in someone else. My mother’s was glowing when I left her. She’s completely smitten with Luciado. He and his mother have a home for life.”
“Do you think I could learn?” Anna asked.
“I have no idea. I can’t see why not. What you do is Read then Shape, isn’t it?”
“I wouldn’t call it Reading. It’s more seeing than Reading. And the Shaping bit is mostly brute force. Well, mine is. I’ve been trying to learn so I can use more subtlety, but there hasn’t been anyone to teach me. I think I’ve had more luck than judgement so far,” she confessed.
“Mother is the best, but she never has time. There are loads of books on Reading in the library though and I’ll help if I can.”
The pair fell silent as it dawned on them that neither knew how long An
na might be there.
“Oh, for light’s sake, I forgot to say, you’re to be escorted to the Great Hall for a meeting with the King at thirteen o’clock. It’ll be a cosy party. Just you, Finn, Spider, Sy, maybe Seleste, mother and father and the other Councillors as well as my other big brother, Conal. No doubt my little brother, Davy, will manage to sneak in somehow too. He usually does. He’s much too good at sneaking. He’s not had his gift confirmed, but I’ll eat my hat if it’s not sneaking. If there is such a thing. No doubt Ionantis will come up with something much more politically correct when he finally gets booted off to school.”
Aibreann noticed the nervousness in Anna’s aura and patted her hand. “Don’t worry, Anna. There will be people in the room on your side. Whatever happens, I’m sure it’ll be all right.”
Anna gave a weak smile. Only a few weeks ago, she’d been a Healer’s assistant working in a brothel. Now she was supposed to consort with King Rybis and numerous Lords and Ladies? She felt sick.
“What’s the matter, Anna?”
“I need a crash course in etiquette, Aibreann.”
“You need a cra… Oh! It never occurred to me! Right, up you get. I’ll talk while you get dressed then you can practise your curtsey.”
“Light help me!” Anna whispered as she pulled the beaded dress over her head for the second time. As Aibreann fastened the back for her, the Shaper looked for her jewellery to complete the outfit. It was nowhere to be seen. It was only then that she realised that all her tools were missing. “My jewellery, my staff?” she asked Aibreann.
Finn’s sister shook her head. “It’s been confiscated, but you should know that your staff didn’t survive all that energy. It blew up into so many pieces it was basically dust.”
Anna’s heart lurched at the loss of Sy’s precious gift. She would miss it dearly. But then her mind alerted her to a far greater issue: just how feared and untrusted she was that even her earrings had been taken away from her. Her hands briefly closed into fists as she struggled to control her fears. She reminded herself that the King had said he was in her debt. Surely he wouldn’t forget so soon?
“Best not go in bare feet,” Aibreann said. “A maid returned your slippers. No one was quite sure how they ended up on the top floor of the east wing, but there was no mistaking them.”
Anna smiled. “I got a bit lost… And they’re a bit big.”
Finn’s beautiful sister laughed, the sound alone enough to break hearts. It was no wonder men were useless around her, Anna thought. “Better them than your boots, though, I think, Anna. They wouldn’t look half as pretty.”
When it came, the knock on the door made both girls jump. “We’ll be with you in a moment,” called Aibreann. She gave Anna a hug and an encouraging smile. “You look amazing. Never forget your worth, Anna. They might have titles and wealth, but you have power beyond their imagining.”
Anna held her head high and did her best to remind her legs to glide rather than flounder once they had to move. Her confidence lasted only until Aibreann opened the door. Three guards stood to attention, all eyes boring into hers. She recognised them. They’d been the first guards she’d met outside the library. The woman was the one who’d laughed at her. The man on the right was the one who’d said, ‘It’s her.’ She knew she was in no danger right at that moment. Why then were her knees shaking so hard they were all but knocking together?
The guards rearranged themselves as the Shaper joined them. She stood in the middle of a triangle that towered over her. She tried to do as Aibreann had told her. She tried to glide. She tried to keep her head high. She was coping until they started to come across servants. The first pressed herself against the wall, closed her eyes and wept. The second dropped a pitcher and ran back the way he’d come. The guards adjusted their march around the broken pottery but kept up their pace. Anna was almost skipping to keep up with their long legs. The third servant’s genuflection and ardent praying was the last straw.
“This is ridiculous!” Anna cried. She stopped dead and looked at the man on his knees. “Get up!” she begged him. “Get up! For light’s sake, please, get up!”
The female guard touched her arm. “He won’t listen. Come on,” she said, pulling gently. “King Rybis is waiting.”
“Why is it you three who are taking me there?” Anna asked, stubbornly refusing to move from her spot.
“We volunteered. We reckoned that you had your chance to do your worst and all that happened was we woke up with a wee headache.” The guard shrugged. “We think you’re all right. Could use someone like you on our side.” The other guards grunted their agreement.
“Thank you,” Anna answered, her voice humble. “Do you think we could walk a bit slower though, please? I’ve been told to glide and it’s impossible if I have to half run to keep up. I’m sure I’m going to lose my slippers too.”
The guards stifled a laugh. “Of course, Miss Northcott. No problem at all.”
Anna did her best to ignore the others they came across. Clearly the old stories were popular in the servant’s quarters.
They were at the huge double doors into the Great Hall all too soon. The guards on duty made them wait while one bashed his gauntleted fist on a metal plate set into the right-hand door. The sound was deafening. Anna jumped with each crash. She had to get herself under control. How she wished mama was there. The thought of her mother triggered a host of memories: her face, her songs, her laugh, her silliness when Anna needed cheering up. She found her fears temporarily abated and a smile broke over her face just as the door was opened.
The King sat alone on a raised platform. Before him were two long tables with a solitary chair between them. The six Councillors in attendance sat at the table to his right. The Shaper’s travelling companions sat with a young, red-haired man at the table on his left.
Finn, Spider and Sy turned to see Anna looking stunning in her new dress, her hair swept back and her birthmark on full show. Her smile when the doors first opened had lit up her face. They each gave her an encouraging nod and returned her smile.
Lady Braxton turned to see Anna aglow with white fire. She inhaled sharply. The girl’s power was extraordinary. She checked and double checked for the minuscule golden stamp on her heart. It was there. Spider and Aibreann spoke the truth. The girl had sworn for the King.
General Braxton heard his wife inhale and swallowed hard. All he could see was a young woman in a pretty dress with a pretty smile. “Well?” he whispered. His wife nodded and he felt a knot of tension ease in his stomach.
Lords Cassidy and Edevan sat stiffly, determined to obey the King, but equally determined to protect him from this snake dressed in beaded skirts. Their eyes were fastened on the Shaper’s birthmark, waiting for it to glow. Their right hands sat loosely on the pommels of the swords they’d insisted they wear.
Lady Kuri, the Quorum of Gifted’s representative on the King’s Council, was itching to let fly with her gift. She couldn’t believe that this slip of a girl could repel it. The King could not have tried hard enough. She was always warning him he was too soft.
Lord Witheridge didn’t notice the Shaper’s arrival. He was fully engrossed in a particularly tricky mathematics problem he was having trouble with.
Finn’s younger brother, Conal, saw Anna and felt shame. He had failed in his aura attack on her yesterday, yes, but worse than that, he had been caught unawares by her retaliation and she was just a young girl, not even trained if Finn was to be believed. He must do better if he was to be of any use to the King. He wondered if the Shaper would mind practising with him.
Davy, the youngest of the three Braxton brothers, was standing on a windowsill hidden behind a curtain at the far side of the room. He peeked through a carefully made slit in the fabric and wondered what all the fuss was about. She was just a girl.
Seleste looked exactly as she always did: emotionless. Inside the tightly controlled body and aura she was thinking about the potential difficulties in assassinating a
Shaper. She needed to get into the library. She must know the Shaper’s weaknesses.
“Come!” boomed the regal voice.
Anna walked forward, her eyes on King Rybis. The crash of the closing doors made her start. She kept her footing, but her glide was long gone. She sank into a deep curtsey and held the position until the King told her to rise. She blessed Aibreann with all her heart. She’d have made a complete mess of it without her tuition.
The King nodded to Lord Cassidy. He walked forward and made a small bow to the King then turned to Anna. “Miss Northcott, you are brought here to explain the events of yesterday. Will you answer our questions with the complete and unsullied truth?”
Anna curtsied to Lord Cassidy and looked him straight in the eyes before answering. “I will, milord.”
“Miss Northcott, you should be aware that Lady Braxton will be Reading you throughout your testimony. Any falsehood or use of your gift will be viewed with extreme disfavour. The guards are on full alert to barricade the exits if harm befalls any member of this panel.”
“I understand, milord.”
“Then please be seated.”
Anna took the solitary seat. She felt like a caged animal on show in an eating house: as if the highest bidder would get to have her grilled or roasted for dinner. Her heartbeat started to race so she took some slow breaths to control it. She refused to be beaten by nerves. She’d done nothing wrong. She’d not known the attack was false. She’d not known it was the King.
Lord Edevan’s voice boomed from her left. “I repeat, please tell the panel your name and occupation.”
“My apologies for my distraction, milord. My name is Anna Northcott and my most recent occupation was Healer’s assistant. I left that role when my mother, the Healer, died.”
