The Rogue Knight (18 page)

“I just got to town,” Skye said. “My caravan was attacked by the Rogue Knight.”

“Ah,” Lady Madeline said. “All is clear. You are famously successful and came here to turn over a new leaf, but the Rogue Knight took all your money, so you need an enormous loan to tide you over. You didn't happen to discover his identity?”

“No, Mother.”

Lady Madeline shook her head. “If you're going to be a spy, child, at least learn your trade.”

“I'm not a spy,” Skye said.

“Of course not,” Lady Madeline patronized. “You're a revolutionary. One of those invisible people. I considered ‘spy' a kinder term than ‘criminal' or ‘traitor.' How would you prefer me to label you?”

“For starters, I'm your daughter,” Skye said.

Lady Madeline shook her head sadly. “I am too literal to pretend. If you wish for me to view you as my daughter, you must act the part. I gave up any hope of that long ago.”

Cole stole a glance at Jace. His friend widened his eyes to convey astonishment. Lady Madeline seemed like the harshest mom ever! Why did Skye think she might help them?

Lady Madeline looked Cole's way. “I see you brought along some of your fellow anarchists. Is it just me, or are your cohorts getting younger and younger? What would their poor mothers say about you keeping them up so long past their bedtimes?”

“This is Cole and Jace,” Skye said. “They have no parents. I've hired them as servants. They were with the ambushed caravan.”

“Hired orphans?” Lady Madeline exclaimed, eyebrows rising. “What luck! I suppose parents prove inconvenient when you pay children to overhear conversations and peep through windows. But relatives needn't always function as barriers. Lady Fink's daughter, Emilia, is expecting a child. Should I inform them that you are recruiting?”

“Thanks for your understanding,” Skye said. “Your mockery is exactly what we all needed after being robbed.”

“I was merely commenting on your life, dear,” Lady Madeline said. “If it comes across as ridicule, perhaps you should reassess your choices.”

Skye sighed wearily. “My involvement in the resistance has only led to hardship. I came here looking for honest employment. I hope to find work at the Silver Lining.”

Laying a hand on her bosom, Lady Madeline leaned her head back for a prolonged, joyless laugh. “If a confidence lounge has become your idea of honest work, let us pause to lament how far you have fallen.”

“The Silver Lining operates with approval from the champion, the alderman, and the High King,” Skye said. “Have you never crossed the threshold there? How many of your friends have abstained? The Silver Lining needs talented illusionists, and I'm one of the best.”

“You have talent,” Lady Madeline said sadly. “It only emphasizes your squandered potential. You could have had all the right people on your side. Instead, you willfully made enemies of them. Do I believe for one instant that you have changed? We both know the Silver Lining is where revolutionaries go to die. Like moths drawn to a bonfire, they are lured in by a lust for secrets, and they are inevitably destroyed. If you go to work at the Silver Lining, you'll end up in Blackmont Castle before the week is out.”

Her harsh attitude about the Silver Lining made Cole anxious, though he tried not to show it. Skye didn't think they could reach Dalton without her mother's aid, but Lady Madeline didn't seem willing to help them. They were so close! Would they be defeated here, in a stuffy parlor in the middle of the night?

“I want to interview for employment there,” Skye said. “My reputation was bad at Wenley, and not good in Carthage, but here I can use my actual name and wear my true face.”

“In other words, there are no warrants for your arrest in Merriston,” Lady Madeline scoffed. “No bounties on your head. Not yet, at any rate. Nobody trusts you, Skye. Your reputation is spoiled.”

“Not with everyone,” Cole said, unable to contain himself.

Lady Madeline regarded him coolly. “Your opinions hardly count if you're paid to have them. Don't forget that you're also paid to hold your tongue when in the presence of your betters.”

“It's all right, Cole,” Skye said. “You don't need to defend me. Mother, are you saying Gustus wouldn't consider me?”

“I could set up an interview for you with Gustus at my leisure,” Lady Madeline said. “He might even hire you. But it would only be to put you under constant watch. You will enter to spy, but the opposite will happen. All your dealings will be laid bare to them. It would be the end of you.”

Skye approached her mother and took one of her hands in both of hers. “Mother, listen. I need your help. An interview with Gustus is important to me right now. I'm no novice. I'm not going to try to beat the owners of the Silver Lining at their own game. But I am strongly considering a return to Merriston. An interview with Gustus will teach me volumes about my standing here.”

“You don't need an interview for that,” Lady Madeline said. “I do not overstate the matter when I say your reputation is utterly ruined. Using your true identity, you would be under surveillance every hour of the day and night. You might even be detained on sight. Were you really assaulted by the Rogue Knight? Will that outrageous tale be confirmed?”

“I was,” Skye said. “Those two boys both took up arms against him. He left them with their lives. The Rogue Knight stripped me of promissory notes and cash amounting to over three hundred platinum ringers. I still have major holdings in Carthage, though they are under assumed names.”

“Three hundred platinum!” Lady Madeline exclaimed. “Did you plunder the hoard of some pirate king?”

“If you must know, I ran a successful dazzle show.”

Groaning, Lady Madeline covered her eyes. “Skylark! I would prefer a dozen spies to an entertainer.”

“She's really good,” Cole said. “The best. You should have heard the people applaud!”

“You certainly have support from the hired orphan.” Lady Madeline moaned. She placed a hand to her forehead. “Skylark, I don't believe I can take much more.”

“I used assumed identities,” Skye said.

“You must have, or else I would already be the laughingstock of Elloweer. Child, how could you?”

“Sometimes we do what we must to survive,” Skye said. “And sometimes we do what we must because of what we believe. Do you truly love the High King, mother?”

“What does it matter?” Lady Madeline exclaimed. “The sun shines. Sometimes it burns too hot, sometimes it bothers the eyes, but it is a reality of life, and so we live beneath its glare and seek shade and shelter as needed. The High King rules. He is not perfect, he sometimes elevates buffoons, he indulges his vanity on occasion, but this is the world we live in. Why not prosper in spite of him? Must he become an excuse to destroy ourselves?”

“Some people can turn a blind eye to what's wrong in the world,” Skye said. “Some people cannot. I have my flaws, Mother, but I can honestly tell you that I try to do what I think is right.”

“You are a bothersome child,” Lady Madeline said. “You need fewer opinions and more practicality.”

“I need an interview with Gustus,” Skye said. “I want to bring my two young servants with me. They could help out behind the scenes at the Silver Lining.”

“Far behind the scenes, I hope,” Lady Madeline said. “Wearing gags.”

“We're right here,” Cole said.

Lady Madeline ignored him. Setting her cane aside, she patted her daughter's hand. “I fear that Gustus would gladly give you enough rope with which to hang yourself.”

“What I do with it may surprise him,” Skye said.

“I take it I will have no peace until I grant you this favor,” Lady Madeline said.

“None,” Skye said. “I must have the interview.”

“At least you're not begging for money,” Lady Madeline said. “Or trying to interact with my friends.” She shivered theatrically.

“Thank you, Mother,” Skye said.

“Thanks,” Cole added sincerely. He had been braced for Lady Madeline to reject their request. They were going to find Dalton! It was actually happening! How long would it take before they came face-to-face?

“Thank me with your silence,” Lady Madeline scolded Cole, fanning herself. She turned to address Skye again. “Am I to understand that you and your stalwart footmen expect to sleep here tonight?”

“If it isn't too much trouble,” Skye said.

“It is far from ideal, but I can hardly throw you out,” she replied. “You know where to find the guest rooms. Try not to advertise your presence. I will send a message to Gustus in the morning. It normally takes months to earn a response from him. Expect an interview by the afternoon. I hope you know what you're doing, Skylark.”

Skye kissed her mother on the cheek. “So do I.”

C
HAPTER

 18 

THE SILVER LINING

L
ate the following morning, Cole, Jace, and Skye climbed out of a hired coach and onto a shabby street corner. They all wore new clothes that had been dropped by the townhouse late that morning, and Skye carried a written invitation. She looked prim in a white blouse and tweed skirt. Cole and Jace wore buttoned shirts, pressed trousers, and brown leather shoes.

Skye led the way to an alley between a run-down pawnshop and a moneylender. Iron grates guarded the windows of both businesses. The cobblestone roadway was knobby enough that Cole worried about turning an ankle.

As they reached the entrance of the alley, a pair of tough guys detached from the wall to bar the way. One of them wore a flat cap and had a pronounced underbite. The other had a wide scar that curved from below one ear to his upper lip.

“Nice folks don't go this way,” said the guy with the underbite. He kept both hands in his pockets.

“None of us are nice,” Skye replied.

The thugs parted to let them pass. Cole hurried after Skye, keeping his eyes on the uneven cobblestones.

The first stretch of the alley curved. When it straightened, Cole saw that it ran onward for an unrealistic distance, shrinking to nothing before an end came into view. Merriston was a large city, but Cole didn't think it was big enough to contain this alley.

“No way,” Jace said.

“Illusion,” Skye replied. “If we go too far, we'll step through false ground and into a pit filled with spikes. Or something equally delightful.”

Cole noticed Jace slowed his pace, keeping Skye and Cole a little ahead of him. He hadn't survived so many Sky Raider missions by being stupid.

The rough walls of the alley, constructed from fitted stone blocks, soared unusually high on both sides, with no doors or windows. Ivy spilled down from the top in some places. Skye held her invitation in one hand, glancing at it as they walked.

“Do you have a map on there?” Cole asked.

“No map,” she said. “But as we approached the alley, the card told me what to say when those thugs asked for the password. Mother suggested I keep it handy.”

“What are we looking for?” Cole asked.

“This leads to a service entrance,” Skye said. “I bet sections of these walls are false. There must be many hidden defenses. We've already passed a few scrubbers. We're almost certainly being watched.”

Cole decided not to talk too much if they might be overheard. Most of this mission would be played by ear. The Silver Lining was only open in the evenings, and through the night. Since the confidence lounge was currently closed, the workers were either sleeping, relaxing, studying, or doing behind-the-scenes chores. Cole, Jace, and Skye would poke their noses into as many places as possible in the hope of coming across Dalton.

Cole could barely believe he was about to see his best friend. Dalton would be so surprised. Cole wondered how he would have felt if Dalton had just shown up one day to rescue him from the Sky Raiders. It was too mind-blowing to really imagine.

Skye stopped. “See?” She held up the invitation. All it had on it was an arrow pointing left. “This just appeared.”

Turning left, Skye experimentally pushed a hand through the wall. They passed through the seeming into a dim, narrow stairwell that descended to an iron door. Cole noticed that the arrow vanished from the invitation and a quote appeared: “Nobody else deserves me.”

A string dangled from a small hole in the door. Skye tugged it, and a bell clanged. A moment later, a peephole slid open. “Why should we let you in?” a man asked.

“Nobody else deserves me,” Skye replied.

The door opened. They passed a few armed guards and reached a second iron door. A guard there tapped an elaborate rhythm on the door with a small hammer. It opened, and they kept going.

They walked up a staircase and into a lovely courtyard. Flamingos waded in a dark, shallow pond. Trees with deeply grooved bark grew in fancifully contorted shapes. Dressed in togas, lovely women and handsome men roamed winding paths, softly playing a variety of instruments. The area smelled of moss and damp grass.

A woman with metallic golden skin and vibrant orange eyes approached them. “Skye Ryland?” she asked.

“Yes,” Skye replied, showing the invitation. “Along with my two young friends.”

“Please follow me,” the woman said. They crossed the courtyard to a heavy wooden door and entered a grand hall full of large portraits. Cole saw a few people walking around, all dressed in gray robes. One was about his age.

None were Dalton.

They walked through an insubstantial fireplace full of blazing logs and into another hallway. After passing several doors, the woman showed them through a mirror at the end of the hall.

Cole found himself in a spacious office. The entire back wall was the side of an enormous aquarium where three white narwhals swam, horns shining like silver. At a desk before the aquarium sat a plump man, bald on top, but with long gray hair dangling along the edges. He seemed like a regular human except for his eyes—bulbous mounds with tiny holes at the peaks. They swiveled like a chameleon's.

The man rose as they entered. “Skye Ryland,” he said, opening his arms wide and smiling. “I never expected to see you here.”

“Hello, Gustus,” she said. “This is Cole and Jace.”

“Splendid boys, no doubt,” he said without a trace of sincerity. “The last time I saw you, I believe you were chased out of a party I attended.”

“Good memory,” Skye said.

“I understand you're looking for work?” he asked, coming around to stand in front of his desk.

“That's right,” Skye said.

“Imagine my surprise when Lady Madeline contacted me this morning,” he said. “I used to drop hints about you coming to work for me. Those advances never drew any interest.”

“Many choices are determined by timing,” Skye said.

Gustus leaned back against his desk. “Interesting thought. Why reach out to me now? Common knowledge has you involved with revolutionaries.”

“I've lived a little,” Skye said. “Learned some hard lessons. I want something stable. I want to work on my enchanting. I could be useful here. My abilities have increased.”

Gustus wagged a finger at her. “That I believe. I'm not concerned about your talent. I'm more interested in your motives. I'd hate for your dear mother to suffer another blow. You'll get eaten alive if you think you can use a position here to help the resistance. Absolutely skeletonized.”

“I didn't come to you when I was involved with those people,” Skye said.

“Those people?” Gustus chuckled. “Am I to believe you've severed all ties, burned all bridges?”

“I've made some big changes in my life,” Skye said. “I'd be a fool to come here with an agenda.”

“It was foolish to come here at all,” Gustus said. “When I told Alderman Campos about the message from your mother, he almost posted guardsmen here to arrest you. We debated the issue for the better part of an hour. In the end, he became more interested in watching you. Not in the hope you'll prove you've mended your ways. He decided this move is so preposterous, it must be motivated by a tremendous need. A need none of us can guess. What game are you playing, Skye?”

“He can watch all he likes,” Skye said. “So can you. All you'll see is a first-class illusionist practicing her trade.”

Gustus rubbed a hand over his bald scalp. “Yes, yes, I suppose . . . I can't fathom what you would expect to gain. Neither can Campos. It's a recipe for curiosity. Up until this moment, you've practiced your spycraft with such aplomb. You had disappeared. You were truly unseen. And now you surface here. A neutral observer would call it a massive blunder.”

“Unless I'm serious,” Skye said. “Unless I have no hidden motives.”

“Wouldn't that be amusing?” Gustus said. “What about these boys?” His bulging eyes swiveled to regard Cole and Jace. “Are they talented?”

“No,” Skye said. “They're my servants. I'm fond of them. We're a package deal.”

“Which of you is Cole?” Gustus asked enthusiastically.

“I am,” Cole said, on his guard even more because of the friendly attitude.

“What is she up to?” Gustus asked chummily.

“She wants a job here,” Cole said.

“What has she been doing?”

“Not much,” Cole said.

“What do you do for her?”

“I help out,” Cole said. “I serve her meals. I get the door.”

Gustus walked over to Cole and crouched forward, his chameleon eyes twitching out of sync with each other. “There is a hint of shaping ability about you,” he said. “Something . . . odd. I don't recognize it.”

“Neither do I,” Cole said truthfully.

Gustus turned to Jace. “Tell me why Skye is really here, and I will make you rich beyond your wildest imaginings.”

“I've worked for some wealthy people,” Jace said. “And I have a good imagination.”

“I'll give you enough to live comfortably for the rest of your days. She can't punish you here. Tell me what I want to know and you're set for life.”

“Really?” Jace asked.

“Yes.”

Jace shrugged. “Easiest money I've ever made. She's here for a job.”

Gustus stared at him shrewdly. “You profess there is no other motive?”

“Yes.”

“Give it five years. If Skye remains true, I'll owe you. Fair?”

“It was a big promise for such an easy question,” Jace said. “I can wait.”

“Or you can visit me privately,” Gustus said. “If you have good information, my offer still stands. It's up to you.” He went to Skye. “Your servants are not useless. Neither boy was completely forthright with me, that much was plain, but I'm not sure what they're hiding. Not bad for young ones.”

“You see deception wherever you look,” Skye said.

“As long as I look at people,” Gustus replied. “Surely you grasp why some might question your motives. If you had been imprisoned and then made this offer, I'd be more inclined to believe you, though less eager to grant the request.”

“Does this mean I get the job?” Skye asked.

“Of course I'll hire you,” Gustus said. “You're plenty qualified, and I'm infinitely curious to learn what this is really about.” He licked his lips, eyes stretching. “It's hard to resist a good intrigue.”

“Before I agree,” Skye said, “I want to see where I'll be working, know how I'll be compensated, and meet some of my fellow enchanters. I take it you provide accommodations?”

“The staff all live here,” Gustus said. “We're a tight-knit family.”

“When can I start?” Skye asked.

“I'd prefer immediately,” Gustus said.

“Not today,” Skye said. “I have to say some good-byes and set some affairs in order. Tomorrow could work, if I like the accommodations and your terms.”

“Take care what affairs you manage,” Gustus said. “Many eyes will be watching.”

“And the boys?” Skye asked.

Gustus went and stood between Jace and Cole. “You two want to live and work here?”

“If Skye does,” Cole said.

“I'd be your boss,” Gustus explained. “You'd take orders from some of my underlings. Not from her.”

“I want to make sure I like it here,” Jace said.

“Have a look around with Skye,” Gustus said. “Only fair. Incidentally, without enchanting talent, it's very competitive to be even the lowest servant here. We only hire the sharpest people from the best families in Elloweer.”

“They won't disappoint,” Skye promised.

“Make no mistake,” Gustus said, looking from Cole to Jace and back. “Skye is your ticket in here. Whether you stay is up to you. Follow orders, work hard, be courteous, and you'll do fine.”

“Thank you,” Cole said, silently hoping they were almost done. It felt ridiculous to jump through all these hoops when he knew they didn't actually plan on staying any longer than it took to find Dalton. Cole had waited a long time to see his friend again, and now that they were so close, every second of delay was torture.