Temple of the Traveler: Empress of Dreams (28 page)

About four hours past midnight, the loading was done, and he was finally tired enough to sleep in the narrow ship’s bunk.

****

The goat dung was the hardest to get out of Anna’s hair. Once she was finally clean, she wanted to sleep in the hammock; however, Sarajah kept crooning in her ear, “I can’t help if you don’t tell me your side. Let’s start about the charges. Are you married?”

“Pagaose—”

“I didn’t ask about him; I asked about you,” said the green-eyed woman softly, as she polished Anna’s nails.

“Baran, my fiancé, was the youngest of seven.”

“You were engaged for years, but since you were a bondservant, he couldn’t marry you.”

“Then he became the bearer of the Defender, and the Kragens tried to use me against him. The Executioners kept telling me he was never coming back. Baran wrote me a letter releasing me from our engagement and leaving me everything he had. It was a suicide note. The Togg family helped me escape to sea, but the dragon wrecked our ship. Only Kirak and I survived. Kirak looks a lot like Baran, and he saved my life. In the process, he was stabbed through the side with a wooden spar. We were marooned on this little island for a long time. I took care of him. Delirious with fever, he confessed that he’d been protecting me for years, and that he’d fallen in love with me.

“Can you believe it? Me? Now I had two men, both dead or dying.”

Sarajah stroked her face. “Everyone here sees how beautiful you are, inside and out.”

Anna snorted in disbelief. “Anyway, that tent on the shore was the happiest time I’ve had in my life.” Her tears flowed freely. “I’ve been a faithful follower of the Traveler all my life. I read the books even after the church was burned. It never occurred to me to seek pleasure the way other women did.”

“But?”

“When we were rescued, I had a dilemma. The monastery at Muro couldn’t let me land unless I was married. I couldn’t take care of Kirak unless I went to the monastery. He kept professing his undying love, and then he mentioned the rule in the Brotherhood where one brother could marry another brother’s widow. He said it could be in name only . . . just to allow the rescue.”

“That’s what you told yourself, but he felt differently.”

Anna sighed. “We had to share the same bed and I couldn’t leave the room for the monks to allow us sanctuary. He never pressured me, but three facts kept weighing on my mind. One: under the Brotherhood law, any child would take Baran’s name as father. I’d still be honoring him. Two: Kirak was the last of the Togg line, the only ones in the world carrying the Traveler’s blood. Three: this beautiful man died to save me; his body just didn’t know it yet. Seeing the way he looked at me, with all that love, day after day . . .” She sobbed so hard, Sarajah could hear the tears and extra water being sucked back in.

The seeress gave her a handkerchief and said, “It was the humane thing to do. You
were
married. I’m sure you gave him the greatest pleasure in his life.”

“The exertion killed him,” Anna wailed. “I killed the sweetest man in the world with my body.”

“You did everything you could. The dragon killed him. Humi Kragen killed him. You made him the happiest man alive. I’ll bet you anything he was smiling when he passed,” Sarajah said.

“The monks kicked me off the island. I had to get a job in Center to pay for his burial.”

“But his family was wealthy.”

“Everything that didn’t sink in the wreck or the other Togg wives didn’t take into the hills, the Brotherhood seized. I have less now than when I was a slave.”

“Pagaose cares for you.”

“I don’t love him. I help him because he’s the Traveler’s chosen emperor, but I won’t earn my living on my back, even if I don’t have my virtue anymore.”

“He’d never ask you to do that.”

Anna raised an eyebrow. “That’s what I thought until I caught Lady Evershade crawling out of his bedroom with some pretty convincing stories.”

“Why don’t we go confront Lady Evershade about these stories,” Sarajah suggested.

“Shouldn’t we wait until morning and ask her questions to trip her up?”

“Nah,” said the seeress. “I can smell magic rolling down the hall from her room. I figure I’ll just surprise her in the middle of the night and torture the truth out of her.”

Anna smiled. “That would be therapeutic.”

Sarajah put a cloak on over her harem robe. The cloak faded to the same beige color as the walls. Together, the two women crept out of the Pleasure Dome and into the palace. They halted at the first door, and Sarajah put her ear to it.

“Mmph. Yes, I’m a wicked vixen. Mmm. Oh. Again, sire.”

Anna took out her master key and unlocked the door. Opening it wide, the two saw Lady Evershade laying on the bed in a submissive posture, wearing only her frillies. Her hands gripped the bedpost as if tied there. She backed into the next lashing and whimpered as her body reacted to the unseen flogger. She was alone and asleep.

“In . . . teresting dreams,” remarked Anna.

The two visiting women stepped into the room, and Anna closed the door behind them.

“Yes, kiss it better.” She squirmed, climbing the bedpost with pleasure. “Gods, don’t stop there!” Lady Evershade shrieked when Sarajah threw the pitcher of water on her.

She could see the two intruders by the light of the Compass star. Gasping, Lady Evershade said, “Is this some kind of joke?”

“Do we look like we’re laughing? What was the dream about?” demanded Sarajah.

“I’m calling the guards,” spat the noblewoman.

Sarajah hit her in the throat with two fingers, and Lady Evershade made choking sounds. Closing the window and making a gag from the window sash, the seeress said, “Anna, hold her down. I’m checking for dragon marks.”

Anna smiled as the thinner, less-muscular woman struggled in vain. Sarajah searched her everywhere, even untying the frillies on each side to peek underneath. “No sign, but there has to be. I can feel lucid-dreaming energy all through this room.”

As the woman struggled, an orange fox hissed at Anna, snapping at her heels. “Ouch!”

Sarajah picked up the young fox by the scruff of the neck to stop the attack. Suddenly, Lady Evershade’s eyes got wide and she went still. She whimpered and shook her head when Sarajah held the fox closer for a better look.

“She’s afraid you’ll hurt it,” said Anna, climbing off the noblewoman.

Sarajah rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe you’re making me do this. If you call out again or fail to answer my questions truthfully . . . the cute little fox gets it.”

Lady Evershade nodded rapidly. She pulled her robe off the floor and donned it.

Anna turned her back and covered her face to hide the smile.

“Once again, what was the dream about?”

When she could speak again, Lady Evershade said, “His highness was wroth with me for sending Miss Anna away. He was whipping me with the tails of my own fox stole.”

“Doesn’t sound too painful.”

Lady Evershade smiled. “If you ride out the discomfort, his highness soon shifts from angry to
angry
.” When the other two women looked confused, she said, “He’s not cruel, and the sight of a nearly naked woman moves the wind to other places. When he slowed, I explained that my cousin is on the purity committee.”

“You made up the charges yourself?” asked Anna.

Lady Evershade glared at her. “No. I suppressed them until we could insert a backdated amendment to the Dance rules. It allows widows of good reputation, vouched for by the church of Osos, to join the Dance as virgins. Then my cousin trimmed as much as he could for the first release. There are other copies. The rest will come out later, but we did what we could.” Pulling the number-one ticket from the pocket of her robe, she returned it to Anna. “When his majesty heard this news, he began to kiss every injury he’d made with such affectionate gentleness that I trembled. But as per the rules of night visits, my virtue remained covered.” She pulled her robe to her chest and sighed.

“Too much information,” said Sarajah.

“You . . . helped me?” Anna said, stunned.

“I helped the Great Pagaose, long may he reign. You aren’t worthy to run his house.”

“By all the gods, you love him, don’t you?” Sarajah said.

Lady Evershade looked down and struggled not to weep.

“Does
he
know?” asked Anna.

“I told you; he gives me gifts, like Kitten. He takes souvenirs each day from my room: a feather from my dress, a lock of my hair, the tie to my robe.” The noblewoman’s voice trembled.

“That’s how he finds you each night,” Sarajah explained. “Does he know that the dreams are real for you?”

“Discussing night visits is against the Dance rules.”

Anna was curious. “Just how far can these night visits go?”

The noblewoman smiled. “I beat out thirty other women for the only first-tier husband. What do you think? The art is to always leave him wanting more.”

“Why don’t you just marry the emperor?” Anna complained. “The nobles would love it, and you two could visit your brains out.”

Lady Evershade bit her lip. “My daughter has been offered to him. Once something is given to the emperor, it cannot be taken back. A man may not lay with both a mother and a daughter. Since she is the superior breeding partner, the needs of the empire come first. Besides, there are rules against a woman with grown children marrying for a title: it clouds the succession, and the Council would never approve.”

“Then how did these dream visitations start?” asked Anna.

The noblewoman shrugged. “We both wanted the world to be different than it is. Sometimes desire can make a way where logic cannot.”

Sarajah turned her cloak brown and held it out. “Anna, what do the letters on the inside of my cape say?”

Anna said, “It’s all brown.”

Lady Evershade said, “She’s not Imperial. Clearly, in subtle shades of red and green, woven in the fabric, it says: ‘weaver of dreams.’”

“Oh crap, this changes things,” said the seeress.

“What?” asked the other two.

“Lady Evershade, do you use colors creatively a lot in your profession?”

“Yes, I blend cosmetics from sea-born ingredients. I also studied apothecary.”

“Crap,” exclaimed Sarajah. “Anna, we need to be alone for a while. Keep watch in the hall.”

“Are you going to beat another confession out of her?”

“No, I’m going to bring her onto our team.”

“You think we can trust her?”

“I think she’d do anything for the emperor.”

Lady Evershade said, “Don’t tell him, but I have already murdered the men responsible for the attempt on his life. I am selling my belongings to pay for his coronation. By spring, I will probably be ruined.”

“Wow,” Anna said, blinking. “Truce? I promise not to try to steal Pagaose, and you promise no more dung pelting?”

“Truce . . . if I can continue making his meals.”

“Sure. I have better things to do,” Anna admitted. “You’ve got it bad, lady.”

“Making love to a man is more than the bedroom, Miss Anna. You please him with everything you are. You enable him to become the greatest ruler possible. When he has a goal, nothing will prevent it.”

Swallowing hard, Anna backed to the door. “We have an understanding.”

“Not a word!” insisted the noblewoman.

“Not a problem. Frankly, I’m trying to scrub the images as we speak.”

When Anna was gone, Sarajah said, “That whole leaving Pagaose alone thing goes double for me. Tashi is my favored right now. I may not want to commit, but I’m loyal.”

“I accept your word as a noble.”

“Right . . . Let’s start with the test you just passed. It proves you’re a natural tetrachromatic.” When the other stared at her blankly, the seeress explained. “It’s an ancient word. It refers to women who can see a set of colors others can’t—usually artistic women. All the greatest dreamers in the Temple of Sleep had this trait, along with intelligence, creativity, and strong will. My handmaidens all did, as did my sisters and mother. It was why she adopted them.”

“What does that mean?” asked Lady Evershade.

Sarajah sighed and handed her the fox. It purred to be reunited. The noblewoman fussed over the creature like a lost child. “It means I have to train you in dream weaving or someone could get hurt. What you’re doing may seem like fun, but it can be addictive and harmful in the wrong hands.”

“You . . . want to help me?”

“I want to help Pagaose. First, I need to know what awakened your talents. Usually Serog has to bless my handmaidens. Tell me everything that’s happened since you met Pagaose.”

The noblewoman started. When she reached the fainting spell, the seeress pressed, “How did he wake you?”

“Cool water and a stone carving.”

“Crap. The Eog is dream material. Some of his mana was in the stone. When he removed your fear, something had to flow out from the stone: his sexual frustration and Serog’s loneliness. Serog is the greatest dream shaper of all time. You have her mana in you, along with Pagaose’s.”

“And he drank of my spirit when he slept,” deduced Lady Evershade. “We are mingled in the spirit.”

“Um . . . sort of.”

The noblewoman closed her eyes. “We will always be together on some level.”

“Yeah. The first thing we have to do is tell him what’s going on—let him know it’s real and consensual. First thing tomorrow morning, we tell him together.”

“After his morning workout with Sir Tashi. He’s been looking forward to it for weeks, and if he gets upset, it’ll ruin his harmony for the exercises.”

“Fine, we’ll approach him after the workout. Tonight, I have to teach you to enter and exit the dream realm. The Door is in the throne room, so we can practice there. Tomorrow, I’ll show you a simple exercise: how to find someone while they sleep. If anything happens to one of you, you can contact him. It may save his majesty’s life. If we have time, I’ll show you basic shaping—dream only, not your flesh. Too much can go wrong without Dawn guidance.”

“What is your price for this gift?”

“Um . . . I’ll think of something before we leave. Those things you did to get your husband sound interesting.”

“My flower training is not something I can relay in a single night, but I can watch Sir Tashi and give some suggestions. He must feel like he is the only one in the world to you.”