The Assassins of Altis (21 page)

They reached a short walk ending at a vivid green door to a modest, two-story town home standing wedged between its neighbors. Mari came to a total halt, staring at the door, her arm shaking in his, her face rigid. “Mari?” Alain asked, thinking that she looked as upset as she had when he had told her she was the daughter.

Mari glanced at him with a jerky movement of her head, then breathed deeply and slowly in an obvious attempt to calm herself. Alain began walking and after an initial resistance Mari followed, her arm clamped on his now. Reaching the door, Alain let go of Mari’s arm, then gestured toward the door. “I am here, but this is your moment. I am beside you, but you must do this.” Since his Mage training led him to be impassive in the face of stress without always realizing it, Alain made sure he showed a smile to reassure her.

Mari stood there for another moment, looking as nervous as Alain had ever seen her, even counting the time a dragon had been chasing them in Dorcastle. She reached a decision, pulling off her commons coat, then diving down into her pack to haul out her Mechanics jacket and put it on. Settling the jacket on her, squaring her shoulders and brushing back her hair with both hands, Mari took one more deep breath and then rapped firmly on the emerald-green door, the sound of the knocks echoing down the quiet street.

Several moments passed before a middle-aged woman opened the door, her eyes taking in the dark Mechanics jacket and then lowering their gaze respectfully. Looking at her, Alain could see the tension in this woman, too, though hers was a barely repressed hostility. He could also see the ways in which Mari resembled her, not least in the raven-black hair which on the older woman now showed streaks of gray. “Yes, Lady Mechanic?” the woman said in a formal and cold voice which also betrayed to the Mage enormous resentment and anger.

Mari was unable to speak for a moment, visibly trembling and blinking rapidly. She swallowed, then got out one word in a whisper. “Mommy?”

Alain heard the little-girl sound in Mari’s voice, her use of the child’s term for her mother, and knew that an eight-year-old girl was finally speaking again to the mother she had lost more than a decade before.

The woman froze, then drew in a ragged breath. She looked up, hope warring with disbelief in her expression, finally gazing directly at Mari’s face. “Mari? Is it really you?”

“Mommy!” Mari gasped again. She threw her arms around the woman, who after only a moment’s hesitation gripped Mari with equal fervor, sudden tears wetting her face as Mari managed to speak a few more words. “Oh, Mommy, I’m so sorry.”

Seeing tears running down Mari’s own cheeks, Alain took a step away. His work was done and he thought this was what Mari would call a private moment. “I will keep watch outside while you—”

“You’ll do nothing of the kind!” Mari interrupted through her tears, taking one hand away from her mother long enough to drag Alain back. “You’ll come inside and share this joyous moment you caused to happen!”

Joyous?
Alain wondered, seeing the amount of tears flowing from both women. But he yielded to Mari’s grasp, coming along as her mother led the way inside.

Once the door was closed, the two women stood looking at each other. Mari’s mother reached out one hand to touch her daughter’s face. “It’s been so long.”

Mari’s face twisted in misery. “They lied to me. I was too young to know what they were doing. I thought you didn’t care. I never got any letters. You never got any of my letters, did you?”

“You sent letters?” Her mother’s eyes spilled tears again. “I knew it. I knew you must have tried to send letters. For ten years I have believed that and now I know I was right.”

“How can you ever forgive me?” Mari whispered. “I didn’t know what they had done, but I should have tried to talk to you before now. I am so, so sorry, Mommy.”

“Did you think I couldn’t forgive my own daughter? Even if you had been at fault?” Mari’s mother wiped tears from her face with both hands. “And I believe you that you weren’t at fault, that you didn’t know what they had done.”

“I thought horrible things about you. I thought…I thought…” Mari shook her head, quivering with sobs. “I’m so sorry.”

“Come sit down, Mari.” A smile lit her mother’s face. “How long have I dreamed of saying that again? And here you are at last.”

Mari and her mother walked a short distance to the left into a front room with a couch and chairs. Alain followed, even though he felt at the moment as if he were using his invisibility spell, so thoroughly were the two women focused on each other.

Mari and her mother sat close to each other, their knees almost touching. Mari took a shuddering breath. “Can you really forgive me?”

“Of course I can, Mari.” Her mother sighed. “Just to be able to say your name and not feel an ache of loss is so wonderful. I see you are a Mechanic now, and I know you can’t spend much time with common folk, but—”

“No!” Mari leaned forward, her face working with emotion. “You’re my family. I was lied to and deceived into thinking the Guild was my family, but now I know how terrible a lie that all was, and I will never reject you again.” Mari wiped her nose. “I must look like a mess. I’m sorry. We had a very difficult trip here, what with fighting the Mages and their troll in Palandur and then having to jump off the train and evade Imperial patrols and police, and then my Guild captured us and we had to just about sink the ship to escape and steal a lifeboat to get to this island.”

Her mother just stared at Mari, then shook her head. “It seems we have even more catching up to do than I had expected. Wait. We.” She finally looked at Alain. “My manners. I’m Eirene, Mari’s mother. But you already know that, don’t you?”

Alain inclined his head toward her. “I am Alain. Alain of Ihris.”

Mari leaned in toward him and held Alain’s arm. “I wouldn’t be here if not for Alain. He’s the one who realized that my Guild had deceived me about you, and he gave me the strength to come here despite my fears. And…well, he’s also saved my life a few times. I mean, literally, he’s saved my life.”

Eirene turned a wondering look on Alain. “How can I ever repay you?”

Mari laughed. “That’s one of the first things I said to him, too. Oh, Mommy…Mother. I need to call you Mother. Is that all right? There’s been so much I need to tell you about.”

“The journey here seems to have had enough to talk about for days,” her mother replied. “Mages? Trolls?”

“One troll,” Alain said.

“I knew Mages hated Mechanics, but I didn’t know they still attacked them.” Eirene frowned. “But you also said your Guild captured you. Are you in trouble with your Guild?”

Mari bent her head. “You might say that.”

“But you’re a Mechanic.”

Alain spoke again. “A Master Mechanic. The youngest one in the history of her Guild.”

Eirene’s face lit with pride. “That’s my girl. But why would your Guild—?”

“Mother, I am not exaggerating in the least when I say that if I told you why my Guild is angry with me, if I told you the things I have learned, it could result in your own death.” Mari clenched her fists, staring at the floor. “It’s not my Guild now.”

Her mother reached out to clasp one of Mari’s fists in her own hand. “Whatever has happened, you are family. Your father will be so happy to see you again. He won’t get home until sunset, but—”

Mari gave her mother an anguished look. “We can’t wait that long. Not nearly that long. It would be far too dangerous for you.”

“It’s that bad?” Eirene asked. “It’s fortunate that I wasn’t teaching today, if your visit must be short. But if the danger is so great, maybe we shouldn’t tell Kath about this.”

“Kath?”

“Your little sister. Kath was born the year after you were taken from us. I was already carrying her when you were taken, though I didn’t know it yet.”

“My little sister?” Mari seemed ready to cry again. “I have a little sister? I never knew…where is she?”

“At schooling. She should be home soon. But if it’s so dangerous…”

Mari turned a pleading look on Alain. “It would be all right to see her, wouldn’t it?”

“I believe so,” Alain answered. He had his doubts about the wisdom of bringing Mari’s newfound little sister in on the secret of their visit, but Mari obviously wanted very badly to see her.

Eirene sighed again, heavily this time. “Mari, you need to know that Kath doesn’t think much of her big sister. Kath believes you abandoned us. She has taken that very hard.”

“I don’t blame her for that.” Mari shuddered with anger. “I’m going to change things, Mother. I don’t know all of the details yet, but once I get some more data I’m going to make some decisions and change things so no more little girls or boys get torn from their families. Not ever again. The Great Guilds will not be allowed to continue that, or a lot of other things. I’m going to stop them.”

Her mother’s face reflected amazement. “Stop the Great Guilds? Mari, you sound like the daughter of—” The door slammed open.

Mari was on her feet and had her pistol out in a heartbeat, leveling the weapon at the door.

Alain had stood, his right hand before him, already preparing to draw power for a spell, his left hand gripping the Mage knife he had drawn from beneath his jacket.

A young girl stared back at them.

Eirene got up slowly, her hands out in a calming gesture. “Kath, please close the door. Don’t say anything. It’s all right. Just close the door quietly.”

The girl’s stare went to her mother. Then she nodded, turned with slow movements and closed the door softly.

Mari, looking embarrassed, had returned her weapon to its place under her jacket. Alain relaxed himself, returning the Mage knife to its sheath under his coat, then stood waiting.

“Kath, come here,” Eirene said gently. “Do you know who this is, Kath?” she asked, gesturing toward Mari.

The girl stared at Mari and her face hardened, going from anxiety to anger. “No. She’s just some Mechanic.”

“This is your big sister, Kath. This is Mari.”

“I don’t have a big sister!”

Mari took a step forward, her face working again with emotion. “Kath—”

“Don’t you say my name!” Kath yelled furiously. “You have no right! Not after what you did!”

Eirene came forward, too, her voice soothing. “Kath, please listen—”

“Listen? Mother, I’ve spent my entire life watching how sad it made you whenever anyone mentioned her, or whenever you thought about her. I’ve spent my whole life listening to how sad you and Father were whenever you talked about it. This…this…Lady Mechanic hurt you! How can you even let her in our house?”

Mari tried again. “Kath, I didn’t know—”

“I thought Mechanics knew everything! Well, you don’t! There’s a lot you don’t know, and when the daughter of Jules gets to Caer Lyn I hope she—”

“Kath!” Eirene’s voice cut across the room like the crack of a whip and Kath finally subsided, looking worriedly at her mother. “You know you are never to speak of such things, you know how dangerous it is to talk about them, especially in front of a Mech—” She bit off the last word. “I’m sorry, Mari.”

“No,” Mari replied. “You’re right. Saying that in front of a Mechanic, another Mechanic that is, would be very dangerous. Please, Kath, listen to your mother…” Mari gave Eirene a stunned look. “I mean, listen to our mother. I don’t want you to be hurt.”

“Then why—” Kath began, anger rising again.

“Quiet, young lady!” Eirene ordered. “You will listen now. Mari was eight years old when she was taken from us, just a little girl younger than you, and that Guild lied to her and deceived her and made her believe that we had cut her off. They kept all of our letters from her and they kept all of her letters from us. Mari has spent ten years believing that we wanted nothing to do with her. We are not the only ones who were hurt.”

Kath stared at Mari again. “You still could have tried.”

Mari nodded. “You’re right. And I should I have tried. But I was too scared,” she said in a small voice. “Too scared of what I might find if I came here. If it hadn’t had been for Alain…” She gestured toward him and smiled.

Off balance, Kath focused on Alain. “Who is he? Another Mechanic?”

It was Eirene’s turn to be uncertain. “I don’t know if he is or not. Mari and I were so busy talking to each other that I didn’t ask about her friend. I suppose he is another—”

Alain bowed slightly toward Eirene. “I am not a Mechanic.”

“Oh,” Kath said. “So you’re her servant? The great and wonderful Lady Mechanic can’t go anywhere without a servant to attend to her.”

“I am servant to no one.” Alain looked at Mari and saw her flinch, then nod reluctantly. “I am a Mage.”

The room went totally silent, Eirene and Kath gaping at Alain. He could feel no other Mages anywhere nearby, so Alain risked a tiny spell, creating a very small ball of heat and then on a whim pointing his finger at a candle on the table next to Kath as he directed the ball of heat to be there. The wick of the candle burst into flame and Kath flinched back, staring at the candle as if it were a snake preparing to strike.

Mari took a quick step toward Alain, seizing his arm. “Mother, it’s true that Alain is a Mage, but he is not—”

“A Mage?” Eirene asked, her voice dazed and dismayed.

“He’s not like other Mages, Mother!” Mari cried desperately. “He is honest, he is brave, and he is kind. I know this. I would be dead by now if not for him. I told you that. The first time we met he saved my life.”

Alain looked over at Mari. “I recall that you saved my life first.”

“Fine! We saved each other. The point is, Mother, this is a very good man. This is the most wonderful man I ever met, and he treats me with all of the respect and concern I could ever ask for. Please get to know him before you judge him.”

“Mari,” her mother said, “the way you’re talking about him. It almost sounds as if—”

Mari’s grip on Alain’s arm tightened. “I love him. He loves me. We haven’t exchanged promises yet, but we’re engaged to be wed.”

Eirene’s eyes widened, then she didn’t so much sit down as fall into the nearest chair. “A Mage?” she whispered. “You want to marry a Mage, Mari?”

“He’s different, Mother! Please get to know him, please trust me,” Mari pleaded.

Kath had finally taken some steps forward, gazing at Alain. “You don’t look like other Mages.”

Alain bowed to her. “I am not like other Mages. Mari has given me back my feelings, and my life.”

“Do you really love Mari?” Kath asked.

“Yes, I do.”

“Isn’t your Guild mad about that?”

Alain nodded. “My Guild seeks my death.”

“Oh, wow.” Kath looked at Mari. “What about your Guild? Aren’t the other Mechanics upset?”

“Yes, Kath,” Mari said dejectedly. “The Mechanics Guild is very unhappy with me. They’re trying to capture me. We narrowly escaped them on our way here.”

A big smile slowly spread across Kath’s face. “You’re on the run. Fleeing from your Guild because the man you love is a Mage. The two of you are giving up everything for each other! How incredibly romantic!”

Mari stared at her little sister in disbelief. “It is?”

“Oh, of course it is! You have to make sure they don’t stop you from marrying the man you love! I’ll bet you’ll get married in some hidden place deep in the Great Woods! Or maybe far Daarendi! Fleeing lovers go there all the time.”

Mari was laughing and Alain felt himself smiling, noticing Eirene watching him with wonderment. Mari looked from her mother and then back to her sister. “I haven’t really thought about where we’d get married, Kath. We just got engaged a short while ago.”

“The important thing is not to get caught,” Kath cautioned.

“I will remember that, Kath,” Mari replied, her lips quivering as she suppressed another laugh.

“What if they catch you? Can you defend yourself? You pointed something at me when I came in. Was it a Mechanic weapon?”