Authors: Sharon Shinn
“Here we are!” she announced, her voice too cheery. “Let’s go in and pull blessings.”
Foley helped them out of the carriage while the royal soldiers redistributed themselves in a loose ring around the temple. At least five of them were close enough to overhear when Melissande exclaimed, “There is a note on the door!” before she looked around guiltily, wondering what she might have betrayed.
“Oh, yes—it’s just reminding everyone that today is the women’s holiday, and no men are allowed inside,” Corene answered in a loud voice. In fact, she knew before she read it what the note would say in Leah’s clear, steady handwriting:
The temple will be closed for a few hours this morning to complete some minor repairs. Please visit us this afternoon.
She and Corene had devised this simple ruse as the best way to make sure no strangers were in the temple when the royal party arrived. The note was in Welchin, of course, which meant that the guards couldn’t read it, which meant that Corene could translate it however she wanted for their benefit.
Alette spoke up for almost the first time since they’d climbed in the carriage. “But
we
may enter,” she said, and pushed through the door.
Inside, the light was soft and inviting, and the place was empty except for two people—Leah and a young woman who was a complete stranger. She had Dhonshon coloring and was about Alette’s age, but otherwise the women didn’t look much alike. Her hair was shorter and curlier, her eyes were a pale green, and the shape of her face was rounder. And she didn’t wear Alette’s perpetual look of haunted sadness, but instead greeted them with an expression of delight and astonishment.
“This is Teyta. A friend of mine,” Leah said. “I don’t actually know everyone else’s name, but this is Corene and this is—”
“Best not to say it out loud,” Corene interposed.
“No need. Princess,” Teyta whispered, and made a complicated gesture that was clearly meant to denote great respect.
Alette shook her head and whipped off her yellow shawl. “Not today,” she answered.
Leah stepped between them. “Quickly,” she said. “I don’t know that we have much time. Even though the sign’s been up since dawn, people have been coming to the door and knocking all morning. I never realized how many people in this city wanted blessings.”
“Perhaps someone should guard the door, just in case,” Corene said. Melissande and Liramelli hurried over to lean their backs against it, their feet planted as if to resist the incursions of a whole army.
Corene paused to drop coins in the tithing box—a couple of quint-golds, far more than she’d usually donate, but today was a special occasion. They needed the blessings of all the elements.
Teyta and Alette didn’t waste any time. They both stripped down to nearly transparent underdresses and then swapped clothes, keeping only their own shoes. Corene had to admit that Alette looked much less
like herself when she was wearing Teyta’s outfit instead of her own. It was still brighter than the typical Malinquese ensemble, but a more sober blue shot through with streaks of green and yellow. Teyta had thoughtfully brought a thin, woven scarf in the same muted blue, and Alette draped this casually around her head and shoulders.
Teyta, meanwhile, looked every inch Dhonshon royalty in Alette’s flame-colored dress and sun-yellow scarf. The two women were about the same height and of similar build, though Teyta’s figure was more lush than Alette’s.
Because she hasn’t been on a steady diet of misery,
Corene thought.
When they were both fully dressed, Corene came over to study them. “Good,” she said. “I can’t believe what a difference the clothing makes.”
Leah’s gaze flicked between the two women. “The biggest difference is their eyes,” she decided. “The princess’s are so
blue
.”
“No one will notice that from a distance,” Alette said.
“No, but when we arrive at the palace, someone might,” Corene said. “Anyone we encounter in the hallways—”
“I’ll just pretend to be sick,” Teyta said, closing her eyes and swooning in Corene’s direction. “You’ll have to help me up the stairs.”
“I’d have Foley carry you up, but then people would really start worrying. The empress would even send this annoying woman who claims to be a nurse.
She’d
know you aren’t Alette.”
Leah turned to glance at Corene. “She won’t be able to fool anyone. She can’t join you at dinner, for instance—”
Corene shrugged. “Alette skips meals half the time anyway. No one will be surprised when she isn’t there.”
“All this time you thought I was being unsociable when I was merely laying the groundwork for my escape,” Alette said in her usual serious voice. It was a moment before Corene realized she was joking.
She laughed. “Very clever of you!”
There were voices outside and a tentative knocking at the door. Liramelli put her finger to her lips and she and Melissande leaned more purposefully against the wood. After a moment, they heard the sound of voices retreating.
“We can’t wait much longer,” Leah said, looking a little worried. “Are we done? Can we go?”
Corene glanced around. No stray bits of clothing on the floor, no dropped jewelry that would betray who had so briefly taken shelter there. “I think so.”
“Five minutes more,” Alette said. “I would welcome a blessing from your temple to see me on my way.”
Corene could see that the thought of lingering even a minute longer made Leah want to scream, but who could decline the opportunity for a blessing? “Of course,” Leah said courteously.
Alette stepped closer to the barrel and plunged her hand in. “First, I will pull coins for each of you—my benefactors. My friends.”
Checking to make sure the door was securely locked, Melissande and Liramelli hurried over. Teyta looked on with bewilderment and curiosity. “I’ll explain later,” Corene told her.
It only took a few moments for the coins to be drawn and distributed, though Corene and Leah had to translate for everyone. Corene tried not to sigh when courage was bestowed upon her, and Leah looked sardonic when her blessing turned out to be hope. No surprise that Melissande received charm and Liramelli steadfastness. It was clear that Alette was most pleased by the blessing she drew for Teyta—the elay glyph of kindness.
“I think you must be a very kind person,” she said, “to do such a remarkable thing for me.”
“She is,” Leah said. “Now, we must go.”
“No, no—we must all draw blessings for Alette before we send her on her way!” Melissande exclaimed. She was already stirring the barrel, already had a coin in her hand, offering it to Corene.
“Travel,” Corene said with a smile. “That seems about right.”
In quick succession, they also showered Alette with hope, love, luck, and triumph. “Most propitious!” Corene exclaimed in a low voice.
“Indeed, I don’t see how they could be better,” Liramelli agreed. “
Surely
this means you will be successful on your journey.”
Impulsively, Corene threw her arms around Alette. “Oh, how much I wish you would be able to tell us if you make it to safety! Write me, if you can. Send the letter to Darien Serlast in Chialto. The news will eventually find me.”
She was a little surprised that Alette actually hugged her back. “I will. You will hear from me. I
will
make my way to freedom.”
There was another knock on the door and the sound of someone trying the lock. “
Please
will you go?” Leah begged as soon as they heard the footfalls move away. “The princess and I have a great deal of ground to cover—and
you
have a tricky deception to carry out. It’s time to get started.”
“It is,” Corene said. She reached out to squeeze Alette’s hand, one last silent farewell. “Stay here for at least fifteen minutes after we leave. Sit on the red bench as if you are meditating yourself into balance. No one will bother you at the sweela station. We will draw the guards as far away as we can.”
Liramelli looked at her. “You don’t want to go straight back to the palace?”
Corene shook her head. “That’s where we’re most likely to be discovered. I want to stay away as long as possible to let them get far away.”
“Good,” Leah said, nodding. “Go. I’ll talk to you later.” Her face changed abruptly—almost comically. “I forgot! Corene, I
have
to talk to you. Tomorrow, if possible. Can you come to the market?”
“I can unless Filomara’s thrown me in the dungeons for this little escapade. Did something happen?”
“Sort of. Just come to the market. But go now.
Go!
”
Corene checked briefly to make sure Teyta was securely wrapped in the yellow shawl, then pulled open the door and ushered the other women before her. She didn’t even glance back at Leah and Alette before she stepped into the sunlight, blinking at the change from the dimness of the temple.
“What a pretty day it is!” she said brightly. “I’d love to go to the red tower and look out over the city. What do you say?”
“Oh—I was just thinking how nice that would be,” Liramelli said. She was a terrible actress, incapable of saying the words in an unforced manner, but Corene wasn’t sure she was any better herself.
Melissande, no surprise, was a natural. “Yes, of course, you know how much I love climbing to the top of the towers! But I had the most delightful thought. Could we perhaps stop somewhere and pick up food to carry with us, so that we might have a nice meal once we have made our way up?”
“Liramelli?” Corene asked. “Is there someplace we could buy food?”
“Yes—there’s a whole street of vendors just a few blocks from the tower. Let’s do that!”
So they directed the coachman to drive them halfway across the city, following the beacon of the jeweled flame dancing on top of the southern tower. The soldiers fell in place around them, none of them seeming to pay much attention to the occupants of the carriage. When they reached the district where dozens of small vendors camped out in their carts, hawking an amazing variety of foods, Liramelli and Corene left the others in the carriage and climbed out to reconnoiter. Foley dismounted to follow them through the crowded street, and three of the soldiers did the same. The rest clustered around the carriage, looking around alertly.
“All went well?” Foley murmured when he drew close enough to Corene.
“So far.”
“The tower is an excellent idea.”
“I’m glad you agree.”
They loaded up on breads and fruits and meat pies and things Corene couldn’t identify but that Liramelli assured her everyone would like, and then they clambered back into the carriage. It took some time to navigate the vendors’ alley, and part of Corene wanted to shriek with impatience. She had to remind herself that it was a good thing to be blocked at every corner by old women slowly crossing the street or riderless horses patiently awaiting their masters. They were in no hurry to get back to the palace—they were as safe now as they would ever be.
It was well past noon before they finally made it to the red tower, and they were all hungry by then. And a little irritable with the strain of constant vigilance. Well, Teyta didn’t seem irritable in the least. She was clearly enjoying every part of this expedition—the ride in a well-sprung carriage, the prospect of good food that she hadn’t had to cook or pay for, and, of course, the ongoing charade. A couple of times Corene had to whisper a reminder to cover her face with the shawl. Probably not one palace guard out of a thousand would remember that Alette had blue eyes—but just in case that one guard was part of this detail—
Teyta was less thrilled with the adventure once they disembarked from the carriage and she realized that Corene really intended for them
all to climb to the top of the tower. “But—it’s so very high up,” she protested weakly.
“It is,” Corene said. “Just think how good your appetite will be once you’ve had all that exercise!”
Foley went with them, of course; he even carried most of the food, since the rest of them had little energy left to do more than heave themselves up the stairs. Melissande complained for the entire climb—which only proved, Corene thought, that she was in excellent physical condition. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have had the breath to grumble.
As for herself, Corene felt stronger with every step she took up. The temperature rose as they grew closer to the blaze, but that only fed her energy. She was a child of fire, after all: wayward and unpredictable and sometimes dangerous. She could wreak havoc or she could beat back the darkness; it was all in how she chose to employ her intelligence, her skill. She might allow herself to be controlled, but only when it suited her own ends. She must never forget that she had the power to forge her own destiny.
Where is all that coming from?
she thought with a silent laugh. But she didn’t mind. She felt good, she felt strong—she felt, for the first time since she’d arrived in Palminera, like she had done something that mattered.
Liramelli was the first to climb through the trapdoor and she called encouraging words to Teyta, who was struggling. “Just a few more steps—that’s right—and here you are! Now catch your breath and look around. I know you’ll agree the effort was worth it.”
Melissande was a step behind them. “What? Here already? I could climb twice as far!” she exclaimed.
“Perhaps you can
run
down when we’re on our way back,” Corene said, climbing up beside her. “And then run back up!”
“Yes, a most appealing plan,” Melissande said.
“But first we eat,” Liramelli said. “I’m utterly starving.”
They all dropped to the hard wooden surface of the landing, Foley situating himself right at the trapdoor in case anyone came up looking to offer harm. A steady wind carried away just enough of the heat to make the temperature tolerable—and anyway, they were all so hungry that they couldn’t be bothered to complain about the fire. They all tore
into the food as if they might not get another meal for the rest of their lives. The hot dishes were cold by now, the fresh ones wilted, but none of them cared.
“Nothing has ever tasted so good,” Melissande pronounced. “No, not the finest banquet in Cozique! It is sumptuously delicious.”