The Painted War (4 page)

Bianca found the Duchess in her chambers. She was in the middle of an art lesson with Lucia and Cosimo. Marco was there, too, standing on one leg practising juggling oranges. He stuffed them in his pockets when Bianca entered. Guards stood to attention around the room, and Bianca was glad there were at least some precautions in place. She rushed over to where Catriona sat in front of an easel, holding a stick of chalk. ‘Duchess,' Bianca said. ‘I have just come back from Oscurita. I have seen more evidence that Edita is about to invade!'

‘Been off playing princess again, Bianca?' said Lucia. ‘Is that why you're so late for work? Because it's too beneath you now?'

Bianca couldn't hide her annoyance. ‘I do not think it's beneath me! I love my work!'

‘Mistress Lucia,' said Duchess Catriona. Her voice was sweet and calm, but Bianca could hear ‘remember who's the Duchess here' echoing under every syllable. ‘I know Bianca would never give up her studies, any more than I would.'

Lucia shot Bianca a mean look, but didn't say any more. ‘As you say, Your Highness.'

‘Bianca, I want to hear more. What did you see?'

Bianca told her everything. Her escape with her mother. The raided alarm that caused panic all over Oscurita. The rows and rows of soldiers readying themselves for attack. She finished her story and silence followed: she looked round at all the disbelieving faces in the room – even the guards were casting strange glances down at her. All except Marco, whose face seemed frozen in an expression of horror. He must be feeling guilty for not coming with her to Oscurita.

‘I believe you, Bianca.' Catriona was stern. ‘But you will be glad to know that Captain Raphaeli has conducted a review of our armed forces. He ordered his lieutenants to ensure that if the city
was
under threat, we would be able to defend ourselves. There is not a lot more I can do.'

Bianca was eased a little. She knew that Captain Raphaeli was on her side.

‘In fact,' said Catriona, giving her a consoling look, ‘I've been observing training drills all morning.'

‘Thank goodness,' Bianca said. She ignored the exaggerated eye-roll that Lucia gave.

The door to the room opened and Secretary Franco came in, followed by Captain Raphaeli. The sight of the tall, golden-helmed Captain of the Guards calmed Bianca's nerves a little. Franco bowed low to Duchess Catriona. ‘Your Highness, I have some business I must discuss with you.'

‘Can you discuss while I draw?' Catriona said.

‘Of course,' said Secretary Franco slowly, in a voice that sounded more like ‘oh lord, must we?'
to Bianca. He folded his hands behind his back and leaned over slightly. ‘Your Highness, I believe I have found someone who will help us with the canals. You remember that the Master of Canals reported last week that they're in dire need of cleaning – one of the nastier legacies of the Baron da Russo's reign.'

‘I remember,' said Duchess Catriona. ‘You've done as I said and rounded up some lords and ladies to help pay for it?'

‘Just one lord, in fact,' said Secretary Franco. ‘Lord Aquarion. I think he'll put up enough money so that we can clear all the canals before the year's out.'

‘Oh,' Duchess Catriona sighed. ‘Did it
have
to be Lord Aquarion? He's always slightly damp and he smells of fish!' Bianca stifled a smile, but she heard a snigger and looked up to see Lucia covering her mouth with one hand.

Ha!
Bianca thought.
You're not so perfectly uptight and professional after all.

‘Lord Aquarion takes a direct interest in the running of his merchant ships,' Secretary Franco pointed out. ‘He is a very rich, very practical man.'

Duchess Catriona gave Secretary Franco a sharp look. ‘And what does Lord Aquarion want in return for this civic generosity?'

‘He seems to want to discuss the matter with you directly,' said Secretary Franco. ‘Your Highness, I must say, you would do a lot more good for the city if you gave up these art lessons and spent more time with citizens  …  citizens like Lord Aquarion.'

‘No!' Bianca said, before she realised what she was doing. The word almost seemed to echo around the Duchess's sitting room and Cosimo, Lucia, Franco, Marco and Catriona all turned to stare at her. ‘I  …  I'm very sorry, Your Highness, I didn't mean to shout,' she said. She gave a little curtsey towards Secretary Franco and the Duchess, for good measure. ‘It's just that these lessons aren't just frivolous entertainments. I know the canals are really important, but your education is important, too, just as important as pandering to Lord Aquarion. Art is as important as any other subject – what would La Luminosa be without its art? What would we have to fight for?' She turned to Cosimo with a pleading expression.

‘I would prefer it if the Duchess's lessons weren't interrupted,' said Cosimo, but he shook his head at Bianca. ‘But it isn't your place to say so,' he added with a stern glare. ‘I apologise for Bianca's outburst.'

Well, were
you
going to say anything?
Bianca thought. La Luminosa was nothing without art. Was she the only one to see it?

‘Perhaps we can discuss it another time,' Secretary Franco said, giving Bianca a look that said ‘some time when you're not here to argue' as clearly as if he'd said it aloud. He turned back to Duchess Catriona and started talking about the canals again. Lucia stepped close to Bianca and looked down her nose at her.

‘You're not even our most senior apprentice, remember?' she muttered. ‘By rights, Ezio should be here, or Rosa. You and the tumbler are only in these lessons because you're Duchess Catriona's  …  friends.' She gave a sneer on the word ‘friends' and Bianca flushed, guessing that if they were alone, Lucia would have said ‘lackeys' or ‘hangers-on' instead.

Bianca clenched her teeth, trying to stop herself from snapping back at Lucia. ‘Of course, Mistress Lu—'

The room was lit with a strange flash. Bianca tensed.

Is this it? Are they here?
She readied herself, searching the room for a weapon.

‘What on earth was that?' Duchess Catriona demanded, cutting Secretary Franco off in mid-sentence. There was a rattling of armour as the guards around the room looked about. Captain Raphaeli sprang to the Duchess's side, drawing his sword.

It was as if lightning had struck just outside the window – but it was the middle of a clear, sunny Luminosan day.

There was another flash, even brighter. It filled the room with sharp, strange shadows for a moment and Bianca was oddly reminded of the thunder lamps on the streets of Oscurita. Then the light was gone again.

Bianca spun around, checking the magical paintings on the walls, expecting to see soldiers in silver armour burst out and surround them – but it wasn't the paintings that caught her eye this time.

‘Duchess, look!'

On the wall right behind the Duchess, a large mirror hung in an ornate golden frame. But it wasn't just polished metal and glass any more – a soft white light was shining from it.

Duchess Catriona looked over her shoulder and leapt to her feet, sending the chalks on her lap scattering across the floor with a clatter and a spray of rainbow-coloured dust.

‘What is it?' She looked to Bianca, and Bianca swallowed.

‘I  …  I don't know. I haven't seen anything like it,' she admitted.

‘Useless,' Lucia muttered, not quite under her breath.

‘Stand back, Your Highness,' said Captain Raphaeli, putting himself between Catriona and the mirror. To his credit, Secretary Franco quickly stood beside him.

They all stared as something appeared on the mirror's surface. Silver writing, elaborate and formal, as if it was being written by an invisible hand.

Her Royal Highness, Edita Ellana Lombardi di Oscurita.

A vision appeared in the mirror underneath the words – a vision of Duchess Edita, as if she was standing in front of the mirror and her face was being reflected back at them. She looked regal and beautiful, with her silver tiara glittering on her head and dark hair caught up in dripping silver chains and deep purple jewels. There was a gentle smile on her lips. Bianca shuddered, remembering the sweet, kindly smile Edita had used to convince her that they were mother and daughter.

More writing snaked over the bottom half of the mirror, and Bianca held her breath, not knowing whether she wanted it to stop or to write faster.

The message ended and the words and the picture of Edita stayed on the surface of the mirror, glowing faintly.

Bianca frowned. It had to be some sort of trick, but she couldn't see what Edita would gain from announcing her arrival like this. Captain Raphaeli would have time to rally the troops and Catriona could be taken somewhere safe  … 

Duchess Catriona read the message and then read it again. Bianca could see her eyes scanning the words, as if she was searching them for something. Then the Duchess turned to Secretary Franco. ‘How do I respond?' she asked.

‘
Respond?
' Bianca gasped. ‘You're not thinking of
replying
to this are you?'

‘Bianca, be quiet!' Lucia snapped.

Bianca shook her head. ‘Duchess, this is obviously some kind of trap, you'd be crazy –'

‘Lady Bianca!' Secretary Franco raised his voice until it almost echoed around the large chamber. ‘You are not the Duchess's court advisor, you are a hot-headed child. And you
will
allow the Duchess to make rational decisions or by God – princess or not – I will have you removed from the palace!'

‘Rational –' Bianca began, but she swallowed the rest of her protest. The painted mural on the wall beside the mirror had started to pulsate, like the ones in the throne room in Oscurita when the medallion was first used. It was a painting of a balcony looking out over a rolling, animated landscape of fields and vineyards with lazily circling buzzards overhead. As Bianca watched, the green, cream and copper leaked out into the air in thin streams, and then abruptly seemed to be sucked back into the painting, making it even brighter and more colourful than before.

A trumpet sounded, distantly, and the painted door on one side of the balcony opened.

Bianca gasped and took a step back.

With a clatter of hooves, the Baron da Russo rode through the doorway on the back of the enormous black stallion – the same stallion she'd seen in the Oscurita stables. It stamped down out of the painting, blinking in the bright light of La Luminosa, the jewels on its harness glittering. The Baron was dressed finely, but not armoured. He looked just like a rich diplomat coming to negotiate trade routes. The guards hesitated, stunned by the sight of the Baron emerging from a painting, and bewildered by the huge black horse standing in the Duchess's quarters.

That's just what he wants!
Bianca seized the first thing that came to hand – a poker from the Duchess's fireplace.

‘Traitor!' she yelled and made a run for the Baron, planning to knock him from the horse and put his lights out with the hard iron poker. But Captain Raphaeli caught her as she tried to run past him and held her tight around the shoulders. Bianca's feet skidded on the tiled floor as she writhed, trying to get out of his grip.

‘Guards!' Raphaeli called. ‘Seize that man!'

The stunned guards leapt into action. They grabbed the Baron and dragged him from the horse, throwing him to the floor. Bianca stopped struggling from pure relief.

Two guards immediately flanked the Baron, holding his arms. His horse bucked and reared, looking like it wanted to bolt – but there was nowhere in this room full of people and furniture that it could bolt to. More guards raised their spears and it whinnied in fear. Then there was a flash of red and Marco vaulted over the couch, between a pair of guards, and grabbed the horse's reins. He whispered to it and it seemed to calm down.

‘I am a peaceful representative of the Duchess of Oscurita,' declared the Baron. The guards were holding his head down so he couldn't look directly at Duchess Catriona, but he spoke in a strong, clear voice. ‘I am here on a visit of diplomacy.'

‘Diplomacy my foot!' Bianca shouted.

‘You are a traitor,' snarled Captain Raphaeli, letting go of Bianca – but taking the poker from her hand at the same time. ‘You attempted to kill the Duchess, and you
will
be punished for it.'

‘Master Filpepi, the artist, was the true mastermind of that foul plot,' said the Baron.

In the corner of the room, Bianca saw Lucia and Cosimo give each other pale, miserable looks. Cosimo took Lucia's hand, and Bianca was quite glad. Lucia might be a pain, but it wasn't her fault her old master had been a traitor. She had known nothing of Filpepi's elaborate plan to replace Duchess Catriona with a living, painted replica of herself.

‘I was a loyal citizen until Filpepi drew me into his schemes,' the Baron went on. ‘I was merely a pawn  …  just as the Duchess herself was.'

Bianca felt her face flush hot and red at the pure cheek of it. ‘You liar!' she shouted. ‘I know exactly who was behind the plot – Edita of Oscurita! You plotted to murder the Duchess, and you killed Annunzio di Lombardi – don't pretend you didn't.'

‘Be
quiet
, girl,' snapped Secretary Franco. ‘Do not make me tell you again.'