Authors: Barbara Ann Wright
She closed one book, shifted it to the side, and searched the pile of texts beside her. She pulled out another and scanned the first few pages. The smell of ink and paper was so familiar to her, but the language of the Farradains reminded her that she was far from home.
Without thinking, she touched her necklace and ran her fingers over the seven starbursts in yellow enamel and the delicate golden wire that ran between them. Her father had shaped the wire to form the character “bride” if she wore it one way and “lucky” if she wore it the other way around, which she did constantly. It was her favorite, made in her childhood with links added as she grew. The pages in front of her grew hazy as she thought of it.
“Why ‘lucky,’ Papa?” she’d asked.
Seated at his worktable with her in his lap, he’d bent the sparkling gold wire with ease. “It’s my fondest hope for you, little Star, what
I
would have named you.” He’d chuckled. “But your mother’s will is as strong as an ox.”
Starbride had frowned with childish stubbornness. “I hate my name. I’ll never get married!”
His lips had smacked against her temple in a noisy kiss. “You’ll fall in love and change your mind one day.” He’d picked up one of the starburst links and held it beside the twisted wire. “This necklace will be there to remind you that you are both mine and your mother’s child. And that Papa loves you, my lucky Star.”
In the library in Farraday, Starbride shook her head. The creation of her necklace had taken place several hundred miles away and over ten years in the past. There was no time to be homesick. She had a job to do.
She barely noticed when someone took a seat beside her. It made sense. The huge library was nearly empty, but she’d chosen a spot near two wall sconces and a candelabrum, so the light was good. A blue sleeve entered her vision near her book, and five slender fingers drummed softly. Starbride glanced at the signet ring on the forefinger, a hawk clutching a rose. She didn’t look up, smiling to herself instead.
“Trade law,” Katya said. “Riveting.” She plucked the sleeve of Starbride’s gown. “Hmm, would your mother be thinking mint or limes with this?”
Starbride put down her pencil. “Mint. She’s not a big fan of fruit.” Katya wore the same loose bun that let her hair frame her face and the same dark blue coat she seemed to prefer, paired with dark trousers, except this coat had far less embroidery than her ball coat. When she glanced near Katya’s collar, though, Starbride couldn’t contain a laugh. Her butterfly hairclip perched on the fabric with the aid of a straight pin.
“You like my new jewelry?” Katya asked.
“It doesn’t seem your style.”
“Being royalty carries the luxury of choice when it comes to style.”
“Of course it does, Highness.” Starbride picked up her pencil again and twirled it in her fingers.
“Ah, we’re back to that.”
“What did your…admirers think of your pin?”
“It’s going to be all the rage.” Katya stuck her long legs out and crossed her knee-high boots at the ankle. “I expect to see several of the courtiers in full butterfly costumes by the next ball.”
Starbride chuckled, and across the room, one of the monks gave her a dirty look that he hadn’t bothered, or dared, to give Katya. “I’d enjoy seeing that, especially on Lady Hilda.”
Katya prodded Starbride’s slipper with her boot. “Jealous?”
Starbride sniffed and turned back to her book. “Absolutely not.”
“Of course. I didn’t really think so.”
“So glad to hear it.”
“Anyway, Lady Hilda is not a courtier.”
“What is she?”
“A pain in the ass.”
Starbride had to clap a hand over her mouth. This time, all three monks gave her dirty looks. She shifted her chair and leaned close. “Isn’t everyone a pain in the ass sometimes?”
“Of course, but courtiers are pains in the ass who are at least paying to be here.”
“Nobles don’t have to pay?” Starbride’s jaw dropped as she thought of the exorbitant price her family paid to keep her at Marienne.
“Not directly. Nobles are landowners. Their ‘rent’ is taken out of the taxes they collect.”
“Then why do the nobles stay here? If they’re landowners, don’t they have homes elsewhere?”
“Undoubtedly, but court is the place to be. It’s so
boring
in the provinces.” Her head lolled to the side as if the mere act of talking about living outside Marienne put her to sleep.
Starbride grinned. “A place without courtiers and nobles? Sounds delightful.”
“Would you like to get out of here?”
“What? Out of the palace?”
“Too late in the day for that, I’m afraid. No, out of
here
.” She nodded toward the pack of monks, who still gave Starbride the occasional angry glance.
“My concentration
is
broken.”
Katya put a hand over her heart. “My apologies, Miss Meringue.”
Starbride secured her scroll and pencil inside one of her voluminous sleeves and narrowed her eyes as they stood. “You’re not going to try to seduce me, are you?”
Katya’s mouth slipped open before she blinked several times, and Starbride fancied she saw a slight blush in the royal cheeks. Katya gestured at the mint-colored dress. “In all that, I wouldn’t know where to start.”
“Where are we going?” Starbride asked. “One of the many activities for aspiring social climbers?”
“Funny you should mention climbing.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Follow me.”
Starbride followed, spurred on by Katya’s infectious grin. Katya led her to the upper levels of the palace, through long winding hallways and narrow stairways. They passed many bowing servants, but every time they heard chatter from down the hall, Katya guided her into another passage. “Are you trying to avoid someone in particular?” Starbride asked.
“Any group of courtiers would stick to us like leeches.”
“Ugh. How do you know who the voices belong to?”
“Well, servants don’t linger in the halls to stand around or gossip. They do that behind closed doors so they won’t be caught, same with guardsmen. That leaves courtiers. Nobles don’t linger in the hallways unless they’re searching for royalty.”
“Like Lady Hilda might be looking for you.” Starbride sniffed as she said it, but inside, she wanted Katya to call Lady Hilda another foul name.
“Come on. We’re nearly there.”
They ascended to a short hallway with no rooms leading off it and only a tapestry to mark the end. No servants rushed through the area; no courtiers loitered in the hall. “Where are we?”
“Near the royal summer apartments. Very few people here at this time of year, thank the spirits.”
Starbride gestured to the hanging six-foot tapestry, wondering if that was what she was supposed to be looking at. “Seventh century, if I remember my art history.”
Katya scanned the hallway behind them. Starbride did the same and saw no one. When she turned back, Katya was disappearing behind the tapestry. With a wink, she let go of the heavy wall hanging, and it fell as flat as if she’d walked through the wall.
Starbride let her mouth hang open for a moment. At first, she thought of pyramid magic, but she’d never heard of anyone using it to disappear. She waved to dispel the cloud of disturbed dust and touched the rough fabric of the tapestry. The wall was solid behind it. “What in Darkstrong’s name?”
And then it hit her. Secret passageways! One of her childhood fantasies come to life! She heaved on the weighty tapestry, but revealed only blank stone behind it.
“Well.” She pushed on the cold bricks and tried to turn them. Seconds had passed between when she’d looked away and when Katya had slid behind the tapestry. The mechanism couldn’t be that complicated. She slipped behind the tapestry and let it shroud her in darkness; soundlessly, a door in front of her swung open.
On the other side, Katya waited, holding a lantern. “I knew you were smart.”
Starbride couldn’t help it; she stuck out her tongue. From miles away, she felt her mother die a little. Katya threw her head back and laughed. Like schoolgirls, they ran down the passageway, hand in hand, until they reached a narrow staircase only wide enough for one person at a time.
Katya held the lantern high and started up the stairway. “My brother and I discovered this one while we were playing, years and years ago.”
“How many are there?” All thoughts of learning Farradain trade law blew from Starbride’s mind as she thought of the enormous palace and all the secrets it could hold.
“Who knows? I’ve found quite a few.”
“Was this one your first?”
“For me, not for my brother.”
“How many hours did you spend looking for more after this one?”
“Too many! And quite a few that should have been spent sleeping.”
Wan light filtered down the staircase. The top of the passage was guarded by a rusty old gate, not very secret from that side. Unlike the stone door, the gate creaked in the stillness of the evening as they emerged onto an old balcony. The view of the countryside around Marienne made Starbride stop in wonder. The palace lay on the west side, and she’d only seen the view of the east, that of the city. Rolling hills spread to the west, covered with a checkerboard of fields, dotted with the occasional tree. Past the fields wound the Lavine River, and the setting sun turned the waterway into a ribbon of gold. “It’s gorgeous.”
Katya set her lantern down and leaned on the worn stone railing. “My childhood tutor called it Hanna’s Retreat, seventh century, as you pointed out. One of my ancestors used to climb up here to clear her head after dull meetings. It drove her staff mad the way she could walk down a hallway and disappear.”
“Your tutor knew about the secret passageways?”
“Only that they exist. He didn’t know where, and I didn’t tell him the actual location of this one.”
“Wise. Your brother may want to use it someday. Does your father ever come up here?”
“No, he retreats to his rooms and hides behind my mother.”
“I saw your parents at the Courtiers Ball. Your father didn’t seem like a fading flower, and your mother didn’t look particularly threatening.”
“Well, you have one correct observation and one incorrect. I won’t tell you which is which. Thank you for the meringues, by the way. What did the letters on the box say?”
“Dawnmother—she’s my maid—painted the words. They say, ‘please accept this gift,’ more or less. It’s traditional for a gift in my homeland. And you’re welcome.” She laid her chin on one fist and studied the countryside. If she squinted, she imagined she could see far-off Allusia. She shouldn’t have left the library. She had so much to do.
“Why were you reading about trade law?”
“How did you know I was thinking about that?”
“You were frowning. Law books always make me frown.”
Starbride grinned wryly. “I’m learning trade law to better help my people.”
Something in Katya’s eyes froze. Her face didn’t twitch, but her posture turned to ice. “Is that why you came to the palace?”
Starbride tried to shrug, but something in Katya’s gaze stopped her. “It’s not why I was sent, but it is why I came.”
“Star
bride
. Your mother sent you to marry, or to find a lover, an
influential
lover.”
Starbride stiffened, realizing the reason for Katya’s frostiness. Katya thought she wanted something from her, just like those vulture courtiers! Part of her bristled at the implication, but she told herself to be calm, forced herself to soften…slightly. With all the grasping courtiers in the palace, Katya couldn’t help but be suspicious. “That’s what my
mother
wanted,” Starbride said slowly, “but it’s not the way I think. I came to study law on my own. I sent you the meringues as a friend.”
Katya hesitated before she smiled. “I’m sorry. Sometimes…” She let the word hang in the air.
“It’s all right. Let’s not talk about it.”
“That’s not fair. I can’t get to know you and then ignore what’s important to you.”
“If I tell you about the problems my people are having and it’s in your power to fix them, won’t one or both of us feel you have an obligation?”
Katya hung her head. “You’re right.”
“Then let me study my law books, and we’ll talk about different things.”
“Now who’s seducing whom?”
Starbride waved at the countryside. “Thank you for showing me this. Do you use it often?”
“Court can be tiresome.”
“That’s why you hunt, isn’t it? Speaking of what’s important to us.”
Katya hesitated a moment before she nodded.
“I saw you this morning, going toward the stables.”
Katya blinked and then stared. “You’re full of surprises.”
“I wasn’t spying! I was coming back from the library, and I just happened to see you, but you didn’t look happy. Did you see your sick friend?”
Katya nodded, but her face turned guarded again.
Curiosity burned in Starbride, but she kept it in check. After all, perhaps the friend had gotten worse or died, and it was too painful to speak about. “I wish I had a fast horse sometimes.”