Queen's Hunt Part 1

Queen's Hunt.

Beth Bern.o.bich.

TO ROB, FOR EVERYTHING.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.

Many years ago, I wrote a wildly different version of this book. Different characters, with different past lives, and almost a different storyline. Eventually I realized my mistake (with some help), threw out the original version, and started over. Still, the bones of that first novel remain, however much I've transformed them.

And for that transformation, I have a number of people to thank. First among these is my splendid editor, Claire Eddy, who pointed out the true focus of the story. Next, my very kind and patient readers, Delia Sherman, Jennifer Ford, Celina Summers, Fran Wolber, and Sherwood Smith. Thank you all! I am grateful for your critiques, comments, and suggestions.

And finally, I thank my husband and son for giving me the s.p.a.ce to write, dinner when I forgot, and hugs when I badly needed them.

CHAPTER ONE.

ONCE, WHEN HE was a young child, six years old, Gerek Hessler had asked his great-grandmother about her life dreams, those vivid imaginings of past lives that came like nightmares upon a person in their sleep. Though she no longer saw anything but shadows, she swung her head around and stared at him, her milky eyes like pale moons in her dark face. Nothing, she whispered. I dreamed of nothing, little man.

But when he asked again, she sucked in her lower lip. For a moment, her eyes brightened, her gaze turned inward, as if recalling those dreams. Then her mouth twitched in an unhappy smile, and she touched his cheek far more gently than she used to. Live blind and you die blind, she said in swift soft tones. One day, Blind Toc himself makes sure you see the truth about yourself.

She had not answered his question, not directly, but he had not dared to say more. Three weeks later, between midnight and dawn, she died in her sleep. One life ended, her soul winging through the void to its next. Later, after he had studied the old philosophers, Gerek always wondered about his great-grandmother's words. Had she lived blindly, life upon life, absorbed in the daily dull minutiae? Or had she at last faced the truth with eyes open, unflinchingly?

Gerek pa.s.sed a hand over his face. Strange, unsettling memories. They had come upon him unexpectedly as he pa.s.sed through Tiralien's northern gates. Was it the sight of that aged fresco of Lir and her brother Toc over the gate itself? Or did the memories revive because of Tiralien itself, because of his cousin Dedrick, whose death had brought him so many miles?

Dedrick. Years ago, as children, he and Dedrick had spent a month here, along with their families. A second visit came about when Gerek's parents decided he might study with an old scholar in the Little University. Now, riding in a freight wagon along a boulevard crowded with morning traffic, Gerek stared around, trying to see if the present city matched anything from his vague recollections. He remembered that bell tower, built of dark red brick and topped with an elaborate openwork crown for the bell itself, which flashed in the thin sunlight. That bridge led over the Gallenz River to the southern highway. And there, on the rising hills above, was the regional governor's palace-Lord Vieth was the man's name. He could not see the coast from here, but he could smell its heavy salt tang. He closed his eyes and tried to recall the hushing sound of water against the sh.o.r.e. A foreign sound to someone from the inland hill country.

From the nearby tower came the creak of ropes, the dull thump of the clapper. A pause, like the silence between each breath, then bell and bell and bell rang out over the morning.

The driver shouted to his team of horses. Abruptly the wagon jerked to the left. Gerek, used to this maneuver, braced himself against the nearest crate. His bones ached from sitting too long, his teeth rattled in time with the wheels as they jounced and bounced over the stone-paved streets. Soon they left behind the chaos of mules and carts, fishermen selling their catch, farmers arriving from the surrounding countryside to trade for supplies; it dropped away like an old cloak as they entered a quieter neighborhood where the merchants and richer tradesmen lived.

After the merchant houses came a district of fine shops, then a bleak expanse of counting houses and storage buildings. Just as he wondered how much longer until they arrived, the driver flicked his whip and barked out a command. Once more the wagon lurched, and they turned onto a broad avenue. Oh yes. Here were houses such as Gerek had imagined. Here was a neighborhood where a duke's son might live. Even without his cousin's description, Gerek recognized his destination.

The driver reined his horses to a stop. Gerek climbed awkwardly from the wagon. His legs, cramped from the long ride, buckled. He grabbed the wagon to keep from falling. His shin banged against the wheel. He yelped, in spite of himself.

The driver coughed. It sounded suspiciously like a laugh. "Would you like me to unload your trunks here, sir?" he asked.

"N-n-no." Gerek swallowed and started over. "No. Thank you. Please leave them at the warehouse. I will send for them later."

"As you wish, sir." The man spoke politely enough. He clearly regretted that ill-timed laugh. Perhaps he knew of Gerek's connection to House Maszuryn, itself elevated by the queen's friendship with Gerek's cousin Alia. More likely, he simply hoped for a few extra denier from his pa.s.senger.

Gerek paid the driver the final installment for his pa.s.sage, then added five more silver coins. "For the safe delivery of my belongings. And for your kindness during the journey." The words came out steadily, if not elegantly. It was more than he often hoped for.

The wagon lumbered off, its wheels rattling over the paving stones. Gerek stood alone on the broad and quiet avenue. He sniffed, smelled the scent of freshly turned dirt in the cool, clean morning air. This was one of the richest quarters in the city. A handful of stone mansions were visible through the trees, which were still winter-bare on this early spring day. The one that interested him-Lord Raul Kosenmark's-stood directly opposite, behind a tall iron gate. In the center of the gate, an artisan-smith had twisted the iron bars into the likeness of a sinuous leopard. The insignia of House Valentain.

Memories, thirteen years old, came to life.

Gerek remembered his cousin Dedrick riding from his father's estates, breathless with the news. A letter had arrived from Tiralien, delivered by a special courier. Their great-grandfather was to receive an award for his service to the Crown, and from the regional governor's own hand.

"We shall all attend," his great-grandfather had declared.

Standing here in Tiralien once more, Gerek recalled distinctly the shimmering summer heat in the governor's palace. The pervasive stink of ocean tang, overlaid by sweat and too many bodies crushed close together, which even the sweetest herbs could not overcome. He could see clearly with his mind's eye their great-grandfather kneeling before Lord Vieth to receive an astonishingly ugly chain, worked of silver and gold and studded with jewels of all sorts. His cousins whispering jokes to each other. Dedrick's handsome face bending close to his, then retreating just as quickly, but not before he'd made some deliciously sarcastic comment. (Directed at the king? That vulgar chain? At Gerek himself, fat and stuttering and so misplaced among his cousins of all degrees?) No, Dedrick had never mocked him, not like the others. Dedrick had saved his bitterest comments for his own father and the family's ambitions. Especially his sister's.

More recent memories overwhelmed the rest. The terrible news from Duenne-a riding accident, according to the official letter, but everyone knew better. Knew that Dedrick had died by order of the king and the King's Mage. Then, months later, Gerek's decision to come here, to the house of the man responsible for leading Dedrick to his death.

Voices chattered inside his brain. Relatives dismissing him, consigning him to a useless life, a romantic with few qualities beyond an attention to history, philosophy, and clever handwriting.

Ignoring the voices, he crossed the avenue. That grand central gate was not for him, but for visitors of quality. And, of course, those clients who frequented the other side of Lord Kosenmark's business-the pleasure house and its many courtesans. But Dedrick had faithfully described the house to Gerek many times, so Gerek knew to look to one side, to a lane leading between the house and a wall demarcating the property from that of the next elegant mansion.

Guards observed his entrance. He knew that, even if he could not see them. They would, however, view him as no threat; simply a large clumsy man ambling toward a service entrance. Gerek tried not to mind.

The lane brought him past a long blank section of wall, then a bare courtyard with a few equally bare trees and a lonely stone bench. Here windows broke up the expanse of golden stonework, but they were all dark, like eyes without the illumination of the soul. Gerek continued on to the side door his cousin had mentioned. The door itself was ordinary, but the story his cousin had told was not-about a young woman beaten and raped and close to death. She had knocked on the door and Raul Kosenmark had taken her in.

Gerek knocked at the door. His large hand thumped against the painted wooden panels, sending echoes down the lane. He stepped back and waited.

It was quiet here-even quieter than the main avenue. From far away, he heard a horse whickering. Flies buzzed past, fat and hopeful. A breeze tickled his bare neck, lifting away the sweat from his fur-lined collar, reminding him of how he must appear. After six days riding in a wagon, spending the nights in the cheapest hostelries, or camped beside the road, he looked more like a tramp than a scholar. Hurriedly he shook the dust from his clothes and swiped a hand through his stiff, tousled hair. His boots were filthy. He bent to rub them with his sleeve.

The lock rattled. He straightened up.

A young woman stood in the doorway. She wore a plain black skirt and a blue smock with the sleeves rolled up. The pale sunlight cast a shadow across her dusky brown face. Gerek blinked, unexpectedly surprised by her ordinary appearance.

"Yes?" she said at last.

He immediately dug out the letter from inside his coat and offered it to her.

She took it, glanced from the paper back to Gerek's face. He thought she was smiling, but he couldn't be sure.

"For the duke's son," he said. "My n-n-name is-is Gerek Hessler."

"Ah. They told me that you would arrive today. You are here to apply for the position of Lord Kosenmark's secretary."

He released a breath in relief. "Yes. That."

If the young woman noticed his stuttering, she gave no hint of it. She stood to one side and politely motioned for him to enter.

HER NAME WAS Kathe, she told him. Normally she did not attend to admitting visitors-she worked in the kitchens-but so many of the maids were taken sick with colds, and Lord Kosenmark had not wanted to increase the size of his household, even temporarily. Not to worry, she said, they would soon have him settled. He would want to see Mistress Denk, the steward, and after that Lord Kosenmark, but surely he would appreciate a few moments in a private room to recover from his long journey.

Listening to the flow of her chatter, Gerek took away only one detail. She had noticed the dust and dirt and sweat. He rubbed in vain at his face and wished he had taken his brother's advice to stop first at an inn to bathe and dress in fresh clothing. But inns required money, and he had none to spare. Not if today did not produce the position he hoped for.

"I'm sorry," Kathe said. "I chatter too much, Lord Kosenmark tells me."

She'd stopped in the middle of a wide corridor. Rooms opened to either side-bright rooms filled with silk-covered couches and chairs, their tiled floors gleaming in the sunlight. The scent of beeswax and fresh herbs hung in the air. There was also the unmistakable scent of expensive perfume, but no other sign of the courtesans Dedrick talked about, nor of Kosenmark himself. Merely the elegant and richly furnished s.p.a.ces one might expect to find in the household of a wealthy man, the elder son of an influential duke.

"I-I- My apologies," Gerek said. "What did you s-say?"

She smiled. (A kindly smile, he noticed.) "I can see that you're tired from your long journey. Would you like a private room where you might bathe your face? You look as though you aren't used to our southern seasons."

"N-no," he said, then felt his cheeks heat. "Yes. Very tired. Could I-I-"

"Right this way," she said.

Kathe left him in a small sunny room, comfortably furnished with a padded chair and several wooden benches. A high table stood by the single window, which overlooked a lawn and trees beyond. An antique tapestry of Lir and Toc hung from one wall-this one depicting their season of love-and a silk carpet covered the red-tiled floor. There was no fireplace in the room, but the air was pleasantly mild. A bra.s.s mirror hung from the opposite wall. Gerek ducked his head to avoid seeing his reflection.

Before he had time to wonder what came next, several maids, some of them red-eyed and sniffling, appeared with towels and robes. He would find the baths in the first bas.e.m.e.nt, they told him, down the stairs located at the end of the hallway.

Gerek muttered something about not keeping the steward waiting, but the girls had already disappeared. Through the half-closed door, he heard them giggling.

d.a.m.n them. I'm not a dumb beast. I'm- Nothing but the second son of a minor branch of an unimportant family. (Never mind the queen's recognition of Dedrick's sister, Lady Alia.) Not even that, because to these people, he was an unemployed scholar seeking employment. They were right to laugh at him. Everyone else did.

Everyone except his brother and Dedrick.

Gerek closed and locked the door. Still furious with himself and the maids, he undressed doggedly and put on the robe. The fabric was thick worsted cotton, soft against his skin and warmed by a fire. The warmth and softness irritated him further. He stomped from the room to the stairs, down to the baths. Those, too, drove him to an unreasonable fury. He scrubbed himself clean-hair, nails, and body-from all the grime acc.u.mulated in six days of travel. He'd sc.r.a.ped his hands raw from catching the wagon, and bruised his shin against the iron-plated wheels. Good. That felt more believable than this impossibly huge pool, the scented soaps, the surrounding luxury, which, no doubt, he would have to leave behind when Lord Kosenmark refused his service.

Scrubbed and annoyed, he returned to the room to discover the maids had removed all his clothes, even down to his loincloth.

He was about to curse out loud when he remembered Dedrick's warning: He listens. To friends, to enemies. There is no one he absolutely trusts. Oh, perhaps Maester Hax, or his new love, but no one else.

Hax was dead, however. And Ilse Zhalina had left Kosenmark five months before.

Gerek scanned the ceiling and spotted a vent placed where none would normally be found. It was true, then, what Dedrick had claimed. The man had rebuilt the house to install listening vents and pipes, closets with secret panels, all manner of means to overhear conversations between the courtesans and their clients, between friends and enemies. And strangers most of all.

"Are you well?"

Kathe stood in the doorway, a tray balanced against one hip.

"Why do you s-say that?" Gerek demanded.

"You were staring so. I knocked," she added. "And you had left the door unlocked."

"I-I-" Gerek forced himself to speak deliberately. "I am weary from the road. But I do not wish to keep Lord Kosenmark waiting."

"You will see Mistress Denk first," Kathe said. "She knows you've arrived. But you have time to refresh yourself. I brought you coffee and tea, and some biscuits and cold meats. Would you prefer wine?"

"No wine," he said shortly. Wine made his tongue even more uncertain.

Kathe said nothing to his abrupt speech. She slipped past him and set to work, laying out the dishes and cups onto the table by the window. In the room's diffuse light, he could see her features clearly for the first time. Her face was round and pleasant, her eyes a dark and brilliant brown. Her hands, he noticed, were deft, her fingers slender, and the nails clipped short.

When she finished, she glanced up and met his gaze directly, in a way he found both disconcerting and refreshing. "For your comfort and refreshment," she said. "And please, do not be anxious. Lord Kosenmark told me himself you were not to hurry on his account."

Over her shoulder, Gerek caught his reflection in the mirror. Plain round face, the chin blurring into folds of skin. Broad shoulders and chest. A study in brown, even to the robe he wore. His mother affectionately called him her favorite ox.

He jerked his glance away. "Thank you," he said stiffly.

She paused, as though she expected him to say more. Her eyes narrowed. a.s.sessing.

"You are right to be careful here," she said, and was gone.

THE MAIDS BROUGHT his clothes-brushed and pressed-before he finished his coffee and biscuits. Luckily, none of them offered to help him dress. When he had resumed his clothing, a runner took him through a labyrinth of hallways and galleries, up two flights of stairs, to a wing populated entirely with offices. They were all beautiful and yet utterly businesslike, very unlike the frothy silk-strewn chambers he'd glimpsed below.

Mistress Eva Denk received him with a perfunctory smile. Her office, he noted as he took his seat, was s.p.a.cious and neat. There were no windows here, but two lamps hung from the ceiling, and a branch of candles sputtered on the table next to her desk. She was exactly like her letters-forthright and competent. He knew her history from his own investigations. She was born in Duenne, had risen from apprentice to senior clerk for one of the leading merchants of the city. After twenty long years with that same merchant, she had given up her position to work for Kosenmark. It spoke of the man's persuasion.

She offered him wine. He politely refused. That brought another smile. Was she testing him?

"You have an interesting history," she said.

Gerek shrugged.

Denk frowned slightly and let her gaze fall to the papers on her desk. Among them, Gerek recognized his own resume, plus several letters that ostensibly came from his previous employers, including the letter of introduction from Maester Aereson, a merchant in Ournes Province. Denk would find no fault with any of them. Gerek had written them himself, modeling his career on that of an old tutor. Informal studies at the University at Duenne, regrettably incomplete. Several years at various posts as tutor, scribe, or general factotum. His latest posting had come to an end when Maester Aereson's sons grew older, and Gerek thought a warmer climate might suit him. An acquaintance had mentioned that Lord Kosenmark needed a new secretary.

"You understand the terms?" Denk asked.

"I do." Short sentences were best. He could manage those.

"Your pay? Your duties?"

Again he nodded. He was to handle all correspondence and to keep Lord Kosenmark's schedule. For that he would receive a monthly sum of ten gold denier, plus his room and board. If his duties required finer clothes, say for a meeting with n.o.bles such as Lord Vieth, Lord Kosenmark would provide them. He would have one rest day every week, plus an afternoon to himself twice a month.

It was all very easy and pleasant. Too easy. Denk asked him fewer questions than he expected, and her apparent lack of interest in his credentials puzzled Gerek. He once tried to expand on his supposed employment with Maester Aereson. Mistress Denk had waved aside his speech with the comment, "Lord Kosenmark will want to know surely. The decision is his, not mine, to make."

It would be, Gerek thought. If everything Dedrick had hinted at were true, this man wanted more than a secretary, he wanted an accomplice.

An accomplice for treason, Gerek thought. But first I need to find the proof, before I go to the king or any of his people.

And he would find it here-he knew it-in this house.

"MAESTER HESSLER."

Lord Kosenmark studied Gerek over the tips of his fingers.

"My lord." Gerek bowed.

"Sit," Kosenmark said. "And let us discuss the possibility of your employment here."