The Magicians And Mrs. Quent Part 45

"So that's who you've been running away from," he said.

Eldyn shook his head, still trying to understand what had just happened. "What did you say?"

"I know you've been on the sly. Moving out of your apartment so quickly, the way you're always casting glances over your shoulder. By the look on your face when that tall fellow came into view, I can only guess he's the one you've been trying to avoid. Bad luck to run right into him, wasn't it?"

Eldyn frowned. "How do you know all that?"

The young man gave a sheepish grin, then chewed his lip.

"Have you been following me?" A fresh dread came over Eldyn. "By G.o.d, are you in league with him?"

The other laughed. "Would I have helped you escape from him if that were the case?"

Eldyn was forced to admit he had a point. But if the other had helped him to escape, how had it been done? It was as if the shadows that usually cowered from the sun by day, in corners and beneath grates, had crept out to cloak them....

The bright light burned the last of the gloom from Eldyn's brain. It had been an illusion, of course. He looked again at the young man and realized it was not the first time he had seen him. The beard was a new affectation, but otherwise he looked just as he had that night on Durrow Street, outside the Theater of the Moon.

Only it wasn't just outside the theater Eldyn had seen him, was it? He thought of the silvery form he had glimpsed in the darkness.

"The moon in the play," Eldyn said. "That was you."

The young man grinned and bowed with a flourish. "I trust you enjoyed the performance."

Eldyn had, but the illusions had not ended when he left the theater that night. "You followed me. I saw a shadow behind me when I entered the Sword and Leaf, and then again when I left. I thought it was my imagination, only it was you."

"You saw that? You weren't as drunk as you appeared. Don't look so offended-if someone was watching over you, perhaps you should be glad of it. Duskfellow's is not exactly a safe place to take a nap at night. You frightened that one robber off with your trick, conjuring that ghost, but others would have found you soon enough if-"

"If you hadn't covered me with shadows," Eldyn said, understanding at last. "Fair enough. I am glad you were there. But that doesn't explain why you were following me then. Or today."

The young man shrugged. "Our theater is always looking for new talent, and I saw what you could do with shadows. Working light is the same, really, the other side of the coin. Besides, you seem..." He shook his head. "Well, it doesn't matter. We know each other now. Or we should, at any rate. My name is Dercent Argray Fanewerthy. It's an awful name, I know. From the moment of my birth, my dear parents were evidently trying to make it a certainty that I would run away and join the theater at the earliest possible moment. Everyone calls me Dercy. Everyone I don't despise, that is."

Despite all that had happened, Eldyn couldn't help returning the other's grin as well as his handshake. He introduced himself. Then a new wonder struck him.

"Dercy?" he said. He thought back to that night half a year ago, when he went to see the angel, and the old priest shouted at him.

What are you doing, Brother Dercent? the older priest had said to the younger. Are you talking to someone out there?

"The old church at St. Adaris," Eldyn realized aloud.

Now it was the other's turn to appear surprised. "How did you know that I...? Wait a minute, I know why you look familiar. Brother Garus thought it was an illusionist that night, come to the church to taunt us, but it was you there in the shadows."

Eldyn could only nod.

"I took you for an illusionist as well," Dercy said. "Not that I was as outraged as Brother Garus at the notion. On the contrary, I left St. Adaris not a month after. Much to the disappointment of my parents, I'm sure. Not that I've spoken to them since they gave me over to the deacon at St. Adaris. I suppose they thought it would keep me out of trouble. Shows how little they knew about priests."

These words struck Eldyn like a blow. To think that Dercy had tossed away what Eldyn had always dreamed of. "You left the Church?"

"Yes! And you are partly to blame, Mr. Garritt. After seeing you that night, I knew I could not stay there, that there were better things waiting for me beyond those iron fences. Brother Garus said you were wicked, a devil, but I knew he was wrong. Scripture says that evil can come under the guise of beauty, and perhaps that's so, but beauty that is true-there can never be ill in that. Though I glimpsed you for only a moment that night, I knew fat old Garus was wrong about you. For, I thought, how could one be wicked when he looked so much like an angel?"

He suddenly fell silent and glanced away. Eldyn was grateful, for he could not suppress a grimace. He was no illusionist, but he thought of the things he had done, and he wondered if Brother Garus wasn't right, if he wasn't a wicked thing. He had always told himself it was his father who had kept him from entering the Church, but what if that wasn't the reason at all? What if he was simply afraid G.o.d wouldn't have him?

Dercy turned back, and his expression became one of worry. He reached a hand toward Eldyn- -then pulled back, his eyes growing large. "Behind you," he said.

Eldyn looked over his shoulder, and his heart lurched up into his throat. A tall figure in a rich coat of russet velvet walked up the street. Eldyn turned back to tell Dercy to run.

The street in front of him was empty. He looked in either direction, but there was no sign of the other young man anywhere. Dercy was gone. He had woven his illusions and had abandoned Eldyn. Nor was there any time for Eldyn to work his own trick with shadows. He started to dash up the street, but his boot caught on a stone and he went sprawling to the cobbles, knocking his chin so hard he saw stars.

A strong hand gripped his arm, pulled him to his feet, and dragged him into the dimness of an alleyway.

"h.e.l.lo, Mr. Garritt," Westen said.

Eldyn let out a strangled sound and tried to flee, but the other's grip was too strong. The highwayman pressed him against the wall.

"I am displeased with you, Mr. Garritt. I am sure I made myself very clear when last we spoke, and though it was many months ago, I am certain you can recall what we discussed."

Eldyn shook his head. "But I thought that-"

"You thought I had forgotten, that I had other matters to concern me, and that I was far away." He smiled. "Well, as you can see, I am very much here. And I have not forgotten our agreement."

Words burst out of Eldyn in a babble. "I can get you the money.... I can give you some of it today...if you would just let me...I can earn the rest." He was ashamed of the fear in his voice, ashamed of the way he trembled. "I'll pay you back, I swear it."

"Do you honestly think it's the regals I care about?" Westen said in a good-natured tone. "Trust me, I have far more gold than that little sum I gave you. Or haven't you been reading the broadsheets of late?" He brushed his coat aside, revealing a fat purse at his belt. He let the coat fall back, and his tone became more serious. "No, it is not gold you have robbed me of, Mr. Garritt. Rather, it is my reputation. You see, men know that I always honor my promises. That is why they trust me. But that trust must go both ways, and so the men I do business with must see that if one does not honor his promises to me, there are consequences for that breach of trust."

He put a hand beneath Eldyn's chin, lifting Eldyn's gaze to meet his own.

"Do you understand me?"

Eldyn nodded, then winced, for his chin still smarted.

"Are you well, Mr. Garritt? You took quite a tumble there." The highwayman ran a thumb along his jaw, stroking it. Somehow that gentle touch was worse than any blow.

"Please," Eldyn said, his words hoa.r.s.e. "Do with me what you will, but leave my sister out of this. It is not her fault."

Westen arched an eyebrow. "Do with you what I will, you say? Indeed, I could think of a thing or two to do with you, Mr. Garritt. I always thought your sister pretty, but you are prettier still." His hand moved down to Eldyn's throat, fingers encircling it, squeezing ever so slightly. "Tell me, Mr. Garritt, is this how I should punish you?"

The highwayman leaned forward and pressed his lips to Eldyn's in a kiss. Eldyn let out a moan, and new shame flooded him.

Westen drew back, a grin on his face. "Pervert. You should be back down at Durrow Street. I know you've been going there. But don't fear-others might frown upon the Siltheri, but I know they have a part to play in what's to come. How can the king's men engage an army that isn't there or predict the motions of a foe they cannot see?"

Eldyn scrubbed his mouth with the back of his hand. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't you? Then understand this. You are mine, Eldyn Garritt. You belong to me. I bought you for a hundred regals. You will carry what messages I say, to whom I say, and when I say. That is the nature of our relationship. Out of generosity-indeed, out of benevolent affection-I am giving you one last chance to behave. But if you choose not to..."

His smile did not waver, but it became a feral expression, a display of teeth and hunger.

"If you choose to fail me again, I will have no choice but to approach your sister at some moment you are not with her-and you cannot always be with her. Nor can you hide her from me. I know where she is at this very minute, at the inn on the edge of Lowpark. I will lure her to me with flattering words. I will take her to some secret place under the guise of showing her some delightful thing." He bent his head, lips brushing against Eldyn's ear. "And there I will ravage her in the most brutal fashion, over and over again, until she is utterly ruined, in spirit and in body, fit only to be a Waterside wh.o.r.e-until the time comes, no doubt sooner rather than later, when she drinks herself into her grave."

Where it came from, Eldyn didn't know. Perhaps he had inherited some small part of Vandimeer Garritt after all. Fear burned away as a hot rage flared up within him. He clenched his hand into a fist, then with all his might threw a punch at Westen's face.

The highwayman stepped aside and brought his hand up, deflecting the blow. As Eldyn's arm came down, Westen grasped it and twisted it about the wrist, so that Eldyn let out a gasp. His anger burned to a cinder and was extinguished. No, he was not his father.

"You cannot fight me, Mr. Garritt." Westen's smile returned. "But I think you see that now. You will resume your work at once. I have no doubt you recall what to do. Simply read the advertis.e.m.e.nts in The Fox as you did before. Do you understand?"

Eldyn stared. His eyes stung, and his jaw throbbed. He wanted to lie down in the street and let the people, the horses, pa.s.s over him, until he was ground into the stones and was gone.

Westen twisted his wrist another degree. "Answer me, Mr. Garritt. Do we have an agreement?"

No, there was no need to lie in the street; he was already worn down. Eldyn opened his mouth to speak the word he must.

"There he is!" shouted a voice. "In that alley there-the tall one, just like I told you."

Eldyn jerked his head up at the sound of boots against stone. Westen turned around. A pair of the king's redcrests ran into view from up the street. They must have come from their post by the Lowgate. In a moment they were upon Westen, gripping his arms from either side.

"Caught in the very act, it would seem," one of the men said. "Don't you robbers usually wait until nightfall, or have you become so brazen you'll accost a gentleman in broad daylight?"

Eldyn felt a cacophony of emotions: relief, pain, and a kind of aching grat.i.tude at the soldier's words. A gentleman, the man had called him. Even as Eldyn thought this, he noticed that Westen's coat, so rich a moment ago, now appeared shabby and patched. Eldyn's own coat, decent but plain, was now richly embroidered with gold. Beyond the soldiers, another figure came into view. It was Dercy, grinning.

"You are mistaken," Westen said smoothly, letting go of Eldyn's hand. Eldyn could only be impressed at his calm. "My friend and I were merely having a friendly disagreement. I am no thief-as I am sure you will agree if you give me a chance to explain."

Or, rather, if they give him a chance to bribe them, Eldyn thought. He doubted it would be the first time the highwayman had bought himself freedom with gold.

Eldyn looked up at the soldiers. His gold...

"Is this true, sir?" the redcrest asked him. "Do you know this man?"

Eldyn licked his lips. "Yes, it is true," he said, and Westen grinned.

"It is true," Eldyn went on, his voice rising, "that this man is not just a common thief but, I believe, the very worst sort of criminal-a traitor to the Crown."

In a quick motion he reached forward, his hand darting inside Westen's coat, and s.n.a.t.c.hed away the purse. Westen grabbed for it but only succeeded in knocking it from Eldyn's grasp. The purse fell to the cobbles and burst open in a glittering spray.

For a moment all of them stared at the gold coins that tumbled to the street, then one of the soldiers bent to pick up a coin. He held it in front of him, turning it around so that it caught the sunlight. Seven stars glittered on one side and a sickle shape on the other.

"By G.o.d, no common thief indeed," the soldier said. "I suppose there are nine hundred ninety-nine more Murghese crescents just like this one." He tightened his grip on Westen's arm. "You should have run to Torland like the broadsheets said."

The other soldier had already whistled and motioned with his hand. Several more redcrests came into view. They grasped Westen and pulled him into the street. The highwayman did not resist. One of the soldiers asked Eldyn if he was well, if he knew this man. Eldyn said he was fine and that he had never seen his a.s.sailant before. It was only things the thief had said that had made him think he was a traitor. The soldiers told him he could go and that he had done a service for king and country. That this rebel would hang in Barrowgate was a certainty, they said.

Eldyn moved away, but after a few steps he turned and glanced back over his shoulders. Westen was looking at him. The highwayman grinned and shook his head. Despite the warm sunlight, a shiver coursed through Eldyn. Then the soldiers turned Westen around, not gently, and hauled him toward the Lowgate.

"Are you all right?" Dercy said beside him. "I came as fast as I could. It took a moment to make the soldiers believe me. I had to-" He made a weaving motion with his fingers. "Well, you know. I had no idea about the gold though. Brilliant stroke of luck that was."

The soldiers pa.s.sed through the Lowgate and were gone. Eldyn let out a breath. "Come on," he said. "Let's go get a drink."

"G.o.d be praised!" Dercy said, draping an arm around Eldyn's shoulder as the two went in search of the nearest tavern.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO.

B RIGHTDAY CAME, AND again the MadderlyStoneworth Hostel for the Deranged was open to visitors. However, as before, Ivy was allowed only to observe Mr. Lockwell through the small window in the door of his cell.

She watched her father pace in circles, sometimes pausing to make twisting motions with his hands. His hair and beard were matted, his face slack and grayish. Ivy wanted to call to him through the door, to tell him that she had written to Lord Rafferdy, that soon they would take him out of there, that they would take him home. However, before she could speak, the day warden shut the window.

The subject's behavior was very atypical, the warden said as he led her back to the front gate. They did not yet understand the nature of his malady. Until they did, they could not risk any sort of contamination. He must remain isolated. She could come back next week if she wished. They would in no way be surprised if she did not.

"I will come," she said.

The warden nodded absently and shut the gate behind her.

When she arrived back at Whitward Street, she told Rose and Lily to get ready for church. Lily dragged about. What could G.o.d care, she complained, if they sat in a musty old building and listened to some man droning on?

"We do not go because G.o.d cares," Ivy said, putting on her bonnet, "but because we care, and because our mother cared. Now get your shawl. It's chilly out."

The church was no more than half full, and Ivy was forced to concede the quality of the sermon was likely to do little to change Lily's opinions. The priest mumbled through it, and his surplice, while thankfully clean, was in need of mending. Pigeons flapped among the rafters, unnerving those in the pews-especially the ones who had worn their best hats.

However, when the time came to kneel in prayer, she forgot the birds and the dull sermon, and the dust on the windows only made the light that fell through them all the more golden. Bathed in that light, she shut her eyes and bowed her head in prayer.

She meant to pray for her mother, and for her father, and for Mr. Quent's safe return. Instead, it was the words of the first prayer she had learned as a girl that came as a murmur to her lips. Though I stand in darkness, I will fear no shadow. Though I am lost, I will know the way. Though I dwell in sorrow, I will weep no tears. For I am not alone.

It seemed impossible-nothing in her life had changed, and the old church was as dilapidated as ever-but all the same her heart felt lighter as she walked with her sisters down the steps of the church. When they reached the bottom and saw a tall young gentleman in a gray coat step from a glossy four-in-hand, her spirits rose higher yet.

"Mr. Rafferdy!" Lily shouted before Ivy could say anything. She dashed forward to greet him, Rose barely a step behind her.

Lily held out her hand, demanding that it be kissed. Mr. Rafferdy graciously obliged and would have given Rose the same greeting, but she became shy and bowed her head as he tipped his hat to her.

"I'm very cross with you!" Lily p.r.o.nounced as Ivy joined them. "We haven't seen you in months, and then Ivy gets to go to a party with you the moment she arrives back in the city."

"I told you it wasn't a party," Ivy said. "We met quite by chance and had tea, that's all."

"You should at least have called on us," Lily went on. "Fifteen minutes would have done. Your manners are dreadful, Mr. Rafferdy."

"Lily!"

Ivy was prepared to say more, but Rafferdy affected a serious look and bowed toward Lily. "You're quite right to chastise me. I am, as our liege above certainly knows, an awful man."

"No, you aren't!" Rose exclaimed, looking up. "You're anything but awful. The priest said G.o.d is in the light, and there's light all around you. I can see it even when my eyes are shut. It's blue and silver, not green and gold like Ivy, but every bit as bright. Maybe brighter."

Rafferdy c.o.c.ked his head and gazed at her. "I'm not quite sure what you mean, Miss Rose."

"She doesn't mean anything," Lily said, rolling her eyes. "Rose says all sorts of silly things. Don't pay it any attention."

"It's not silly," Rose said, and it seemed she wanted to say more, but she grew fl.u.s.tered.

Ivy took her hand. "Come, dearest. We had best walk home before it rains."