And, of course, a lot depended upon whether Justinian was totally beyond reach! If he were, if Alicia’s marriage to Justinian were no longer possible, Mirami could change her intentions in a moment. Although . . . Wasn’t it possible Alicia might make another, loftier conquest that could prove easier and much quicker than Justinian? Couldn’t Wold be obtained later on, in some other way? Well, easy enough to find out!
When in company at court, she had almost always dressed in subdued colors, so as not to be noticed with particularity, so as to fade into the crowd. Today, she went into closets she had not used in years and brought out youthful gowns she barely remembered. She sent for dressmakers to modify and retrim her garments so she could appear in the bright colors the queen had mentioned. She summoned the queen’s hairdresser and had her own hair arranged loosely, girlishly. Standing before her mirror, she decided that over her underclothing she would wear only the dress, no jewels. No jewels at all. Not at her neck, not at her wrists, not in her hair. None at all.
She had jewels. The Old Dark Man had left jewels in the Old Dark House. Her father had given her jewels. Mirami had many and wore many; she often glittered, so Alicia thought, like a parade horse. Though most of the women at court would consider going without jewels to be an admission of failure, Alicia had observed something interesting about gems. Gems were sexually enticing only to women—or boys—who were being bought and paid for. When a man saw gems on a woman, he knew the woman could be or had been bought—or had merely been well paid when she was younger, as Mirami had been. Women really wore gems in order to impress other women.
Alicia did not care how other women regarded her. She did not want the king to look at her jewels. Alicia preferred that the king should look at the skin of her bosom, delicately rouged; at the depths of her eyes, enlarged and enhanced; at her willow-slender waist, the delicacy of her hands and ankles. She would not blind him with the hard glint of gems attesting to former owners or masters. No. No jewels. She would definitely make him look elsewhere.
If Precious Wind had used the ul xaolat, the thing master, to summon a transporter, to move herself, she could have gone from one place to another in an instant. It was one of the things the device could do, allowing its holder to escape almost any danger. One had to have a clear mental picture of where one wanted to go, however, and that place had to be within a half a day’s travel by ordinary means. She could not use it to go to Tingawa or to Woldsgard unless she could concentrate on a chain of locations in between. It would be impossible to use the device to cross an ocean! One wave looked like every other wave. She could not even use the device to get to Merhaven, for the terrain ahead was totally unfamiliar to her. Besides, she did not intend to leave the wolf pack behind.
All of which did not mean the device was useless! The ul xaolat could also be used to summon a hunter, which meant the time normally used for hunting could be used for travel. Each morning of their journey she had placed one finger on the device in her pocket and spoke to the air, directing the ul xaolat to summon the hunter and have it find a legitimate prey animal—it would not attack anything that looked even remotely human—and leave it where she and the pack would arrive by the time dusk fell.
Each day she had driven until the sun went down, stopping only once to rest and water the horses. As dusk fell this evening, as on every other, she and her pack came upon their evening meal lying near the road. Last night had been deer. Tonight it was pig. She pulled the carriage off the road and called to the wolves. The hunter stood at the edge of the trees, visible only as a wavering of the air. If one knew what one was looking at, one could make out the evasive shimmer of manipulating talons and penetrating lances. One might see a faint haze surrounding it when it lifted into the air and went off on whatever hunt had been ordered. Mostly, it went totally unnoticed, but the wolves knew it was there. She walked among them, soothing them. Precious Wind wanted the wolves to recognize the servants of the ul xaolat—the hunter, the carrier, the transporter—and to know these strange things belonged to her, that they would not, could not, harm the wolves.
While they feasted, she unharnessed the horses and gave them their evening oats. The wolves still made them too nervous to eat. They shifted and swiveled on their picket lines until the wolves had eaten their fill and she had sent the pack away.
For some things, horse senses were keener than those of mankind. For some things, wolf senses were keener than those of mankind. A man would not notice the smell of a wolf pack; a man would not notice the slight glimmer of the hunter, except for one man perhaps, one man on this side of the sea.
As a child, Mirami had lived in the Old Dark House, supposedly with the Old Dark Man. From what was said about him, he may well have known about such ancient devices. However, the Old Dark Man had disappeared before Mirami left the place, and Mirami was not known to have used any ancient device. However, Alicia had used them. She had used an ancient device to kill the princess. That fact had caused much puzzlement and argument in Tingawa. How had she obtained it? How had she learned to use it? They were forced to assume Alicia had found the thing and its instructions in the Old Dark House. However she had found and learned how to use the other devices, Alicia’s usual mode of travel proved she had not used a thing master. Even if she had, the ul xaolat would not have killed humans for her, and Alicia was not interested in a weapon she could not turn upon humans.
The problem of Alicia deferred, the problem of wolf feeding solved to her satisfaction, she had turned to another. Day after day she had ruminated over it: what was she to do about Bear? The problem had been bothering her since the first evidence of his betrayal, back at the abbey. She would not have thought him capable of dishonor, even impatient as he was to get home to Tingawa. Considering everything Precious Wind had learned and now suspected about Alicia, Duchess of Altamont, however, it was possible his betrayal had been forced upon him. In that case, killing him would be an injustice. If the woman could use genetic material to make mirrors, to send killing clouds, she could use them for creating obsessions, for faking the presence of someone, the calling from someone. The only problem with this idea was how Alicia could have obtained material from Bear’s betrothed. No ships had come from Tingawa in years!
As she picked each part of her argument apart, however, she realized there would have been no difficulty in obtaining the materials if they had been sent before all sea traffic stopped! Bear had been at Woldsgard for over a decade. His presence there was well known. The fact that he was betrothed was general knowledge, and some ships had arrived shortly after he did.
That would mean, however, that Alicia had intended to dispose of all Tingawans from the beginning. Her malice had not been directed at the princess only.
So, Precious Wind thought, if I accept that Alicia is quite capable of indiscriminate hatred toward all Tingawans, if I accept that she wants all the Tingawans dead, as her messages to Jenger have made clear, what is her motive for all this?
If one wished to understand the enemy’s strengths and weaknesses, one had to understand motives, and Precious Wind could not find any sensible motive: Alicia had never been to Tingawa; she would not profit in any way from Bear’s death or Precious Wind’s death or the death of a Xakixa. There was a motive for Xu-i-lok’s death, granted, but why the rest of them?
Was Alicia looking ahead to a time when she and her mother would rule all Norland? Did they wish to free Norland from all foreign influences even before that time came? Even supposing that Alicia had been promised some gift by the Sea King’s ambassador, the question was still not answered. Tingawa, almost alone among nations, had been a friend of the Sea King for generations.
There was one answer to this, of course. In Tingawa, in certain circles, when one was completely puzzled, one put the question, “Who stands behind?” Who is the cause behind a cause, what is the motive behind a motive? If one asked that question, one assumed Mirami and Alicia were only tools, that something or someone else was the puppet master.
Clan Do-Lok had not considered this. Precious Wind had preferred not to consider this, but now she felt it had to be taken seriously. She had to assume someone or something else had set Alicia into motion for a reason, however obscure, insane, or ancient that reason might be. If that motive had been planted in ancient times, then Alicia or her mother, or someone else, could have sent for the materials to enchant Bear years, even decades ago. They could have arrived on the same ship Bear had first arrived on.
If this were the case, she could acquit Bear of having sold his honor. He might be no more guilty of betrayal than Xu-i-lok had been of her own death.
So . . . if Precious Wind encountered him on this journey, what should she do? For the moment, think of something else, clear her mind. She did so, and slept.
By the following afternoon she was traveling east. The road curved south just ahead, where it entered the cut in the southern edge of the highlands that took the road down a long ravine toward the sea. The mountains to her right had given way to flat tableland, and as she looked across the level plain to the southwest she saw two huge, mirrored eyes staring at her over the edge of the highland, startling her into pulling up on the reins before she realized she was seeing the great convex bosses of stone that faced the two peaks of Frog Eye Mountain. The eyes were still glossy after untold ages of weather. She smiled at her own surprise. She had heard of them, seen them on her maps, and they were indeed as strange as they were reported to be. Some said they were polished by ghosts or spirits of the forest. Who- or whatever kept them shining, they were amazing.
She flicked the reins and had just brought the horses back to their easy canter when she saw a lone rider emerging over the lip of the Cut, just ahead of her. It was a very large horse carrying a huge bulk, a powerful shape unlikely to be anyone else. He must have started back from Merhaven almost immediately after arriving there to be so far north! She prayed he had not seen, or not recognized, Xulai and Abasio upon the road.
In that instant, all her doubts reconciled and she decided upon on a course that would provide for Bear’s redemption, possibly for his life, while at the same time not requiring that she trust him. That she could no longer do. He must believe Xulai is dead, she reminded herself. He must not go near the abbey, for a number of people there know Xulai is alive. Even if she sent a pigeon to warn the abbot and Wordswell to keep silent, the warning might not shut all mouths. The people from Woldsgard would, by this time, be at least halfway home, so they would not speak to Bear, but others might. Bear must be focused elsewhere.
She spared a quick thought for her followers. She did not want Bear to know about the wolves, either. It was not yet noon. They shadowed her well within the woods that still covered the hillsides to her left. They would not approach her when someone else was with her. The hunter device was far ahead.
She flicked the reins and speeded up a little. She and her pack still had to reach their dinner by sunset tonight and she would lose whatever time she spent talking with Bear. She must keep their conversation brief, saying she could not linger. She remembered to smile sadly when he approached, letting her face tell the story before her lips did.
All for nothing! Bear was bursting with words even before he arrived, shouting at her, telling her she must come with him immediately to Merhaven, telling her she must let him take the ship that had waited there for Xulai. Had she found Xulai? He pulled to a breathless halt beside her.
“Dead,” said Precious Wind flatly. “She is gone.”
He stopped. Hope leapt within her at this cessation. Would he grieve?
Ah, but he did not stop long enough even to sorrow!
Too quickly, too eagerly, he said, “Well then, there’s nothing we can do. There’s nothing to prevent our going home.”
“I’m afraid there is,” she replied in an icy voice that wiped all eagerness from his face. “My oath, for one. I was sworn to exact vengeance upon those who killed Xu-i-lok. And now upon those who took Xulai. That would be the duchess Alicia and perhaps also her mother. You were also sworn, Bear, sworn in the temple, by the priests. If the Great Bear of Zol returns to Tingawa without having done his sworn duty, he will be known to be forsworn and the family of his bride will not have him.”
Bear had been so involved in his own urgencies he had forgotten the fringing details of his oath. Being known to be forsworn had not occurred to him; he had never considered it, and in his driving need to go home he had forgotten that the princess’s death was the beginning of an ancillary task, not the end of the journey. It had been too long! It had taken too much time!
He said as much, angrily, with evil words cast upon the priests who had sworn him.
“I don’t recall any limitation being placed upon us,” said Precious Wind when he had run out of fury. “In any case, it’s now a matter that can be dealt with in a timely fashion. We know who was responsible. Alicia, Duchess of Altamont, is now either at the Old Dark House or at Ghastain. There is a Tingawan embassy in Ghastain. You have an excellent reason to go there. When I have finished certain tasks I am required to perform, I may have time to join you there. If not, you will find me in Merhaven. Even if you include all the travel needed to get to Ghastain and back, you should be finished before winter is over. The trip home will be easier in spring. I dislike winter storms at sea.”
“What do you have to do?” he asked, grasping at any straws that would force her to go to Merhaven at once.
“I have certain duties to perform for Xu-i-lok’s father that may not be discussed with anyone. Listen to me, Bear, look at me! You may not go near the abbey. They suspect you of having conspired in the abduction and murder of Xulai.”
He glared at her, mouth open to answer but no words coming out, his face reddening. Both his face and his silence damned him.
“I know this is nonsense,” she said in a soothing tone that hid her disgust. “I know you would not be forsworn in that way. We both know no Tingawan Great Bear could possibly do so, but we have no time to spend in allaying their suspicions. You must pass the abbey without being seen. You must go to our embassy in Ghastain and find out whether the duchess is in Ghastain. You must tell our people that she was the mover behind the abduction and death of Xulai. Alicia is the daughter of the queen. The people of Ghastain will not act against the duchess except with the queen’s or king’s permission, which I doubt would be given. You can, however, consult with our people as to proper vengeance. Also, I have something for you and something that must be taken to them.”
She burrowed into her pouch and removed Justinian’s receipt. “The duke sent a treasure to the abbey six months ago, to reward you for your faithful service. Here is the receipt. We found that the prior had stolen the money.” She held it before his eyes and waited. His flush vanished. His face turned pale, ashen.
“He did send it. My bride-price.”
“I told you he had sent it. Yes, your bride-price, and more than that. It is not lost. The prior is dead, and the treasure is being recovered and sent on to Merhaven. It should be there by the time we are ready to leave.” She burrowed a hand into her pocket and removed the three messages that had been sent to Jenger in the Vulture Tower, the three she had brought back from there and had carried ever since Wordswell had returned them to her. “These are in the handwriting of the Duchess of Altamont, Alicia, daughter of Queen Mirami. The first directs her servant, Jenger, to abduct Xulai. The second directs him to murder you. The third directs him to murder any Tingawan he can get hold of.” She sighed deeply. “It was your abrupt departure after Xulai’s disappearance that led the people of the abbey to suspect you, but let me say again: we do not have time to deal with their accusations now. You must avoid the abbey. They have an army and you cannot fight an army.”
Bear did not speak. The news that Jenger had received orders to kill him coupled with the fact he had been wrong about Justinian had, for the moment, frozen him. When he spoke, it was in a whisper. “Xulai. You found her?”
“I received word
from those who found her,” said Precious Wind. “I went to the place where she was held and wept at what I saw there.”
“How did you get these?” he demanded, holding the messages out to her.
“I found them in Jenger’s things at the Vulture Tower,” she replied. “He had been killed, possibly by wolves.” It was certainly possible, though she thought it unlikely. “I would have sent them to our embassy by messenger bird when I arrived in Merhaven.”
“You won’t,” he said.
“Won’t?”
“Arrive in Merhaven. Well, not the old Merhaven. It isn’t there anymore. What’s left of the town has been moved uphill. They aren’t even building permanent piers anymore. They’re building floating ones that can be hauled up the slope as the water rises. Our shipping office there has only the one ship, the Falsa-xin, the Daywind, and they refused to let me take it. They said only you can take it. Or Xulai.”
“Well, ship or no, my messages must be sent to Tingawa and Merhaven is the only place I can send them from. Meantime, you must find out where Alicia is. If she is at Ghastain, give these messages to our embassy, and they will make appropriate decisions.”
“And if she’s not there?”
“She’ll be at the Old Dark House. You know where it is. How you exact vengeance is your business. Remember how she works. Guard yourself.”
He stood there, very like a bear, standing but weaving slightly, as though he found balancing on his own feet very difficult. She knew he was weighing all that she had told him. If he went back to Tingawa, he could not lie to the Do-Lok family. They had truth tellers among them who could read a lie as another would read words on a page, so he could not claim to have fulfilled his oath if he had not. Standing there, so at a loss, so worried, he seemed to her almost pitiable.
She said softly, “You’ve been in a great turmoil, Bear. It may not be your fault. Alicia may have obtained genetic material from Tingawa, from your betrothed. She may have used this to send a ghost of Legami-am to haunt you, to twist your mind, your nerves . . .”