Close Contact (16 page)

But then why should he? The only other people on Madrea were the Bashalde and they seemed content with their nomadic existence. And as I’d learned early on, his soldiers were more than capable of stopping the random intruder.

Tucking the information away, I followed Reynard inside. The hall was as wide as both doors, and the sound of music and voices drifted from just ahead. Peri bounced with excitement as she landed on my shoulder and then bobbed her head in time to the melody.

Reynard smiled down at me as we walked, Marcus close beside us. “Nervous?”

“Not in the least, now that I’m off that animal. I’m used to events like this. But I have to tell you, I’d prefer to walk home afterwards.”

“Arrow will be devastated.” His smile remained in place as he ushered me forward, so I knew he was teasing. “He doesn’t often get the chance to carry such a beautiful lady.”

“I’m sure he’ll get over it,” I told him wryly. We’d stopped in the entryway of a great hall filled with people, and the murmur of conversation died as they saw us. A quick scan told me I was the only female present dressed in the Bashalde manner, so I wasn’t sure if they were staring at me or Peri, or simply because I was with the commander. Maybe it was all of the above.

Ignoring them, I took a longer look, checking for anyone who might be Braxus. If he was there, I couldn’t pick him out. All I saw was a sea of faces turned in our direction, sparkling lights, and walls adorned with colorful tapestries.

At one end of the hall, men and women wearing the drab, modest clothing that was normal in Bastion City mingled with men who were obviously Bashalde. To my surprise, there were equal numbers of commoners and merchants mixed in with what seemed to be the gentry.

The other half of the room was set with long tables punctuated with floral arrangements between white dishes edged in gold. From numerous doors behind them wafted the delicious scent of roasting meat and spices.

Directly across from where we stood, the hall was divided by a dais holding a large, hand-carved wooden chair. The man occupying the seat was probably the only one in the room who hadn’t immediately stopped what he was doing to stare at us. Instead, he leaned over the arm, talking earnestly
to Jancen, who stood beside him, head tilted as he listened intently to whatever the man was saying.

King Politaus. I recognized him immediately from the first vid I’d watched of Madrea. Tonight he was dressed in a flattering green-gold combination that went well with his coloring, his belt set with emeralds and topaz. A slim gold band that sat low on his head was the only sign of his station.

I noted all this in only a second or two while Peri launched into the air, circling us as Reynard’s hands went to my shoulders to remove my cloak and give it to the waiting doorman. Her antics drew the attention of those on the dais, and Jancen smiled as he looked over and motioned for us to join him.

When we started forward, the voices resumed, louder now, but I ignored them, my focus on the dais as Peri resumed her favorite seat. Another few steps and surely I’d be close enough to lock on to the king’s DNA. And because I was paying more attention this time, I felt it when it happened.

It was a bit like catching a pleasant scent and then having it settle in your memory, forever linked with the first time you encountered it. From now on, I’d be able to lock on and visit the king no matter where he might be. Unfortunately, I was close enough to touch him before it happened.

There was one step ascending to the dais, and the king stood as we reached it. Keeping his hand on the small of my back, Reynard gave a short bow. “Your Highness, may I present Echo, daughter of arms master August and cousin to Jancen?”

“Your Royal Highness.” I executed a deep curtsey, holding it until I felt a strange hand on my arm, lifting me erect.

“Please, there’s no need to be so formal.” His voice was rich and kind, and filled with humor, surprising me yet again. “Especially since I feel as if I know you already. Not only
have you turned my usually stoic commander’s head, Jancen can’t stop singing your praises.”

“Thank you, sire.” I graced him with my most brilliant smile. “I’ve heard much about you also.”

“Oh?” His brows arched in an invitation to continue. “You’ve aroused my curiosity.”

“Well.” I paused for effect. “The commander considers you his friend as well as his monarch. His faith in you is unshakable. He says you’re kind, wise, and fair.”

Politaus nodded. “Reynard is like a brother to me. I would expect nothing less.” Briefly, his eyes clouded and I wondered if he was thinking of Braxus. But the expression was fleeting before he wiped it away. “And who else has spoken of me?”

“Jancen,” I promptly replied. “He says you’re a pigheaded, stubborn old woman for not allowing the Federation access to Madrea.”

Jancen winked at me as the king threw his head back and roared with laughter, drawing stares from all over the hall. “Oh, my. I can certainly see why the commander is enamored of you, my dear. He always has valued direct speech. As do I. You remind me of your father in that respect. August was never one to withhold his opinion, whether solicited or not. Will you and your party sit with me at supper and tell me your views on the topic of the Federation?”

Talk about irony. “We’d be happy to, sire. Have you met my guardian, Marcus Kent?”

“I have.” He turned to Marcus with a friendly slap on his shoulder. “Kent. Why has it been so long since you’ve accepted an invitation to join me for supper?”

Marcus gave him a short bow. “My apologies, sire. I’ve only recently returned from an extended trip to restock my wine.”

Interest sparked in the king’s eyes. “Did you visit that small winery in the hill country this time?”

“I did.” Marcus smiled. “And as you requested, two barrels of their red now reside in your cellar.”

“Excellent, excellent!” He rubbed his hands together in anticipation, and then glanced at Jancen. “You’ll want to try this wine, old friend. It’s extraordinary. I’ll have some brought up to go with our meal.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” Jancen told him. As the king’s attention went back to Marcus, the older man moved closer to me.

“How are you today? The last time I saw you, you were unconscious.”

“I’m perfectly fine, I promise.” I patted him on the arm. “It was just a reaction to the events of the day.”

His gaze turned shrewd as he leaned down next to my ear. “I would have thought August’s daughter would be made of sterner stuff than to faint over a failed attempt on her person.”

Uh-oh. I swallowed hard. This old man saw way too much.

“Caught me,” I whispered to him, noting that Reynard came to attention at Jancen’s words and stepped nearer, one hand resting casually on the hilt of his sword. Even Peri went still. I didn’t dare tell him about the Daughter Stone, so once again I was being forced to tell half-truths.

“Honestly? I faked it because I didn’t want to meet Chief Lowden right then.”

“Why not?”

I checked to make sure the king was still involved with Marcus and no one else was close enough to overhear, then lowered my voice even more. “Because the man who threw the knife at me went into Chief Lowden’s tent.”

He reeled back a step, and I steadied him with a hand on his arm before he could draw unwanted attention. “But why would one of Lowden’s men want to hurt you?”

“I don’t know. And without more information it wasn’t prudent to throw myself into a situation I was uncertain about.”

“Well, I certainly can.” He almost vibrated with indignation. “You can be sure I’ll get to the bottom of this as soon as I return to camp.”

Alarm streaked through me. I
liked
Jancen. No way did I want him in the middle of whatever was going on with Lowden.

“No, please, for my sake, stay out of it. Let me handle this my own way.”

He stared at me intently for a moment. “There’s more to this than you want me to know, isn’t there?”

I let my head dip in a slight nod. “Yes.”

A sigh lifted his chest. “When it’s over, will you tell me everything?”

Again, I nodded. “Yes.”

“Then I’ll have your promise that if you get in trouble you’ll come to me.”

“I promise.”

He hesitated. “There’s one more thing. Zeller, Lowden’s cousin and ambassador to the court is here tonight. He’s been watching you closely since you arrived. I thought his interest was because he found you attractive, but now I have to wonder. I’ve never trusted him,” he added.

My first instinct was to turn and look for the man, but I restrained myself. There was a slim possibility his faction thought I was the type that swooned at the first sign of danger. If that was the case, I wanted them to stay deluded. At the least, I didn’t want him to know I was suspicious of Lowden.

“Thank you for the warning,” I told Jancen just as the king’s attention focused back on us.

He smiled expansively as he waved us away. “Reynard, why don’t you introduce Echo around? I’m sure there are many here who would love to meet her. Kent can stay here and keep me company until supper.”

Peri had stayed quiet throughout the entire meeting with the king, but she perked up as Reynard led me from the dais, ruffling her feathers as she peered around to see if anyone was admiring her.

“That was interesting,” I told Reynard. “The king was nothing like I expected him to be.”

Keeping a hand on my arm, he smiled as we paused a few feet from the crowd. “What did you expect?”

“A lecher. Lillith said he’d probably grab my—rear.”

The ship snorted in my ear. “He knows the commander has already staked a claim on you.
That’s
why he didn’t grab your ass. And you need to be more careful. Another few minutes and you’d have spilled your life story to Jancen.”

“Since you’d be so much better at this than I am, would you like to trade places?” I subvocalized. “Oh, wait. You might have problems getting into the outfit.” I let out a dramatic sigh. “Guess you’ll just have to
let me do this my way
.”

“There’s no need to get huffy about it,” she replied.

Reynard arched a brow at me. “What is she saying?”

“How did you know I was talking to my ship?” I asked.

“Because you always get this look in your eyes, like you’re doing battle, when she talks to you.”

“Oh.” I thought about that, then decided he was probably right. “She didn’t say anything important. But I do have a question. Why isn’t Politaus married? I’d think it would be important for him to produce an heir.”

He nodded, a lock of dark chocolate hair falling over his
forehead. “It is important. But men outnumber our women three to one. Finding a suitable female to marry isn’t easy, even for a king.” He glanced back toward the dais. “Fortunately, arrangements have been made with one of the northern families who have a daughter of marriageable age, and the wedding will take place in eight months. She’s a handsome girl with a good heart. She’ll be the perfect wife for Politaus and provide him with many children.”

Another thought occurred to me. “What would happen if Politaus were to die before he had an heir? Who would take the throne then?”

The commander’s face was without expression when he answered. “Braxus would be our only alternative. At least until we could choose someone more fit to rule.”

I glanced back at the dais, suddenly very, very worried. “Reynard, I’m not trying to tell you how to do your job, but you might want to seriously consider assigning more guards to the king. I’ve got a really bad feeling about Braxus.”

“Duly noted,” he said, his eyes going grim. “Especially if he has the Daughter Stone.”

“D
oes Politaus know every single person on Madrea?” I asked Reynard, trying not to scowl as I locked onto the DNA of yet another shopkeeper I’d brushed against in the crowd. Was there a limit to this psi ability of mine? What if I reached my saturation point before I locked onto Lowden’s ambassador?

When I had the time, I really needed to experiment, see if there was a way I could pick and choose whose DNA to store in my head.

“For the most part. It’s what makes him a good ruler. Not only does he go out in public and patronize the shops and businesses, he also sits in judgment on disputes once every four eightdays and he holds these suppers twice a month. The guests vary each time, so everyone is eventually invited.”

“No wonder Treya and Leddy didn’t act surprised when I told them I was having supper with the king.”

Reynard had casually pointed out Lowden’s ambassador earlier and I scanned the crowd, looking for the bright blue of Zeller’s tunic. It was starting to feel like the man was deliberately avoiding me. Every time we wended our way in his direction, he’d head for the other side of the hall.

When I finally spotted him, he was in conversation with another man, his back to us, and closer than he’d been all evening long.

With barely a touch on the commander’s arm to get his attention, we strolled toward the ambassador. “Who’s he talking to?” I murmured.

The man was about as plain as they come. Average height, average weight, simple clothes, brown hair and eyes. He was the kind of man who could fade into the background and no one would ever remember he’d been there.

“That’s Chine, Braxus’s man,” Reynard said, his voice as low as mine.

“Good. I really need to get a lock on him. Maybe I can catch him near Braxus later tonight.”

He looked at me curiously. “Can you travel in your other form?”

Good question. I’d never tried it, but I’d taken a step forward in Dr. Daniels’s office, so I had to assume it was possible. “I think so.”

“Then it doesn’t matter if you collect Chine’s DNA. I can wait outside Braxus’s living quarters and you can simply come to me.”

I shook my head. “Reynard, I don’t want to get you any more involved in this than absolutely necessary. Besides, there may come a time when I need to find Chine and you won’t be able to help.” A woman to our right was leaning in our direction, trying to overhear our conversation. I sent her my best political smile as we moved closer to Zeller and Chine.

“You have a point about Chine, but I am involved,” he responded calmly. “How could I not be, when those two children are in danger? Besides, my loyalty is to Politaus, not Braxus, and the king would agree that by helping you I’m doing what’s best for Madrea.”

“If you’re sure.” When he nodded, I continued. “I don’t have to talk to them. We can just walk by. A few steps seems close enough for my ability to register their DNA codes.”

We both remained silent as we moved nearer the two men, and I held my breath, waiting for them to notice us. They were so intent on their conversation that we were almost within range, when the king’s voice rang out from the other end of the hall.

“My friends, supper is served. Please join me at the tables.”

Instantly, both men stopped talking and looked up, straight at me and the commander. Zeller’s eyes went wide, and Chine paled as they began to back up. It didn’t take a genius to figure out they knew I wasn’t who I claimed to be, that I was, in fact, an agent of the Federation.

Well, schite. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass when I was so close. From their reactions, I wouldn’t get a second chance.

Go to Reynard
, I ordered Peri.
Now
.

The instant her feet left my shoulder, I went into overdrive. Without wasting time thinking about it, I charged the men, getting near enough to touch them. And felt two mental clicks so close together it was hard to distinguish one from the other as I stored their DNA codes.

I continued in a circle that brought me back to my original starting position at Reynard’s side just in time to see Peri fly to his shoulder. A little smugly, I watched Zeller and Chine’s pants legs flutter in the breeze of my passage. Both of them looked around as though wondering where the sudden draft had come from before continuing their retreat.

“Got it,” I told Reynard with a grin. “Let’s go eat. I’m starved.”

The food was every bit as delicious as it smelled, and the dishes were varied and frequent. No one noticed I was eating
a bit more than usual because they were doing the same, everyone taking advantage of the king’s largess.

The king sat to my right, Reynard to my left, and Peri kept everyone at our table entertained by inspecting each type of food that made the rounds, cooing at the floral centerpieces, and strutting between the place settings to show off her chain necklace. Politaus was so amused by her antics that he pulled an intricately woven, golden pinkie ring from his hand and gave it to her.

From Peri’s reaction, you’d think he’d given her keys to the crown jewels. It took her a few tries, but she finally managed to get it on her right foreleg, and then sat back on her haunches the better to admire it. I had a feeling the king was her new best friend.

The meal was finally winding down, and I was wiggling in my chair with the desire to get back to Marcus’s house. I had things to do, places to go, people to spy on. Plus, I needed to check on the girls again, make sure they were okay and try to determine where they were being held.

Unfortunately, I was well versed in protocol and knew it was impossible to leave until the king departed. Instead, I eyed Zeller, who was seated at the far end of our table near Jancen. He still appeared to be avoiding me, so it was something of a shock when he looked straight at me and raised his voice.

“I understand August taught you to fight.”

Well, schite. He was definitely up to something. “That’s correct. Since we had no close relatives, he tried to insure I was able to protect myself if he was no longer able.”

“You know I’ve often said there’s no reason to coddle our women. They should all be taught self-defense. But there are those among our people who believe women are incapable of learning the skills needed for fighting. Would you be willing to give us a demonstration?”

Eeek! “What do I do?” I asked Lillith, praying my panic didn’t show.

“Say yes. You really have no choice.”

“But what if I accidentally kill someone?”

“Just remember your life isn’t in danger, no matter what happens. Try to think of it as a practice match with one of your instructors. Maybe your instincts won’t take over.”

Oh, sure. Nothing like showing a little encouragement to help build my confidence.

Keeping a stiff smile in place, I dipped my head in a nod. “If it’s the king’s wish. Sire?” I turned to Politaus, hoping he’d put a stop to the suggestion.

“What an excellent idea!” He scrubbed his hands together in anticipation. “I’ll have a wide selection of weapons brought in, and you can choose whichever you prefer.”

“Thank you, but I have my own knife. And I’d really rather we do this hand to hand, so no one accidentally gets hurt.”

His eyes lit with anticipation, and he ignored everything I’d said except the part about the knife. “You have a knife with you? Did August make it? May I see it? His weapons are much prized.”

Double schite! I’d chosen the plainest knife in the Alien Affairs armory, but it was still a technical marvel compared to the handcrafted weapons used on Madrea. I could only hope that August was ahead of his time when it came to weapons, and no one noticed the blade that never dulled, or the non-skid grip that was all one piece with the blade and not attached separately. Or the fact that it was made from a metal alloy that didn’t exist on Madrea.

Reluctantly, I reached under my skirt, pulled the knife from its sheath, and handed it carefully to Politaus.

He examined it reverently, almost holding his breath as
he turned the blade in his hands. “Amazing. Such balance. This has to be August’s finest work. When did he make it?”

I watched anxiously as he passed it down the table for others to admire, including Zeller. The loss of its weight against my leg left me feeling strangely unsettled, naked almost. “It was the last he forged, sire, and therefore very dear to me.”

And why was Jancen checking my weapon so closely? My nerves were screaming by the time he passed it back in my direction, the look in his eyes speculative.

“Ah, I was hoping you might consider selling it, but I can see now that’s impossible.” The king retrieved the knife and gave it back to me. “Hand to hand will be sufficient,” he continued, as though I’d only just made the request.

Reynard leaned forward. “It would be my pleasure to engage Echo, sire.”

“I would also volunteer,” Zeller chimed in.

Choices, choices. I was pretty sure Zeller had offered because he wanted to do me in. Accidentally, of course, which I wasn’t about to allow. And stopping him would expose me.

Since Reynard knew all about me, that would solve all my problems. I wanted to kiss him for suggesting it.

“Nonsense.” The king smiled at him as I sighed in resignation. “You’re the best fighter on Madrea, possibly even better than August. I want the girl to have a fair chance. And Zeller, both you and Echo are Bashalde. I don’t want anyone to accuse you of favoritism. This should be a fair endeavor.” He lifted an arm and motioned to a guard standing near the doors.

Damn. Talk about up-and-down emotions.

As the man started forward, I leaned into Reynard, noting his resigned expression. “Who is he?”

“His name is Durtran. Other than myself and the king, he’s the best fighter we have.”

“Any weaknesses?”

“Only one.” He looked down at me. “He’s never sparred with a woman before. Use it if necessary. And try not to kill him.”

Sheesh. Why was everyone so convinced I couldn’t control myself? Even Marcus looked worried. Okay, so I almost gutted Reynard the first time I met him, and maybe my own knee-jerk reaction was fear for the man I’d be pitted against. Now that I remembered my defensive reactions were programmed to be instinctive, I was better prepared to contain them.

As I saw it, my biggest problem would be remembering that I was only supposed to be as strong as a normal female. That would limit what I could do to him, since he was almost as big as Reynard.

I watched him approach the king, frowning and glancing in my direction as he received his instructions in a lowered tone. He argued for a moment, and then stiffly nodded. It was obvious he didn’t like the king’s orders a bit, and I felt a little sorry for him. After all, men on Madrea were taught from birth that women should be respected at all costs. Now he was being told he had to fight one. It was a no-win situation for the man.

Unless I did something that went completely against the grain and let him beat me.

I pondered all angles of the solution as he turned to me and bowed. If I could do just enough to make him think he’d worked for his win, it might cause Zeller and company to underestimate my strength and ability. As far as I was concerned, that was a good thing, and my ego wasn’t so big that I had to win just for the sake of winning.

Standing, I pushed my chair back and followed Durtran to the other end of the hall, where we’d have space to move. “Stay with Reynard,” I told Peri. She made an annoyed sound, but obeyed, settling on his shoulder.

The tables emptied quickly as Durtran and I divested ourselves of weapons and put them on the floor out of reach. By the time we were done, everyone in the room had formed a wide, loose circle around us.

We took our place in the center and again, Durtran bowed to me. “My lady. Please know I do this reluctantly, even though it’s at my king’s order. There is no honor in fighting a woman.”

“Just try to think of me as a shorter, lighter man in a dress,” I told him.

Balancing on the balls of my feet so I’d be ready to move in any direction, I waited for him to attack. And waited. Then waited some more.

Okay, this was getting ridiculous. We couldn’t stand here staring at each other all night. I had to do something to motivate the man.

“Did you know August?” I asked him.

“Yes, I did. Your father was a great fighter, my lady.”

I sent him a cocky grin. “I’m better.”

His eyes went wide a split second before I dropped to one hand and used my legs to sweep his feet out from under him.

He’d barely started to fall before I was upright again. But instead of crashing to the floor, he used the momentum to roll back to a standing position. Without giving him time to recover, I aimed the edge of my hand at his neck.

As I’d hoped, I wasn’t the only one with automatic responses built in. He blocked me, grabbed my wrist, and used the motion to spin and toss me over his shoulder.

If one of my instructors had executed the throw, I’d have landed on my feet with no problem. But since I was supposed to be a normal female, I let myself hit the polished marble floor.

Yeowch! Zin, that hurt! For a split second, pain lanced
through my hip, and then was replaced by warm, sweet relief. This super-fast healing thing was worth its weight in sunstones.

I got to my feet just in time. Durtran looked like he was in more pain than I’d been, and was on the verge of helping me up.

This couldn’t be allowed to happen. I had to make the man fight so hard he’d forget I was a woman.

With no more hesitation, I attacked, raining blows to his body and limbs, forcing him to retreat with each contact in an effort to defend himself.

Fortunately, it finally dawned on him that he needed to take the offensive if he was going to get out of this with his manhood intact, and he launched his own attacks.

Okay, now we were getting somewhere, even if it did feel more like dancing in slow motion to me than fighting. Up until now all my sparring had been down with GEP instructors, and the action with them was so fast it would look like a continuous blur to a Natural. Now, because it
was
so slow for me, I had time to choreograph every move, gauging Durtran’s response before he made it, and making sure he held his own.