The Complete Twilight Reign Ebook Collection (390 page)

This information imparted, Danc took up matters once more.

‘“For the next few days the master of the house lay abed, recovering. Lady Calath gave instructions for the other two looking glasses in the building to be covered – such was my master’s dread of a reoccurrence. He gave no explanation for the laughter other than blanching at his wife’s mention of it, which prevented further discussion of the matter. Once his health – always a somewhat tentative circumstance in my experience – was restored, life returned to normal and we spoke of the incident no more. The door was repaired before the master left his bed and the frame of the mirror removed to the attic where it remains now”.’

At that break in the proceeding my wife entered to greet her son-in-law. The interlude during this murky affair gave me the chance to reflect upon what I had heard thus far. I am not a man who can leap to the correct conclusion in a fit of inspiration. Years of practice mean a slow repetition of the facts in my mind might lead me to the same destination as my more illustrious friends, but it is a far longer process. Unfortunately I found myself only able to note that any clue to the marshal’s illness died with his wife, but it was too early to pursue that grim path.

Having made her pleasantries my wife discreetly excused herself, once she had secured the promise of a family meal that night. With the nervous smile of a man who worked irregular hours at the best of times, Brandt watched her retreat and continued.

‘I, ah … Ah yes. When pressed, the manservant did give us two further pieces of information, though only with great reluctance.’

‘For what reason?’

‘None selfish,’ replied Brandt after a moment’s consideration.

‘Firstly, he is extremely loyal and they do cast a strange light upon the household. Secondly, he showed little regard for either source and only mentioned them out of diligence and my insistence. The first was the account of a chambermaid – who didn’t strike me as quite the fool Veser believes – of an incident that by itself one would dismiss. The other I have only Veser’s retelling as my source, for he heard it from a visiting cousin of the marshal, one Darayen Crin, who has since returned to his holdings in the north.’

‘Well, enlighten me all the same,’ I said eagerly. I must confess that when the enigma is not my responsibility, I enjoy a mystery immensely. Reclining there, with this story unfolding before me, was an excellent way of passing a morning allocated by my wife to financial affairs.

‘Very well. The cousin had visited Marshal and Lady Calath a few weeks after that original fit, for want of a better word. He is related to the marshal through his mother, younger sister of the previous marshal. There was a difference in age between them, but according to the manservant this only resulted in an air of levity surrounding all three.’

‘The lady enjoyed this cousin’s company? We sure he’s not returned to the city in secret? She was several winters younger than her husband if I recall.’

My suspicions had now been raised, but before I could get over-excited Brandt dismissed the notion.

‘The manservant assures me the lady treated this cousin as a foolish younger brother. While Veser is a man to protect his master’s honour, if his feelings about Lady Calath were feigned he’s a better actor than any agent of the king’s. I have confirmed that the cousin is well married, with an heir born two summers past.’

‘You still possess an overly naive view of the human nature, my boy.’

Brandt’s grin told me what he thought of that suggestion. ‘Perhaps, old man, but the cousin’s a merchant by trade and led his wagon train back to Inchets. Any absence would be hard to hide and Count Antern has sent someone to check up.’

My son-in-law cleared his throat pointedly. ‘Anyhow, if you can control your suspicions for five minutes, I’ll tell you what the cousin reportedly said.’

I gestured for him to continue, which Brandt did with a ceremonious shuffling of papers as though daring me to interrupt and jump to another conclusion again.

‘When Master Crin first arrived at the house, the marshal had spent the morning abed. He explained it as nothing grave; merely a headache that he wanted to clear, so as to enjoy the company of his guest. Crin had arrived early and since they were close he visited the marshal immediately. They spoke greetings for a minute and then Veser arrived to attend his master.

‘After he had retired from the room, Crin took the manservant aside and asked whether he had noticed anything unusual. Veser replied no, but Crin had been insistent that when he first arrived, the marshal’s face and arms were covered with long red marks. He described the marks as scratches that had just failed to break the skin, raised welts that had faded as they talked. The marshal seemed unaware of the marks and nothing was said, but his cousin expressed concern over his constitution again before departing one week later.’

‘Curious, but minor. Read me the statement given by the maid, I want to hear what Veser was so happy to dismiss.’

Brandt took first some tea to clear his throat, then returned to the papers and scanned his eyes over the sheet for a moment. ‘Actually, this should fit in later, but I’ll read it now. The reason will become apparent.

‘“It happened three weeks back, well, the first thing did. That man who came to the door was a few days after, but his shadow came first so that’s where I’ll start. I was cleaning the dining room as usual when the marshal came in looking vexed. I stepped into the window bay to keep out of his way and watched him take a box from the corner cabinet and open it on the table. I didn’t see what he was looking at, but I did see his shadow on the table. I don’t know how, but as I watched it the shadow began to ripple, like it was a reflection on water or something.

“At first I thought it was the heat, but it just got stronger and then moved all of its own. I swear it did; the marshal never moved, but his shadow reached out a hand to me and it had claws on the ends of its fingers! I couldn’t take that no more and I screamed. I’m sorry but it was going to touch me! As soon as I screamed and the marshal turned, the shadow went back and I ran for the kitchen.”’

Brandt finished abruptly and fixed his gaze upon me. With his hair in some semblance of order, Brandt’s dark eyes were arresting and bright with intelligence. Despite his slightly dishevelled air he looked a nobleman once more. I felt a swell of pride that such a fine man waited for my opinion, not to mention was father to my only grandchild, before reminding myself of the task at hand.

‘And the man who came to the door?’

Brandt hesitated a moment and then raised the page once more. ‘I’m not entirely sure what to make of this, but certainly it’s odd enough:

‘“Three days after that a strange man came to the door late at night. It was past midnight when I was woken by a knocking on the kitchen door. I thought it was one of the kitchen boys at first, so I opened the small window in the door to tell him Master Veser had locked up and retired. But it wasn’t anyone I knew, I’ve never seen anyone who looked like that. He had long black hair, loose over his shoulders, and the prettiest face I’ve ever seen on a man.

“I know that’s a strange thing to say, but he weren’t so much handsome as pretty like a girl, like the mistress was. He was stood close up to the door, waiting for me to open the window. He asked for the master so I said he’d have to wait while I fetched Master Veser. His voice was strange; high like a woman’s but it was certainly a man – he sounded like he was almost singing the words to me.

“He was dressed like some sort of minstrel and had the same air of confidence that type perform with. If you’ll forgive the thought, it reminded me of when I saw the king when I served at a ball – he commanded the room with just a look while the whole Land turned around him. His smile worried me though, the minstrel’s I mean. Made me think of a cat, I didn’t see his teeth but something about him made him look like he was about to bite. After a moment he stepped back and told me to give the master a message instead and not disturb the whole house. He said his name was Rowshak, or something like that …”’

‘Rojak,’ I interrupted with a cold feeling in my stomach. ‘I’ve heard the name mentioned at my club. Can’t remember what about, but it’s foreign, Embere I believe.’

‘Rojak then. Anyway;

‘“he said, ‘tell your master, he’s been prying where he shouldn’t and he owes me a debt already. He’ll see me next time I come.’

“Then he just turned around and left. When I told Master Veser the next day, he took me straight to the marshal. I told him how it happened, but he didn’t say anything. He just looked ready to be sick, and locked himself up in his study the rest o’ the day.

“The minstrel never came back in the end. If it weren’t for the master’s reaction I’d have thought he’d come to the wrong house. I did smell something like peach brandy when I opened the window and wondered if he’d been drunk – though no drunk I ever saw looked so focused as that. Can’t for the life o’ me think how the master might know him though; to owe him money or anything of the sort. He never gambled or did anything illegal. He was as good a man as any I ever met, kind to us all and the Lady Calath too. To mix with a rogue like that, I just can’t imagine it.”’

I was quiet a long while.

‘It’s too much of a coincidence for the man to have found the wrong house,’ I admitted at last, my fervour for the mystery now waned. ‘However, the marshal makes a strange candidate for blackmail, the more likely coincidence could be that a man from his past came to collect on an old debt from a wilder youth – hearing Calath was settled and respectable there might be more to collect.’

On another day I might have felt this was a prank to be played on retired watchmen with not enough to occupy their days, but I knew that was not the case. I could not admit it to Brandt, but I knew the name Rojak – had heard mention of a minstrel cruel and utterly without morals from men who moved in more dangerous circles than I – and did not envy him the involvement.

‘I can find no real political interests at all,’ Brandt said in agreement, apparently accepting my plausible assessment, ‘nothing that would require corrupt dealings and his personal life seems to be one of sleepy contentment. Marshal Calath appears in all respects to have been a man of learning who lived on a stable income and well within his means. From what I know of his research the only illegal works would be useless to him, but a nobleman’s reputation can be a fragile thing.’

‘Useless in what way?’

‘Well, there are no legal limitations on access to historical or academic works, certainly not to a man so highly respected as Marshal Calath. The only works that are banned are the dangerous magical tomes and I’m told they’re just books unless you have the ability to use them. To you or I they are nothing but words on paper, no matter how knowledgeable one might be.’ At my expression he added, ‘I went to the College of Magic and spoke to the Archmage. He explained all of this, and checked that none of the books we found were banned even to mages.’

‘That tells us nothing, bar the fact that the killer might have found what he was looking for. Still, I assume you would be more animated if Calath had been capable of magic so perhaps we should be looking elsewhere.’

For the next account Brandt took position by the empty fireplace, leaning easily on the mantelpiece with a rather more relaxed air about him.

‘We have now a report taken yesterday from a shopkeeper on the Springs Road, a man named Gorters. It refers to an incident that took place just over a month after the marshal’s first fit. The manservant, Veser, tells me that this instance – of which he was unaware until I asked him – preceded a dramatic tumble in both spirits and health of Marshal Calath.

‘“Marshal and Lady Calath had entered the shop with something of a celebratory air, so Gorters was careful to state at the outset. Though the marshal’s leg seemed to be affording him a little discomfort it didn’t appear to have affected his mood a shred as they went about looking for a present for the lady. The shop is one that sells fine gifts; ornaments and furniture of the highest quality I’m told, but with people like my brother and his family passing most of the year in Narkang these days, I’m sure trade remains good.”’

Brandt and I shared a smile there. His brother, Suzerain Toquin, was a proud and extravagant man whose wealth had increased dramatically as Narkang prospered. The brothers lived very different lives nowadays and I knew Brandt was more comfortable as a part of my family than his own.

‘“The shopkeeper guessed from their demeanour that she was expecting a child – though when we questioned the servants there none claimed to know of it so we must assume Gorters was wrong – but they would take no suggestion from him and were content to browse.

“When the marshal expressed dissatisfaction with the wares on display, the shopkeeper directed him to the back room where some of his most recent arrivals were stored. Accordingly, the marshal entered this room, leaving his wife admiring a cabinet of trinkets with Gorters.

“Only a minute had gone past when the heard a cry of dismay, a yelp like a frightened dog so the shopkeeper described it, but Lady Calath rushed through as if it were a matter of life and death and Gorters followed. When they entered they discovered the marshal facing a massive ornate mirror; one Gorters had bought from an auctioned estate only a week previously. It was of an old style; unremarkable in form or provenance but of a sort recently popular with the merchants of the city apparently.

“The marshal stood with his back to the door, hands gripping the frame of the mirror and shoulders trembling. His wife rushed to his side, but Gorters said he could not bring himself to enter the room. While Lady Calath tried in vain to drag her husband away from the mirror, crying out his name in a terrified voice, Gorters caught sight of the marshal’s reflection. The man was quite willing to express his cowardice in this matter, rather surprisingly I felt, but the man was adamant about what he saw.