The Rift Walker (26 page)

He kicked off a sandal and dropped into a chair of leopard skin and ivory with his bare foot under him. “What may I do for you, Your Highness? Ask it and it's done.”

Adele sat back from the table. “How familiar are you with my situation?”

“One hears things.”

“Have you heard anything from the Equatorian government?”

“I have not. Alexandria has been unusually silent of late. Perhaps they are embarrassed about your situation. Or perhaps the telegraph lines have failed again.”

“Well, here is the truth. Basically, I decided not to marry one man and ran off with another.”

“That's an old story, but always a good one. Although rarely does it involve the daughter of an emperor and a legendary hero. Does Constantine know where you are?”

“No, sir. I would like to tell him, but first I need to know that we are welcome here.”

Msiri looked insulted. “Do you feel unwelcome?”

“May I speak plainly?” She paused a moment with her fork.

“Have you not been?”

“I need a place to stay from which I can negotiate my future, whether it is returning to Alexandria or something else. I need a place that is strong enough to stand firm should my father decide to threaten:
give up my daughter or else.”

“Or else what?”

“Or else anything.”

Msiri bit into a lemon and pondered while Adele and Anhalt watched him chew with sour faces. Finally he said, “As you know, Katanga is surrounded by imperial territories and imperial toadies. That is why, no doubt, you have arrived on my doorstep seeking protection. I have no neighbors who would stand with me against Equatoria. In fact, they would all help your father to punish me. So I ask you, would Constantine send troops to retrieve you?”

“In truth, he may. Senator Clark might insist upon it, and he has great influence at court. Do you know him?”

“I do not. I am advised of his exploits in the Americas. If I may be so bold, is Clark such an unsuitable husband? Is he not brave and rich and strong? Does he not bind your great houses together?”

“He is and does all those things. But he is arrogant and crude. His plans for Equatoria are anathema to me. I loathe him. In addition, I prefer someone else.”

Msiri gave a swift glance at Greyfriar, trying to puzzle out the man behind the mask. “So you want to know if I will fight Equatoria to protect you?”

“In so many words, yes.”

Msiri waved the half lemon in the air with an earnest stare. “I welcome you to Katanga, and I will do whatever I can to bring about the reconciliation of a princess and her country, and more, of a daughter and her father. I myself have five beautiful daughters, and it hurts my heart to think I could part as enemies with any of them.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Adele took a deep breath and paused while spooning out another helping of porridge. “May I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“What if one of your daughters did what I have done? What if she refused a marriage that was politically valuable to you?”

The king laughed loudly. “Oh, that wouldn't happen. My five daughters are all married to men of influence both within Katanga and without. I have marriage connections to my Guild of Smiths. One daughter is the queen of Matabeleland. And another is married to a prince of Bornu. They are fine girls.”

“But what if they did? What if one had refused to marry her husband?”

“Hmm. I have never considered it.” The smile vanished from Msiri's face as he thought about her question. His genial expression fell under a heavy slate, and his eyes turned to iron. There was no anger in him, simply the truth. “I fear she would have to leave, and we would never speak again. And I would rather die than have that happen.”

Adele watched the king with a sense of sadness, but then he gave her a renewed smile. He jabbed his chin at her hand frozen on the porridge spoon, indicating for her to continue eating.

The princess said, “I am deeply grateful for your assistance in my delicate matter.”

“It is my pleasure.”

“Thank you. Is there something I may do for you in return?”

The king shook his head as he searched for something else to eat. “What I do is for you. There is no payment. It is to commemorate the great friendship between Katanga and Equatoria. I want you to think of me as your father too. Or perhaps as a slightly older uncle. Your gratitude is enough for me.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Adele said, though she still did not quite believe that was the end of the matter.

“Of course.” The king ripped open an orange and sprayed juice in the air. “In the future, when you are empress and you wish to show your gratitude by ceding me the west bank of the Luta Nzige, so be it.”

Adele nodded thoughtfully and began to stir honey into her porridge. She was careful not to make any reply beyond the sound of enjoying the king's meal.

Msiri said, “There is one more thing.”

“Yes?” Adele's voice was suspicious.

“I am soon to embark on a campaign to the south in the Rwenzori Mountains. These mountains are the domain of
ndoki
, witches. What you call vampires. These
ndoki
are ruled by a terrible warrior named Jaga. He strikes with impunity and retreats back to his capital through crevices of the mountains. He kills men and carries off women and children. And more, he injures my trade and sows nervousness among my people. I would kill Jaga and clear his
ndoki
from his mountain stronghold.”

“Yes?”

“You are skilled in fighting
ndoki.
As is your companion. I would value your counsel on this campaign.”

Adele glanced back at Greyfriar. “We will tell you whatever we can, of course.”

“Let me be clear,” Msiri said. “I would value your presence on the campaign.”

Colonel Anhalt stiffened in his seat. “That is highly unprecedented. Highness, I cannot recommend this. These mountains are quite harsh. The enemy is unknown. I will happily join our forces with His Majesty's, but there is no rationale for you to venture into the Mountains of the Moon.”

“Thank you, Colonel, I appreciate your perspective,” Adele said. It was a curious request the king made, and one that caused Adele to wonder at the reason behind it. She wasn't afraid of fighting vampires, but it surprised her that she had already garnered such a reputation. The Mountains of the Moon were mysterious and legendary, and they greatly intrigued her. Plus, any gesture on her part to strengthen her position with Msiri would be a good tactic. “However, I have every reason to go. Our host requests it. Whatever good I can do, I will do.”

Msiri clapped his hands and regained his old cheerfulness. “Excellent! Well done. But it shames me to say I have one further request.”

Adele sighed against her will and then forced a smile. “Yes, Your Majesty?”

The king rang a clutch of copper bells, and a door opened far across the chamber. Adele was surprised to see the old woman from the guest quarters enter. She carried what appeared to be a small stack of papers, but soon Adele realized it was a magazine. Passing close by, the woman smiled cheerfully at Adele and handed the publication to Msiri. It was one of the penny dreadfuls from Alexandria entitled
The Greyfriar: Bloody Swords Against England.
On the cover was an exciting scene of a dashing swordsman looking nothing like Greyfriar battling a horrible horde of ravenous vampires.

Msiri gestured to the elderly woman. “No Katangan is allowed to see the king eat, with the exception of the queen mother.”

“She's your mother!” Adele exclaimed.

“I'm happy to see you eating, daughter,” the queen mother said; then she patted Colonel Anhalt on the shoulder. “If you need anything, you tell me. I'll see to it.” She went for the door, but stopped to lay a gentle hand on Greyfriar's arm. The old woman snatched her hand back and took a step away from the swordsman. She whirled to face Adele, who was still watching her.

She knows
, Adele thought in horror. Somehow the woman could tell that Greyfriar was a vampire. Adele froze, staring at the queen mother, pleading for silence with her gaze. If there was any form of connection from one woman to another about a man, Adele used it. The queen mother searched the princess's face with her own terrified eyes until slowly a look of confusion, but acceptance, seeped in. Only then did Adele realize the smile had never left the queen mother's face. Msiri and Anhalt were unaware of the volumes that had passed between the two women, solely through their eyes.

Greyfriar understood too, but had not moved. He studied the old woman carefully, and when she turned back to him briefly, he stepped back with deference and gave a slight bow. She paused with a killer's glare that only he could see. Then she bustled out the door as if the heart-stopping moment hadn't occurred.

King Msiri rose and stood over the magazine on the table. “I wonder, sir, if I might trouble you to sign this for me.” He held a pen out toward Greyfriar. The swordsman didn't react, as if he hadn't heard, perhaps because his attention was still focused on the departure of the intuitive queen mother.

Msiri looked at Adele and back at Greyfriar. Colonel Anhalt cleared his throat and Adele reacted. She saw the king lift the pen again in the swordsman's direction.

“Would you sign?” Msiri asked a bit more forcefully. “I know it's silly, but I would value it.”

“Sign?” Greyfriar now looked at the king.

“Yes,” Msiri replied with an embarrassed chuckle. “I have read many of your adventures. And now here you are. It would be a delightful souvenir for me.”

“Sign?”

Adele rose from her chair, trying to cover her mild concern at Greyfriar's complete confusion. “Yes. Just sign your name.”

“My name?”

“Greyfriar,” Adele said pointedly, directing him to the table. “Just sign
Greyfriar
on the cover of this book.”

The swordsman stepped forward and took the pen awkwardly. He glanced at Adele for approval, then leaned over the magazine and became engulfed in the picture on the cover. After a few minutes of stillness, Msiri began to look worried and Adele touched Greyfriar on the arm.

She pointed to the cover, purposefully laying her finger next to the printed word
Greyfriar.
“The king is waiting. Just sign your name, please.”

Greyfriar took a deep breath and set the point of the pen against the paper as lightly as he could. He began to write, replicating the word
Greyfriar
exactly as it was printed, in a bold typeface.

Adele drew close to his ear and whispered softly, “Just scribble. Don't copy the word. Scribble!”

He shook his head distractedly and continued duplicating. She turned to block the king's view, then jarred Greyfriar's elbow so that the pen scratched across the cover.

“Ah! There we go.” Adele snatched the magazine from under his hand and yanked the pen out of his steel grip.

Msiri gave an odd half-smile as he surveyed the autograph, a perfectly iconographic GREYF followed by a peculiar long, inky blot. “Interesting. I've never seen a signature quite like it.”

“Yes. It's odd, isn't it?” Adele took Greyfriar by the arm with a too-charming laugh. “But we all have our peculiarities. So, let's talk about this Jaga, shall we?”

B
UNIA WAS ABLAZE
with activity. Fireworks burst overhead. Music blared from every street. War drums pounded along the avenues. King Msiri was departing in the morning to campaign against Jaga, the
ndoki
chief of the Rwenzori Mountains. A massive parade was planned tomorrow to see off the elite of Katanga's army.

Days had passed and Adele had expected to be confronted at every turn, assuming the queen mother had confessed Greyfriar's secret to her son. But nothing had changed. Adele couldn't help but wonder why. Perhaps it had something to do with the coming conflict with the vampires.

The martial drumbeats surrounded Adele; the deep booming filled her with a confidence, even eagerness for battle. The warm, humid evening had sent Gareth to his quarters and the relief of a cooling kit. Adele sought a calm moment in the dark tropical garden beneath her balcony. Birds flew overhead in slashes of color with strange cries and long plumage trailing. Insect droning was audible even above the drums, but a turgid breeze kept her from being swarmed. The air seemed too thick to draw fully into her lungs.

The bushes nearby shuddered, and the queen mother appeared through dark green fronds. The old woman smiled and waved. The young woman shrank back slightly.

“Bless you, daughter. Are you well?” The old woman settled on the stone bench next to Adele, acting as if she didn't carry a volatile secret on the eve of battle. She noted the colorful cloth Adele wore wrapped from shoulder to ankle in the local fashion, reds and greens and bold patterns. It was certainly more lively than the princess's usual somber tones. “You look beautiful. This suits your brightness.”

“Thank you,” Adele murmured, a bit hesitant.

“Don't fear.” The queen mother squeezed Adele's hands. “I'm not the one to tell the secret of your…man.”

“Thank you.” The princess breathed out heavily and surrendered to the woman's gentle touch. “It's very complicated.”

“There is no man who isn't complicated. Yours perhaps a bit more than most.”

Adele nodded, a weary smile emerging.

The queen mother asked, “Is he truly the Greyfriar too?”

“Yes. He saved my life, and he wants to help the humans of the north. He's not like others of his kind.”

The queen mother stared long into the face of the young princess. “Do you trust him?”

“Yes. More than any human being I know. He is brave and kind and generous. There is nothing false about him.”

The old woman smiled. “Even with the mask?”

“The mask is more him than he is,” Adele replied quickly. “It's hard to explain.”

“No need. I understand masks. Although few follow the old ways now, once we wore masks to show our true selves and to become something better than we are.” The queen mother shook her head a bit sadly. She reached up and pulled the bright fabric of her own dress away from her shoulder. “Some of us still wear masks.”

On the old woman's shoulder was a tattoo of a dragon. It was identical to the one on Mamoru's hand, and on Selkirk's too. Adele gasped and reached up to touch the sinuous beast scarred into wrinkled skin.

“You know my teacher?” Adele said.

“Yes, daughter. I know Mamoru. He was my teacher once also.”

“You're a geomancer?”

“I am. I shouldn't be telling you this. I am sworn to secrecy.” The queen mother laughed loudly. “But we all know you are his current favorite. And I know your secret, so now we are even.”

Adele reached into her pocket and removed one of the gems ripped from her wedding gown. At the touch, she felt a freezing blast of lonely mountain wind and had a vision of jagged peaks. The Himalayas of far-off Tibet. Adele held out the stone.

The queen mother smiled slightly and took the gem. “Well, I haven't had this test in quite some time. But if you wish.” Then she closed her eyes and clutched the stone tightly in her fist.

The princess waited and watched the twitching face of the old woman. Seconds passed. Then minutes. Adele started to grow suspicious.

Finally the queen mother exhaled and said, “Mountains. High mountains. But far away. So far I'd say India, if pressed to it. Yes?” She gave the gemstone back to the young woman.

“Yes.” Adele laughed with relief at the seemingly endless reach of Mamoru. There was something comforting, but also disturbing in his shadow network that existed under the normal world. There was so much Adele didn't know about her teacher. But still, she embraced the queen mother. The woman was like a piece of home, an improbable message of comfort in the chaos of exile. She breathed in the queen mother's perfumed scent.

“Can you get a message to Mamoru?” Adele asked. “I want him here with me, but I was told that communication with Alexandria has been interrupted.”

“I can try. I have little contact with Mamoru himself, but I know one of his closest confederates. If she is in Alexandria, I can contact her. They use a circuitous route for secrecy's sake. However, once you are in the Rwenzoris, there will be precious few messages coming to you, if any. You will likely hear nothing from the outside world until you return.”

“I understand, but I appreciate anything you can do. We leave for the mountains tomorrow. It will be weeks at least before we return to Bunia.”

“Yes.” The queen mother frowned. “You must be careful. And you must protect my son.”

“Protect him? I'm hoping he'll protect me. I'm along as a consultant, to tell him what I know about vampires, but—”

“More. You must do more.”

“I don't understand.”

“Daughter, it was I who suggested my son take you on this campaign. You will be his salvation. You see, I'm not just a geomancer; I'm also a seer.”

“A seer?” Adele couldn't help sounding dubious.

“Yes, daughter.” The queen mother smiled. “I know what you're thinking, that Mamoru is a man of strict intellectual pursuit, not some sort of wizard. But you will learn, Mamoru casts a wide net in pursuit of his theories of life. He prejudges nothing, and he knows well my abilities. Before you even came to Katanga, I dreamed you. I know things about you that perhaps you do not know yourself.”

“Such as?”

“Here is my dream. Many years ago, Leopard was tawny. He had no spots. He was so proud of his yellow coat. He spent hours every day preening. And he lived in a great palace from which he ruled his people with wisdom. But over the years, Leopard grew lazy. He didn't take care of his palace. One night, hyenas came in. They surrounded Leopard, snapping at him. Every bite that the hyenas gave him turned into a black spot. Although Leopard fought bravely, he was driven from his palace and the hyenas came to live there. And so Leopard lived out in the world. His black spots helped him to hide from the hyenas when they came to kill him, for the hyenas always fear Leopard. They know one day Leopard will come back to his palace. Then Leopard will roar and he will drive the hyenas back into the cold.”

Adele waited for her to continue, but the old woman sat back with mouth closed, complacently stroking the princess's hand. Finally, Adele urged, “And? What happened?”

The queen mother shrugged. “That was my dream.”

“But…how do you know it was about me?”

“It was.”

“But…am I Leopard? Is your son Leopard?”

“It's not that simple, daughter.”

“The hyenas are vampires, though. That much I got.”

The old woman breathed out patiently. “In a dream, nothing is anything. It may mean one thing to me and another to you. I am telling you this to prepare you.”

“For what?” Adele sounded flustered.

“I don't know. You are the one being prepared.” The queen mother stood. “You should sleep now. They will call you early tomorrow, and you will not rest well for many weeks. Please let my son return home. He's all I have.” She slipped into the palm fronds and disappeared in a flutter of green.

Adele sat in the din of war drums, the pounding noise echoing in the uneasy emptiness of her chest. She wanted simple words of comfort. What she got was vague dreamspeak about leopards and hyenas. Adele felt alone, and she wished Greyfriar were there with her.

Lord Kelvin studied papers from a thick portfolio as he walked the dank corridor. He rarely ventured below Victoria Palace, for good reason. It was unpleasant down here, damp and chilled, and it reeked of decades of unspeakable acts carried out at the behest of the old sultans and Equatorian emperors. He disliked these actions, although he knew they were necessary to statecraft. If everyone would just see reason, violence would be forgotten. It seemed so simple.

He nodded to two Persian marines outside a cell door. It occurred to Kelvin how much he depended on Persian soldiers now, which was ironic since the half-Persian Princess Adele was gone. He stopped and made a note in his calendar book: “Diversify soldiery in capital. Turks?”

One marine accompanied the prime minister inside and the door was closed behind them. The smell was atrocious, but Lord Kelvin wouldn't react. He couldn't show that any appropriate government function was distasteful. He finished reading the memo and inserted it inside a folder. Then he closed the portfolio and looked up toward his next bit of business.

“Mamoru,” he said.

A short but powerfully built figure slumped in a chair in the center of the grey room. The samurai was stripped to the waist and showed raw welts across his shoulders and chest. His ankles and wrists were shackled together on a length of chain embedded in the wooden limbs of his meager throne.

Kelvin said, “I've just read the report of your interrogation, and you continue to resist reason.”

Mamoru's head slowly lifted to reveal a swollen face with an eye bruised purple and shut tight. He actually smiled through lips stained black with old blood.

The prime minister was angered that the Japanese priest didn't even have the decency to act cowed, and he grimaced with obvious distaste. “I don't understand your childish grin. This is not a game, sir. At least not one that you can win. You understand, of course, that I will need to know about your intelligence network? His Imperial Majesty Emperor Constantine the Second seemed content to let you operate as you pleased, but I fear those halcyon days are at an end. It would go better with you if you talked. It's quite simple.”

“Simple?” Mamoru slurred.

“Yes. It's irrational to expect that I will allow you to operate a shadow network out of the palace. Just give us all the particulars, and this unpleasantness can end.”

“Will it? Would you let me go?”

“Oh, no. I will never let you go. But I will stop this treatment you have brought on yourself. You are far too dangerous and unstable to be free.”

“Whatever will you tell the Japanese emperor in Malaya about where I've gone?”

“I know you claim some connection there, but I can come up with something that will satisfy His Serene Majesty. You are a fanatic who has caused untold harm to Equatoria by corrupting Princess Adele. Granted, that was likely simple enough; the girl was always unstable. And it's unfortunate for you that your patrons here are no more. Her Imperial Majesty Empress Pareesa. His Imperial Majesty Emperor Constantine the Second. And Princess Adele. All gone. You are quite alone now.”

Mamoru stared evenly at the politician. “You have no idea what you are doing.”

“I believe I do. I am protecting humanity from lunatic religionists and occultists such as yourself who prey on the feeble-minded. Your type makes me ill, if I may speak freely. And now that I have full rein here, I will deal with you appropriately. After you tell me about your intelligence network.”

Mamoru shook his head and stayed silent.

Lord Kelvin sighed again, reiterating his dismay. “You don't seem to understand that I will do anything to preserve the Empire. Anything.”

“You're an idiot!” Mamoru spat. “You're going to doom all of humanity with your slavery to steam and steel, you narrow-minded technocrat!”

“There's hardly need for name-calling, Mamoru. We can have a civil conversation. I must say, I pity you. You've become so mired in your own childish beliefs. I've no quarrel with religion, within reason. I'm told it can provide a diverting hour or so out of the house. But you lunatics who take it too far, and try to bend others to it, deserve nothing more than death. I'd be doing the world a service to execute you. But I have a duty to the Empire.”