Tyrant Trouble (Mudflat Magic) (31 page)

“She
carries the fever,” I heard someone mutter, not far away from me.

Ah.
Clever of me to vomit on their feet.

I
hurried inside the secret passageway. My hands pressed against the stones and I
slid the door back into place. In darkness I closed out the shouts of Erlan's
army.

The
stale air was as cold as sleet. It seeped through my temple robe. The darkness
pressed against my face and filled my ears with silence. I stood in terrifying
blackness, pulled my cloak tighter around me, and would have traded just about
anything for a flashlight.

Okay,
so I wasn't worried about lifedrainers or fever but there were worse fates. Had
others come here to hide in times past, only to be trapped, maybe later found
dead from cold or hunger or terror? If I had a light, would I see gleaming
bones on the dark floor?

Gran
had known that bit of magic where she could open her hand and shine a light
from her palm. The light only lasted thirty seconds. Maybe not much use, still,
I’d feel a lot better if I could light the passage for half a minute and be
absolutely certain what was there. Then I could feel my way along the walls
without unpleasant surprises.

I
had stashed a small sack of food and a jug of water for myself while I waited
for Erlan's army to arrive. My supplies wouldn’t last long. If Erlan stayed,
what could I do? And how could I know when he left?

What
if their supplies were more than we'd guessed? What if Erlan decided to stay
around, move into the castle, get a start on stealing Kovat's lands? What if I
opened the secret door and found myself staring into the face of a guard? What
if the latch stones stuck and I couldn’t open the doors?

My
panic went into high gear.

This
could be my tomb.

I
felt my way along the walls in a darkness heavier than I remembered. I couldn't
see my own hands. Some light must have filtered into the secret passage from
the rug-covered doorways the other times I had been here. Now all the openings
were sealed with stone and I had only touch to guide me.

When
my foot bumped into my food pack, I sank down beside it and hugged it to my
chest. Fear drove hunger away, or maybe it was the nausea thing left over from
too much close up with Erlan. Why hadn't I thought to grab a temple lamp? If I
had, what use would it be? I knew what my prison looked like, a long stone
corridor.

All
right, so I now lived in a narrow prison. A few torches to cast shadows around
the stones might have made the prison bearable, unless light revealed grinning
skulls. What is it about darkness that is so much more horrifying than cold or
hunger or even pain?

By
now the night outside would be as black as the corridor, nothing but the stars
to break the dark. Yeah, I could use a few stars in here.

When
the sun rose and its light touched the castle walls, would that warm them? I
had never been in the passage at daytime. Maybe in the summer it might be warm,
but in winter, day and night were pretty much the same. How would I know when
the night ended? And even if I knew, what should I do? The original plan was
for me to wait until Erlan was frightened away. Then the door would open and
Nance would call.

Dumb
me, Erlan would decide to hang around, count on it, maybe for a couple of
months. I should figure a way out, maybe sneak out at night and head down the
mountainside and find the place where I had entered this damn nightmare
because, oh yeah, I knew a few survival tricks. True, they all required a car
or phone or an all-night deli, and none of them would be much help if I ran
into a bear. Or ran out of food or water. Or had to spend a night in the forest
alone.

Maybe
I should throw myself on Erlan's mercy. Death by beheading was sounding better
and better.

I
slid slowly down to the floor and drew the temple robe across my face to close
out my fears. Huddled in thick velvet, I hoped to hold my own warmth in around
me. A brighter bulb would have stashed her wool cloak here to give herself
another layer. If hunger did not drive me to open the door, the cold would. I
couldn't remain here for very long.

My
bones stiffened until it seemed to me that winter's frost lined my clothing.
Slowly I sat up, pulled open my backpack with numb fingers, and found the
cheese.

I
could imagine Nance saying, “That's you, Stargazer, living on cheese and bread
because you don't know how to cook.”

While
I nibbled at the cheese like a demented mouse, I tried to decide what to do
next.

Would
Erlan have the courage to sleep in Kovat's castle? Or would he be torn between
greed and fear? He might camp outside the walls tonight, not knowing how fever
spread. But if his ragtag army was down to the last supplies, they would be
driven by hunger to search the castle for food. If I was going to escape I
should probably act quickly, find the latch stone to Tarvik's room and pray no
one in Erlan's army decided to bed down there on the bare floor. With the night
to hide me, I might find an unguarded doorway and somehow sneak past Erlan's
sleeping men.

My
hands slid along the rough stone, feeling for the indentation of a latch stone or
any other sign to tell me exactly where I was in the corridor. The stones were
ice cold and sharp with chipped edges that caught at my skin.

My
fingers felt numb. I couldn't even tell where one stone met another.

How
far was I from the outer entrance, how near Tarvik's room? Or had I gone well
past it? And how long was the passage? I thought I must be close to the end,
but did it end or did it wind back and forth between the walls?

I
leaned against the wall and almost gave way to sobbing. If I did, I might never
make it back to sanity. To lie down in snow and rest was to freeze to death,
right? I suspected the same would happen now if I stopped walking. Shuffling
away from the wall, my hands outstretched, I reached forward to find the
corner.

My
fingers touched warm flesh.

I
screamed. The sound tore from my throat. My mind did not direct it. There was
no one to hear me or help me, no one who would, nothing a scream could gain.
But all the fear that tightened my muscles and blinded my mind now ripped out
of me, my throat so tight and raw I could almost taste blood in my shrieks.
Worse, I could not stop.

My
voice echoed off the narrow walls.

I
was caught in a strong grasp and pulled forward into a circle of arms. I tried
to struggle free, twisted helplessly, kept on screaming, tried to scratch and
bite, tried to move my leg and get enough room to jab with my knee.

A
hand slid up my back and forced my head forward, pushing my face down into a
shoulder covered by thick fur. With my mouth full of animal hair and my ear
warmed by his face pressing against it, my screams were muffled enough that I
heard his voice.

“Stargazer!
Stargazer! It's me.”

Tarvik.
I let my body go limp. He loosened his hold.

A
whole bunch of insults crowded my thoughts. Couldn’t say a one. All I could do
was stand with his arms holding me up and pick away at the animal hairs stuck
to my wet tongue.

“What
are you doing?” he asked. He could not see me but he could feel me moving.

I
spit out the last hair. My throat ached from screaming. My eyes were hot with
tears.

Through
my fury I managed to gasp, “Tarvik, I am trying to decide whether to hug you or
kick you.”

He
snickered and said, “Let me choose.”

“Why
are you here?”

I
thought about smacking him but decided it wasn't worth the effort.

“When
we reached the valley we found we could secure the pass. And so I came back to
see how it was with you.”

“You
dummy, Erlan will see your horse and know you're here.”

I
wanted to push him away, beat him with my fists, punch whatever I could reach, I
was so angry. But in the darkness, I also wanted him near enough to touch. I
wasn't sure which of us was clinging to the other. I simply lacked the courage
to let go of him.

“Calm
down, girl. I left the valley with Artur. This sunrise I sent him back with my
horse and came the rest of the way on foot. When I reached the castle gate I
saw Erlan's men searching the hilltop and so I came in here to hide.”

“And
then stood silent so you could shock the hell out of me?”

“I
did not know you were here until you touched me.”

“But
you didn't holler!”

“Stargazer,
I had no time to fear. You screamed so soon. I knew your voice.”

“You
knew my voice screaming?”

He
hesitated. If he hadn't done that, I might have bought his line.

“You
rat, you knew I was here before I touched you.”

“No.
Yes. I was not sure. I heard you moving along the wall. I have stood often
enough in this place to know it has no sounds. And as no one but you knows this
way, I thought it must be you.”

“You
could have said something.”

“How
could I be sure it was you?”

The
little bastard knew damn well it was me.

I
said slowly, “You win. I'll admit I'm happier now you're here. But why did you
come back? You've risked your life for what? You can't help me, not if Erlan sticks
around.”

“I
can take you out of here before you fall ill,” he said, his arms still around
me. “You are shaking with chill. Erlan's men did a quick search of the castle
and now they have their cook fires set up outside. None are inside.”

He
turned me around and led me through the blackness that terrified me but was
home to him. We left through the secret door to his room. The room was dark
shadows with an odd streak of moonlight coming in through the narrow window
opening at the ceiling's edge.

“That
painting of me on the wall,” I said, although the room was so dark I couldn't
see it now. “When did you paint it?”

He
ignored my question. “Listen. Do you hear anyone?”

I
stopped and listened. The shadows sang with a low steady layer of sound that
had no source.

“I
hear my blood pounding in my ears,” I whispered, and then I heard it, a distant
murmur of voices. “Some of them are in the castle.”

He
nodded and drew me back across the room, opened the secret door and slipped
back into the passageway, then closed the door. We stood in the darkness,
motionless.

“Guess
they decided not to believe my story of fever. They must plan to stay. We could
be trapped here until we die.”

“I
can't think of a nicer person to die with. But I have to consider my people.”

I
did wish I could see his face. His tone was light, teasing, and I didn't
believe it. I reached toward his voice until my fingers touched his face and I
traced the heavy frown line between his brows. I finished his thought.

“If
Erlan stays, he will track them down and eventually figure out how to get past
your guards.”

“Yes.”

He
reached up and caught my outstretched fingers and I clung to his hands. I
wanted to curl up in a ball on the floor and wrap my cloak over my head and
pretend I was anywhere but in that black prison. As long as I could touch him
and know he was there, I could stay sort of sane.

“We
have to find a way to stop Erlan,” I said.

“I
can stop Erlan. I can search the castle until I find him and I can kill him.
And then his men will outnumber me. But after they kill me, will they stay?”

“After
they kill you?”

“Yes.
I think that might work. With Erlan dead, his army will turn homeward. Their
rations must be very low. Without Erlan to push them, they won't want to waste
time searching further.”

“After
they kill you?” I said again. “What do you mean, after they kill you?”

His
hands tightened around mine. “Stargazer, we must go along the passage until we
find where they are. Then I will go after my uncle. You may have to hide here
for a day or two until they are gone. Then find my guards.”

“No!”
I screamed, and he pressed his open palm over my mouth for a brief moment.

I
bit my lip to hold back my voice.

Tears
burned and I reached into my pocket for my handkerchief. No time for crying,
not with this delusional guy on a hero kick. Somehow I had to find another way
out. My fingers touched the vial.

“Oh.
Tarvik. Wait, let me tell you,” I whispered.

My
words tumbled and slurred, almost beyond my control, because I thought I had an
answer, I simply did not know how to use it. I explained about the vial, which
maybe contained a drug, and about the box of powder I was sure was the stuff
Alakar had given him. Not fatal, but it had done the job of knocking out
Tarvik.

“Yes,
that sounds right, she used a powder. But what use is it to us?”

“First
we have to find out where your uncle’s men are. Then we can decide what to do.
And that means no big brave combat challenge from you. This isn't a tournament
and nobody will award your dead body a prize.”

He
laughed and it was such a normal sound. We felt our way along the silent
passage, stopping several times when we reached doorways known to Tarvik. At
each, he found the hidden catch and inched the door open, peering through to
darkness. We listened. We heard nothing.

Leaving
the passage, we crept across empty rooms and cold courtyards, looking for
reflected light from lamps or fires, listening for sounds beyond the night
wind.

I
smelled it before I saw it, vegetarian that I am, that nauseating odor of
roasting meat. We stood behind a door that opened to one of the many
courtyards. I whispered, “Mutton cooking.”

The
fire was around a corner. It cast a moving shadow on the far wall. It was a low
fire, probably banked coals beneath a roasting spit.

We
crept forward into the winter night. At the corner we both peered around the
wall. A lone guard squatted by the fire. There was a shapeless hunk of meat on
the spit. Pushed into the coals was a pot filled with something that did not
bubble but gave off a thin curl of steam.