Ashes of Roses (Tales of the Latter Kingdoms Book 4) (22 page)

I reflected then that this woman had missed her calling, for truly she could twist words as well as any politician or reader of the law. There had to be something fundamentally wrong with her argument, but damn me if I could find it. “That is not the same thing,” I said at length, “for paint is not outlawed, nor are overly tight stays, but magic has been forbidden in this land for nigh on five hundred years.”

The glint returned to her eyes. “Ah, you have me there. ’Tis true, but it is a foolish law, especially with something so harmless as the kind of magic I can conjure.”

“I do not think it harmless at all. Perhaps on this occasion you used it merely to give your niece the semblance of fine gowns and jewels, but I saw for myself how you could make it so your own face was altered, and Ashara herself was changed so she could safely escape. That could be a very evil power, in the wrong hands.”

To my surprise, she did not naysay me, but nodded soberly. “There is some truth to that argument. I have seen — ” She stopped herself then, and seemed to shiver. “My lord, my only intention was to help my niece. I swear on my own life and hers that no other spells were cast. It was always possible that you would never notice her at all. I did not think that was likely, not as lovely as she is, but still, I did nothing but put her in a position to cross your path. Everything else after that was between the two of you.”

Oh, how I wanted to believe that. It would be easy enough to wave away a few conjured gowns and necklaces and rings. I did not want my mother and Lord Keldryn to have the truth of it, that beyond her illusions Therissa Nelandre had cast some sort of spell to make me fall in love with her niece, as no other explanation for the sudden violence of my affections could possibly exist.

“And what was in it for you?” I demanded suddenly. “Did you hope to gain some influence by making your niece Empress of Sirlende?”

At that question she actually laughed out loud. “Oh, my, they have trained you to be the suspicious sort, haven’t they?”

“I am the Emperor.” Even I heard the stiffness in my tone.

“True, to your misfortune. I cannot say the crown has done all that well for you.” Her expression sobered, and she continued, “I have been gone from Sirlende these twenty years, for as soon as my powers began to be too difficult to conceal any longer, I knew I had no place here. So I packed what I could and left, although it hurt greatly to leave my younger sister behind. I have seen many things in those twenty years, my lord, and learned a great deal. But I had never planned to return to my homeland, as I knew one such as I could make no real life for herself here.

“However, in one of those odd twists of fate, I retraced my steps some months ago, and visited a town I had not seen for some ten years, and there it seemed a letter had been held all that time for me by a kindly innkeeper, in case I might return one day. That letter was from the steward of my late brother-in-law’s estate, who was let go upon his death, as his second wife wished to rent the country house and make her home in town. Until then I had no idea my dear sister was even dead, let alone her husband, and once I learned that my only niece was all by herself in the world, I hastened back to Sirlende, to make sure all was well with her.”

“I assume it was not,” I said dryly, for I had not forgotten the things Ashara had said of her stepmother.

“No, it was as bad for her as could possibly be, for that wretched woman who married my late brother-in-law after my sister’s death was the very worst sort — vain, and cold-hearted, and concerned only with her own two daughters. She made Ashara a servant in her own household, worse than a servant, really, because at least a servant earns some modest wage in addition to the roof over her head and a bed to sleep in.”

At these revelations a cold anger began to burn in me. Yes, I had gotten the impression that things were worse in the Millende household than Ashara had ever let on, but never had I imagined that the poor girl was escaping a life of utter drudgery in those few stolen hours we shared together. No wonder she seemed to find something to marvel at in even the simplest niceties. She had no frame of reference.

I do not know what shifted in my countenance, but something of my thoughts must have shown in my expression, for Mistress Nelandre nodded and said, “You begin to see something of my desperation. I will confess that when I first came to Sirlende, my only thought was of removing her from her stepmother’s household and taking her with me, or at least setting her up in a better situation far outside Iselfex. But my arrival here coincided with your announcement of a search for a bride, and I thought that would be far better. I had caught glimpses of her before I met her, saw her going out and fetching water for the household, or running small errands for her stepmother. It was enough to show me that she had grown up as lovely as my younger sister, and I knew that if I could only put her in your path, she would almost certainly catch your eye.”

That she had, without a doubt. “So you formed a plan, and somehow got Ashara to go along with it.”

“Not without some convincing, I assure you. She understood the consequences, but her desperation to escape her stepmother’s household proved to be greater than her fear of punishment.”

And could I blame her? After meeting the woman in question — and her two tedious daughters — I could only imagine how terrible serving in such a house might be, even without knowing the entire time that it should have been hers. Yes, I began to understand why Ashara would be willing to risk so much.

“I believe you,” I said slowly. “For truly, if your only desire was for power, then it would have been far simpler for you yourself to take on the guise of a young noblewoman, and attempt to trap me that way, rather than drag your niece into the affair.”

Mistress Larrin nodded approvingly. “I am glad to see that you are beginning to think for yourself, my lord, and not as your advisors believe you should. And I will tell you that I wish I knew where my niece has gone, but I do not possess the power of far-seeing. I can only tell you what I think.”

“And what is that?” I inquired, half-consciously moving even closer to the bars so I might not miss a single word of her reply.

“When we are hurt, when our world has been turned upside down, we often seek out those things that are familiar to us. What Ashara has known for the past ten years is a life of service, even though it is not a life she chose for herself.” Mistress Larrin glanced up and away from me, as if her gaze could somehow pierce the layers of rock and earth that separated her from the world above. “I cannot say this with any certainty, for I do not know for sure, but it seems to me that she would have taken her refuge in some household where she could work to earn her keep. Perhaps I am wrong — perhaps she fled the city altogether, and is even now on her way to South Eredor or farther still. But I do not believe that is what she has done.”

It could have been that I only needed something — anything — to hold on to. Somehow, though, I heard the ring of truth in the woman’s words, heard something that gave me a purpose, a direction in which to go.

“Thank you, Mistress Larrin,” I said. “I will find her.”

She smiled. “I believe you will.”

L
ord Keldryn looked
up at me in some exasperation. “You want me to do to
what
, Your Majesty?”

“I want you to gather a census of all the households in the city who are seeking to hire a maid or who have hired one in the last few days.”

My chancellor directed a quick glance heavenward, as if imploring the gods to return my sanity to me. Then he said, in the overly mild tone that generally signaled his displeasure, “And are you requesting this information because of something that Larrin woman told you?”

“What of it? I have an idea as to where I might find Ashara Millende. That is all you need to know, Keldryn.”

“And what will you do when —
if
— you find her?”

A good question. If it had been asked of me only a day earlier, I would have responded bitterly that I planned to have her locked up in the cell next to her aunt as punishment for her duplicity. Now, however…

I missed her. Foolish as it might sound after such a short acquaintance, I longed to hear her voice and her light, sweet laugh, to see her beautiful amber-green eyes and the pretty little purse she made with her mouth when something amused her. I could no more put her in a dungeon cell than I could place my own sister there.

Despite everything, I still wanted Ashara Millende to be my wife. The mere thought of anyone else sitting in the throne beside me, or sharing my bed, was anathema. How exactly I was to manage such a thing, when the taint of magic clung so closely to her, I was not sure. But I was the Emperor of Sirlende, and if I had to change every law that existed regarding the use of magic in order to make Ashara my wife, then I would do so gladly.

“That is my business,” I said stiffly. “For now, I need to concentrate on locating her. What happens afterward can be decided then.”

Lord Keldryn merely nodded, but I thought I saw in the weary resignation of his features the realization that I did not intend to punish Ashara at all. Rather, the opposite.

“Anything else, Your Majesty?” he said, in the most neutral of tones.

“That will be all, Keldryn. Just make sure the survey is begun at once. We have already wasted too much time.”

He bowed and left, passing my sister and giving her another bow as she came into my study. She closed the door behind her and fixed me with an expectant gaze.

“Oh, yes, you were right,” I said with some irritation, because I could see the faint smile on her lips, and the subtle air of
I told you so
which seemed to attend her. “Mistress Larrin did have some valuable insights, and so I am following up on that now.”

“I am very glad to hear that.” After pausing a foot or so away from my desk and regarding me for a moment, she said, “I get the impression that you are not pursuing Ashara merely to give her a cell next to her aunt.”

“No, I am not.” Some days I was not sure whether I should be pleased or annoyed that my sister could read me so well. Luckily, she was the only person who seemed to possess that ability. “It is clear enough to me now that Mistress Larrin did not intend any true mischief, but only used her powers as a means to give her niece an advantage she would otherwise not have. Do you know that Ashara was treated like a servant in her own home, a house that should have been hers but which her stepmother all but stole from her?”

Lyarris’ eyes widened. “How cruel of her! How on earth did she manage such a thing?”

“I do not know,” I said, and felt my mouth compress to a tight line. “But I assure you, I intend to find out.”

O
f course
no one could ignore a summons from the Emperor to appear for a private conference, and Bethynne Millende was no exception. She arrived promptly at eleven the next morning, alone, for I had told her to leave her daughters at home. Tedious they might be, but I could not believe they had had a hand in their mother’s plotting. True, they had benefited from her duplicity, and I disliked them enough for that. But they had been very young when Allyn Millende passed away, so I had to believe that they were innocent at least of the original plot.

“Your Majesty,” she said in unctuous tones, and curtseyed so low I wondered whether she might topple over.

“Lady Bethynne,” I replied.

She straightened and shot me what I assumed she thought was an ingratiating smile. Most likely she assumed I had called her here to give her some sort of reward or other honor for uncovering Mistress Larrin’s use of magic.

I only regarded her coldly, my face a stiff mask. In doing so, I noticed the gown of fine wool she wore, the rings of gold and garnet, the heavy matching earrings and necklace. Such an ensemble had to have cost a good deal, and, judging by the finery her daughters had worn earlier in the week, she spared no expense to outfit them as well.

My anger flared at the thought of all that money being spent when Ashara had nothing. It was Ashara’s inheritance, not theirs.

“Tell me, Lady Bethynne, did you begin planning how to steal your stepdaughter’s estate while her father was on his deathbed, or did you at least wait until he was in the ground?”

At my words her smile faltered and she went pale, making the rouge stand out like two livid spots on her cheeks. “Did I” —a titter that did not fool me in the slightest— “
what
, Your Majesty?”

“You heard me.” I stood up then, wishing to intimidate her with my height as well as my position as Emperor. “It has come to my attention that you did willfully take away the Lady Ashara’s inheritance when she was a child and could do nothing to fight back, and that in addition to such an act of wickedness, you also made her a servant in her own home. Be advised that I have my own solicitors looking into the matter. Your days of living well at Ashara’s expense are over.”

“Your — Your Majesty — I — ” One hand went to her throat, and she looked as if she were about to faint.

Not that I would have cared if she did, save that if she swooned, I would have to call the guards to have her carried away.

“I am advising you now to set your affairs in order, Lady Bethynne, for if —
when
— the Lady Ashara is located, she will have her rightful holdings restored to her.” Not that it really mattered if Ashara got her house and estate back, for as Empress she would have no need of those things. However, it seemed a fitting punishment for the woman who had wrongly possessed them for all these years. “Now go, for the sight of you disgusts me.”

She hesitated, opened her mouth as if to plea for clemency, and then seemed to see my expression more clearly. No words, but a quick curtsey, far less elaborate than the one she had given me upon her entrance, and then she fled, leaving behind her the cloying scent of the perfume she wore.

The smell made me want to gag, and I unlatched the window and opened it, letting in a cool, damp breeze. The mists of autumn were truly upon us now, and the air outside was grey and moist. I stared down at the city far below me, seeing the movement of people in its streets, although from this height I could not make out any distinguishing features.