Aurelia Read online

  "Then you can find yourself another partner." Chris feinted left. "I'm not waking up early to endanger my reputation."

  Swords clashed and for a moment the conversation stalled. Chris swept his sword in a swift arc, then brought it down with strength.

  Robert barely managed to bring his own weapon up in defense. "Two assassination attempts in as many months." He groaned, his arms straining against the pressing weight. "We've got to try something."

  "Three."

  "What?"

  "Three assassination attempts." Chris knocked the sword from robert's hand. "There was another one last week."

  Aurelia watched robert's sword skid across the sand and stop with a spinning flourish twenty feet in front of her. "He's improved," daria said, stepping out the doorway onto the marble path that skirted the palace.

  "Apparently not enough," Aurelia replied, lifting her gaze to study robert.

  Without noting her presence, he reached a bare hand down to retrieve his weapon. Too intent on his objective, she supposed. even in traditional black breeches and a loose silk shirt, he did not fit in with the palace surroundings. He wore neither a coat nor gloves and moved with a quick urgency foreign to the fabricated ease of court life. Though he shared the same medium height and slender bone structure as his cousin, Aurelia noted little of Chris's catlike grace or detached attitude. There was too much life in robert's face.

  "Now I know why you chose to come out this door instead of the front," daria teased, tugging her friend away from the practice yard and around the east wing. This side of the palace bustled with sound. Outdoor servants laughed and chatted as they traipsed out of the extended servants' quarters. Hammers and anvils pounded from the blacksmith's forge and construction sheds, and farther in the distance, calves bawled in the animal barns.

  Aurelia walked by most of the outer buildings without a glance, but her eyes dwelt fondly on the welcoming arches of the palace stables, then drifted with longing toward the stone wall surrounding the royal arena. she had no time for riding today. Instead the two girls rounded the northeast corner and hurried across the earthen courtyard on their way to the front gate.

  They passed a gatehouse and stopped at the arched opening in the outer wall surrounding the palace. A young man with an oblong face and a thatch of black hair stood under the arch. "Would you like me to summon a carriage, your Highness?" he asked.

  Aurelia frowned at the use of formal address. "How would you like it if I referred to you as private micae, Filbert?" she scolded.

  A bright red flush stormed the face of daria's older brother. The lady's maid laughed. "He wouldn't care for it at all, especially as your father promoted him to corporal last week."

  If possible, Filbert's red cheeks grew brighter.

  "you should have heard our father go on about it," daria continued. "The son of the head groom, a corporal of the guard! I thought everyone in the palace must know by now."

  Aurelia grinned. "Congratulations."

  Filbert managed to gain enough control over his tongue to repeat his earlier question. "W-would you like me to summon a carriage?" He avoided using her name.

  "We are only traveling to the market," she said. "We can reach there by foot faster than even your father could prepare a carriage. besides, you know I prefer to walk or ride in the open air. I can see the people and the city that way."

  "Very well, your Highness," Filbert said with a bow.

  He was truly hopeless. she could never persuade him to treat her like a common acquaintance.

  As the girls brushed past the curling metal sides of the open gateway, four guards came out of the gatehouse and attached themselves in an unwanted train. Aurelia ignored their presence, instead allowing her eyes to caress the view as she walked down palace Hill toward Tyralt City.

  The smooth cobblestone road wound its way down the steep slope to the wide valley at its base. Halfway down, the graceful Tyralt river joined the path, flowed along the curving roadside, then skirted the lower edge of the slope, swept back in serpentine formation around the city center, and drifted east into the gray-green bay. scattered bridges arched across the river waters, and willow trees draped their leaves and branches over the bank in sheltering parasols.

  A handful of white stone buildings with red clay roofs speckled palace Hill, but at the base, they dominated. The most populated city in Tyralt spread in a sweeping fan, its edges kept in check by the open bay and a thick stone wall. The main road, lined by two rows of planted maples, sliced a direct path from the base of the hill to the gate at the far north end. City streets, many too narrow for even a single carriage, traced intricate patterns through diverse neighborhoods. Tenements crowded the northwest corner between the western gate and the main gate, and a bustling rim of boardinghouses and taverns lined the port and the bay's deep indentation on the city's east side. merchants' shops and the workplaces of skilled laborers filled the southeast corner, and off to the left stretched the colorful collage of the marketplace.

  "poor Filbert." daria laughed. "I'm afraid he is as besotted with you as he was when we took class together. I have introduced him to plenty of more appropriate girls, but you know my brother. He sees someone in a gown and he can't pry his tongue off the roof of his mouth."

  "Filbert is sweet," Aurelia said. "maybe I should run off with him and deprive my father of the chore of finding me a husband."

  "don't you dare!" daria's eyes sparked.

  "I thought you were above class distinctions, dar," Aurelia teased. "do not tell me your brother is not a fine enough match for me." she wrinkled her nose. "At least he is only a few years older than we are, instead of a few decades like the men my father prefers."

  "my brother is fine enough for any woman." daria straightened. "but you are the last person he should marry. you are too . . . "

  "Too what?" Aurelia knew what her friend meant but wanted to see if daria would follow through with the statement.

  "Too everything. Too headstrong, too changeable, too opinionated. you would be the death of my sweet brother."

  "I guess I shall have to give up any hope of becoming your sister, then, if that is the way you feel about me."

  daria smiled, squeezing Aurelia's waist. A white carriage rattled past, its silk curtains tied back, and the stylish woman inside frowned at the lady's maid's presumption. Aurelia lifted her chin and linked arms with her companion. "Thank you for making time for me today."

  They moved forward, arm in arm, the expansive marketplace soon enveloping them in shoulder-high pyramids of beets, turnips, and potatoes, anything sturdy enough to have survived the winter and early spring in storage. "I still can't believe you're moving so far away. What am I going to do without you?" Aurelia moaned as she picked up an onion, then ran her hand over the slick surface of the peel.

  "I'm sure you'll manage," daria said, plucking the onion from her friend's hand and returning it to the produce cart. The vendor's face fell as the lady's maid tugged the princess away.

  sounds of life and death permeated the marketplace: the shouts of men in heavy aprons tossing thick trout and slapping them on scales; the pounding of butchers' knives cleaving through bone, muscle, and tissue; the complaints of animals tied up on the outskirts, baying and barking, squawking and squealing.

  And through the sounds, the smells: climbing into every corner, every cart, every cloak. The rich scents of ground cinnamon and chili powder, the sickening sweetness of bricked molasses, the dusty aroma of carved oak and pressed cedar. sage and garlic, petals and powder, feathers and fur. daria pulled Aurelia past the food toward the dry goods. "I'm sure I won't manage," Aurelia said, picking up the conversation where it had left off. "How would I be able to go shopping today without your help? everyone in the city would recognize my Carnival mask if I couldn't send you to purchase it for me." daria dropped her voice, glancing back at the guards behind them. "We both know how you would get around that." she raised her voice. "The truth is you could have had the mask made in
the palace if you had bothered to plan ahead."

  "Not if I want it to remain a secret. some of the servants try, but not one of them can resist a good conversation. They would start hinting about the materials, and within half an hour the entire disguise would be common knowledge."

  "still, you needn't have left it until the day I leave."

  "Why not? I needed a chance to say good-bye. besides, I hadn't decided to participate in Carnival until last night."

  daria winked, sliding two fingers along the loose end of her sash. "Convenient of robert to show up just as I'm leaving, isn't it?"

  Aurelia shoved her friend good-naturedly. "It's not the same. He's just visiting."

  "Well, I can think of worse classmates to have visit. He's been gone for four years. you ought to have plenty to say to each other. Imagine if your mother hadn't insisted on a school and a quality education for all the palace children. None of us might have become friends."

  Aurelia did not want to talk about her mother. If her mother had really cared about children, she would not have left. she would have stayed at the palace long enough to see her daughter grow up.

  "I wish your husband didn't work for Lord Lester," Aurelia told her friend. "His estate is halfway to the frontier. The man doesn't even come to court."

  "Lucky for me," daria said as she stepped around a crate. "Lord Lester is notorious for refusing to attend palace events. He's certain to send another scrawled message excusing himself from the next state function. my husband will have to deliver it, and I won't be shy about joining him."

  "How often can that happen?" Aurelia ducked under a basket of herbs hanging from a stall canopy.

  "Already enough for Thomas and me to meet, fall in love, and marry."

  "What if Thomas is promoted from courier?" Aurelia sighed. "besides, you'll have a new life, new friends, and eventually children. The last thing you'll want is to spend weeks traveling to come visit me."

  "Nonsense." daria brushed away the commonsense statement. "Who wouldn't want to traverse muddy roads, fog-ridden forests, and washed-out crossings for the honor of attending a royal function?"

  "Lord Lester."

  "Well, perhaps Lord Lester."

  Aurelia squeezed her friend in a fierce hug. "I'm not sure I can survive without you."

  As they broke apart, Aurelia ran her eyes over the nearby stalls. This section of the market hummed as busily as the one the girls had just left. Vendors shook out woven blankets to display brilliant patterns. Artisans spread out cloth dolls, glass carafes, and embroidered lace. Aurelia's gaze skimmed over fine wood carvings and glazed clay.

  A vendor's cart piled high with Carnival items drew her attention. painted wooden wands spilled out of a deep basket. Leather belts and colored kerchiefs hung from hooks. beaded capes, skirts, and cloaks draped over the sides, and masks filled the shelves: five rows of them. Faces of genies and gypsies, mice and magicians, frogs and fishermen.

  Aurelia froze. "The mask on the cart, second row up."

  "Which one?"

  "guess."

  Within moments, daria nodded. "I'll get it. Where am I meeting you?"

  Aurelia motioned toward a quadrant of stone walls at the heart of the marketplace. Leaving her friend behind, she set out for the square. All four guards followed her, their braided uniforms and polished scabbards drawing the usual stares.

  she paused outside a dressmaker's shop but did not go in. even the best dressmaker could not accept an order with less than a day to complete it. As soon as Aurelia had spotted her chosen mask, she had mentally selected a dress from the stock of unworn ball gowns and party wear cluttering up her wardrobe. At least some use would come out of the seamstresses' zealous attempts to help her attract a husband.

  Her mind still focused on her costume, she stepped into an arched tunnel leading toward the center of the square. The guards suddenly pushed ahead, blocking her path. Caught by surprise, she stared past them at men, women, and children crowding the inner plaza.

  A throng of shaking fists, shuffling feet, and shoving elbows filled the space. eyes flashed. Lips flared. shouts tumbled over one another like viscious dogs. The crowd's anger grew tangible, swelling and feeding itself, all directed toward the square's centerpiece--a statue of her father.

  The guards pulled back as if to leave, but Aurelia refused to withdraw, her eyes glued to the statue's face. Her father gazed back at her, not with the weary look she recognized, but with the pride she imagined he must have worn in her early childhood--before her brother had died and her mother had left. she could not allow that statue to be destroyed.

  A barrage of rocks and sticks flew through the air, slamming into the statue. bodies moved as if to topple it. "Wait!" Aurelia forced her way through the guards. "Talk to me. Tell me why you do this. Tell me what you want."

  A hush engulfed the mob as she stepped out from under the arch. Fists fell, shoulders dropped, and mouths closed. people waited in a ring of suspended tension. she walked through that ring, stepping into the square's center and laying her hand in the enlarged carving of her father's own palm. standing in front of the populace, she could feel the weight of expectations settle on her shoulders--the people's hopes for a better future, their faith in her as a leader, her own dread that she would let them down.

  "you, sir," she said to a man in a torn black vest, "why are you here?"

  He rubbed a hand across the whiskers on his chin as though trying to decide whether to answer, then said, "I'm a vendor, your Highness. I run a stall in the market and make just enough coin for my family. I reckon the same is true for most of these folks." Nods scattered the crowd. "but this mornin' the king announced a new tax on every stall and cart in the marketplace."

  Why had her father not told her? There had been no mention of a new tax at the last council meeting.

  "I wouldn't mind if the money were goin' toward the city or likely to help my family in some way," the vendor said.

  "but it isn't!" a woman shouted.

  The man continued: "your father called it a market tax, but it's to pay for state functions. That means more spectacles like that fancy party held last night in your sister's honor. He's already drained the city coffers fixin' up the palace."

  "And it's not like any of us will ever be invited to that monstrosity!" added the woman.

  "We can't none of us afford to lose our stalls," the vendor said, "but we have a right to say how our money should be spent."

  "I'll speak with my father," Aurelia told the crowd. "perhaps he does not understand how the tax will affect you."

  "He would know," the man replied, "if we had somebody to speak our piece at the palace. As it is, we can't control our own future."

  understanding flickered through Aurelia's heart. The man had a point, one far stronger than the weight of his own purse. "I'll share your concerns," she said. "you have my word. The people deserve a voice at the palace."

  mumbles of approval rippled through the square. Good, she thought, maybe now they will disband in peace. A new silence descended, broken only by the rustle of a petticoat as daria stepped from the crowd and moved to her friend's side in support. Aurelia let out a slow breath.

  Then a disturbance bubbled at the back of the crowd. people shifted, grumbling protests. A black cap forged its way forward, ripping a seam through the wave of bodies. Closer and closer it sped. Then a shout.

  Harsh steel flared; four swords flashed. Voices raised in rekindled anger. The silence whipped into fury, and strong hands forced Aurelia to the ground.

  Chapter Three

  CARNIVAL

  "WHAT Were YOU THINKING?" THE QUEEN'S COLD voice cut into Aurelia's heart. elise did not bother to stand or turn around to speak to her stepdaughter. Instead, icy blue eyes and a frigid stare reflected out of the vanity mirror. elise's pale neck showed bare below a tight knot of black hair, and her rigid back and shoulders remained frozen and erect against the white backdrop of the vanity table and dressing-room windows. "The guar
ds tell me you almost caused a riot this morning."

  "They almost caused the riot," Aurelia protested from the doorway. she wanted to talk to her father. she did not want to defend herself to her stepmother. "If they had not drawn their swords, daria would have recognized the boy in the crowd, and the conflict would have ended."

  "What boy?" The queen picked up a jewelry box with a heart etched on the lid.

  "He was just a boy wearing a black cap. daria paid his father too much for an item she purchased in the market, and the boy's father sent his son to return the money. The man needn't have bothered, but it was the honorable thing to do. except the boy got caught behind the crowd; and when it quieted, he tried to come forward to give daria the money."

  "Thank heavens that girl has finally gone off with her new husband. I hope you select a more suitable lady's maid to replace her."

  Aurelia's temper flared. she had missed her friend's departure because of her stepmother's summons. "daria isn't to blame. If the guards had waited, the boy would have explained himself, and there wouldn't have been a problem; but they drew their swords and set off the entire crowd. The guards are the ones who ought to be reprimanded."

  "you're lucky more guards arrived when they did." elise arched her sharp eyebrows. "Or the episode could have been disastrous, not only for you, but for your father."

  "Let me see him. If what the protesters said was true, they had a good argument. Father should hear about it."

  "The city rabble cause enough problems without you helping them. They can't be expected to understand politics. but you, Aurelia, should have known better. your father does not have time to discuss this with you right now. He is preparing for an important guest. you may speak with him at the next council meeting." The queen removed an icicle necklace from the box. "In the meantime, you should remain within the palace."

  "but tonight is Carnival!"

  "Which you won't be attending." elise snapped the box shut.

  You certainly won't stop me. Aurelia whirled and stalked from the room.