Aurelia Read online

  Ornate tapestries and gold filigree taunted her as she moved down the hallway. It angered her to think the queen's expensive taste had damaged her father's reputation in the city. The glossy furniture, walls of embroidered cloth, and paintings on the ceilings all reflected elise's own extravagance.

  At times Aurelia wished her father had never met elise. but that was not entirely fair. If Aurelia's own mother had never left, he would not have had to remarry. And then his daughter would never have had to walk the gauntlet of her stepmother's disdain. besides, elise could not be blamed for failing to love a child whose own mother had abandoned her.

  At least with the king's second marriage, Aurelia had gained a sister.

  A hush fell on the princesses' shared parlor as Aurelia entered the room. The bevy of melony's lady's maids rose as one from their seats and exited until only the two sisters remained.

  "palace gossip must have traveled fast." Aurelia hurled herself onto the settee. "Honestly, mel, sometimes I think you should be the crown princess."

  Her sister gave a soft laugh and twisted a jade bracelet on her wrist. "Without a hint of royal blood in my veins? I suspect your cousin montaine might disagree."

  Aurelia groaned. "He'd probably swoop down and bury us all in war before the month was out."

  "And he would win. The other kingdoms would never support a disruption undermining the line of inheritance."

  "I know." Aurelia lifted a silk pillow and squeezed it to her chest. "And the truth is, I love my kingdom but you're the one with the gift for court life."

  "yes, well." melony sank down beside her. "Our father is rather fond of tradition."

  Aurelia gave a weak smile, then threaded her fingers through her sister's hand. "you're the only person who understands the pressure of being his daughter."

  melony tapped the edge of the settee, then hopped up. "There are some advantages," she declared, swinging open the door to her sitting room. "Come out, girls!"

  The flood of lady's maids swept back into the parlor. Two girls rushed to the bench at the pianoforte. Another four returned to a game board, and three crowded onto the window seat. The youngest girl, no more than eleven years old, hid behind her mistress's flowing skirts.

  Anticipation shone on melony's unblemished face as she looked at her older sister. "I know you lost daria this morning, and I thought you might like to select one of my lady's maids as your new personal attendant."

  Aurelia's jaw dropped. As if I could replace Daria that easily.

  Her sister seemed to read her expression and reached out to embrace her. "I know you had a terrible day today, and I want to help. Half the girls are technically assigned to you anyway."

  Of course melony meant well.

  Aurelia wrinkled her forehead. "I prefer a smaller entourage. I can't imagine how you keep them all busy."

  "Oh, they go on missions for me." melony twirled around. "They inform the chef of my preferences for the day and check on the status of my new gowns." she dropped her voice. "They turn in papers to my instructors and invent excuses for me to avoid class. most of the time, though," she whispered in Aurelia's ear, "they carry messages back and forth to young men."

  Aurelia groaned. she had no desire to command a unit of giggling adolescents. Instead, she focused on the child who had been hiding behind her sister's skirts. Wide hazel eyes overwhelmed the pale face. A spattering of pink freckles sprinkled the sharp cheekbones, and a fringe of mousy brown hair frizzed loose from its shell comb. If I have to lose my best friend, I might as well select a lady's maid I can intimidate into leaving me alone. "What is your name?" Aurelia asked, squatting down to the child's level.

  "min-minuet."

  "do you think you could come assist me, minuet?"

  The girl's big eyes grew even wider, and for a moment Aurelia thought the child might run away. "y-y-yes, your Highness."

  "Wonderful." Aurelia glanced up to see her sister's delighted reaction, then returned her attention to the lady's maid. "I'm in for the evening," she lied, not wanting to involve minuet in her rebellious Carnival plans. "so I won't require your help until morning. If you would like to remain here in the meantime, you are welcome to do so."

  "Th-thank you, your Highness."

  unencumbered, Aurelia slipped out of the parlor and hurried through her personal sitting room into her bedchamber. she grinned in the mirror as she tugged out painful hairpins. Time to dress for the night's adventure. soft waves fell past her shoulders. brown hair, brown eyes, brown skin. Nothing worth taking note of next to her sister's stunning looks; but tonight, at least, that did not matter.

  removing bodice and skirt, Aurelia ducked her head into the depths of her closet. Her fingertips, rather than her eyes, recognized the feathery material, and she pulled the dress from the darkness. soft fabric flowed out into the light. blackish brown bars speckled a white background.

  Aurelia lifted the dress over her head and slid her arms through the narrow straps. The skirt fluttered down over her petticoat, and the bodice settled into place. she buttoned the front from the waist to the low neckline and tied the slender cord around her middle. Leaving her throat bare, she slipped her feet into gold slippers with hard soles, then brushed out her tangled hair until it lay smooth. she covered her gown with a dark blue cloak and tugged open the bureau's bottom drawer.

  The mask lay threateningly inside, begging her to put it on in defiance of her stepmother's order. I'm going out tonight and this disguise is going to allow me to swoop right out the front gate. Aurelia scooped up the mask and gazed at it for a moment before hiding it under the folds of her cloak. At least one other person would appreciate her choice.

  robert laughed at his cousin's costume.

  Chris sat perched on the sitting-room stool not ten feet away, his legs curled around the stool legs, his eyes locked on the door to the hall. The intensity on his face and the awkward position itself were funny, but Chris's costume made the entire scene ridiculous. White feathers covered his tunic, and a draping fan of red, white, and green feathers sprouted below his lower back. He wore tight white trousers above stockings stuffed in orange boots, and his rooster mask with its three-inch red comb hung below his neck.

  "Can you crow?" robert teased.

  "Cockadoodledoo!" His cousin scooped up a velvet cushion from uncle Henry's rattan chair and flung it.

  The velvet object spiraled through the air. robert ducked. It bounced off the settee on which he was sitting, skimmed over the cherrywood stand, and slowed to a halt beside a porcelain vase on top of a table. The vessel rocked back and forth on the veneered surface before settling into place.

  eyeing the vase, Chris suggested, "Let's go over the second assassination attempt."

  robert's face sobered. "did it involve poison as well?"

  "No, a saddle. Aurelia had to cancel a ride at the last minute. she left her saddle on her mare, and one of the grooms took the horse out for exercise. A strap ripped right along the seam. The groom came off in the middle of a run and broke his collarbone. According to daria's father, the saddle must have been tampered with."

  "The groom was riding sidesaddle?"

  "Aurelia only rides sidesaddle under duress." Chris chuckled. "It was a regular saddle."

  "may I see it?"

  Chris ran a thumb over the edge of a feather on his shirt. "you may if you can look at it without drawing Aurelia's attention."

  "she still has it?"

  "The servants couldn't take it from her without explaining what went wrong. Instead, they had it repaired and hung it back up as if it had never been damaged."

  discomfort crawled along robert's shoulders. How could he keep Aurelia safe if she remained unaware of the danger? He stood up, paced to the back of the room, and turned around. "They should tell her what's going on."

  "They can't." Chris hopped off his stool. "And neither can you. The king is adamant about that. He doesn't want his daughter frightened. That's why uncle Henry arranged for an undertaker
to secretly pick up the body of the meal taster last night. The king did not want Aurelia asking questions."

  robert's head swam. "How am I going to stay close to her if I can't tell her why I'm here?"

  "you're not her bodyguard. you can't protect her that way. you have to be free to investigate."

  robert shuddered. His father's voice echoed in his mind. You have to start with the victim. The key lies there if you can--

  knocking interrupted the thought. Chris lunged for the latch, and Aurelia stepped in, closing the door behind her.

  she slipped off her cloak and put on her mask. dark eyes shone within gold circles, each ring surrounded by an almond-shaped outline of deeper gold. White feathers arched back over her hairline, and a hooked beak curved from the bridge of her nose down to a fine tip just over the rounded base of her chin. The top of the beak glistened gold as well, then blended into shimmering silver.

  robert's face crinkled with approval. "A falcon," he said. "I always told you the nickname fit."

  "And why is that?" she asked.

  "because you tend to attack an opponent with swiftness and ferocity." He swept her a comic bow, then stepped closer, running his gaze over her entire outfit. she stood nearly as tall as he did, the top of her mask reaching his forehead. "my lady," he said, taking her hand in his white-gloved one, "clearly we shall have to work hard to remain your escorts this night."

  Aurelia scrutinized her companions' costumes. "I can see Chris is a rooster, complete with a comb and feathers I'm sure he plans to show off this evening." she earned a wink. "but what are you?" she eyed robert's white cravat and black frock coat with distaste. "surely you don't intend to masquerade as a gentleman?"

  Chris smirked, and robert held up a hand to ward off the accusation. "Ah, but you have not yet seen my entire costume." He retreated to his cousin's room, where he grabbed a mask and a pack of cards on a string. The man's face in the mask grinned up at him with a curling black mustache. robert slipped the face over his head and returned to the sitting room.

  "A gambler!" Aurelia proclaimed, snapping her fingers in approval.

  "Not just a gambler." Chris flipped over the cards in robert's hand to display them faceup. "If you look closely, you will notice he has stacked the deck."

  "yes, my dishonesty astounds me." robert hung the cards around his neck.

  Aurelia slipped back under her cloak, and her companions did likewise with their own. "your cheating doesn't surprise me." she linked an elbow with each young man, pulling them toward the door. "How else could you have received the best marks in class?"

  robert raised an eyebrow, unable to let the remark slide. "As I recall, your name was as often at the top of the class as mine."

  "yes." she waved her head airily. "but that made sense."

  "I am insulted." robert put on a look of mock offense. "you may receive my forgiveness by holding the door for my cousin and me."

  Chris reached a hand toward the latch, and robert slapped it away. His cousin pretended to reel back from the sheer force of the slap by flinging himself against the wall. "I wouldn't if I were you, Aurelia," Chris teased, getting into the spirit of the conversation. "With a friend like him, you might not come back in one piece." The words slipped like a shadow into robert's mind.

  Aurelia swung open the door. "I do this not for your forgiveness, but because I have no wish to argue until the festivities are over. Let's get on with it, shall we?"

  "Hear, hear!" Chris chimed in.

  Aurelia hoped Chris would manage to help her escape the palace grounds without turning it into a performance. As they approached the front gate, he took off his mask and slung out a hand in a casual greeting. "Hey, Filbert, seen any dangerous characters pass through here tonight?"

  Filbert grinned, failing to ask the identity of the rooster's companions. "Not as terrifying as you." He reached out a hand as if to pluck a feather from Chris's plumed tail.

  "Test not my fowl wrath!" Chris jerked away, pushing Aurelia and robert before him and herding them to safety. soon all three friends wound down the sloping road without an armed escort.

  "Who was that at the gate?" robert asked. "He looked quite familiar."

  "daria's brother," Aurelia explained. "you might not have known him very well. He joined our class after you left."

  "but isn't he a couple years older than we are?" robert asked.

  "Three years," Chris said, "and even at that, he barely managed to complete his course work. He has a good aim with a rifle, and he's loyal. you couldn't get him to criticize His majesty even in jest. but he's not the brightest fellow to ever stand a post."

  Just the type of man my father promotes, Aurelia thought, someone who does what he is told without asking questions.

  "It was fortunate for us, then, that he was at the gate," robert said.

  Chris clapped a hand to his chest in mock agony. "you question my skill, cousin. I could have talked us through that gate with the king himself standing guard. Filbert just allowed me to reserve my wit for more important challenges."

  The three companions paused at the bottom of palace Hill to take in the festive view. dusk was creeping over the city, and the excitement in the air grew with the approaching darkness. painted lanterns hung from tree limbs in a shimmering palette. revelers swept along in costumes even more varied than the lanterns. Judges in black robes brushed elbows with thieves dangling fake jewels and pocket watches. From peddlers to princes, banshees to bats, nightingales to nursery rhyme characters, nothing within imagination's realm was off-limits. The only common factor was that every face wore a mask: masks of cloth, seeds, feathers, papier-mache, and dozens of other materials. some scarcely surrounded the eyes. Others completely covered faces.

  perhaps no one wanted to remain anonymous as much as Aurelia. In disguise, she was simply another person enjoying the magic of the evening. men and women welcomed her as an equal, slapping sugary drinks and alcoholic concoctions into her hands. she drank the punch and passed Chris the alcohol.

  The crowds thickened as they neared the corridor leading to the city center. The wealthiest families owned the buildings lining this road, and the most exquisite of these homes were brightly lit. scarves draped down from balconies, and wreathes of flowers graced the necks of garden statues. Windows and doors had been thrown open, causing the mingling of rich smells and music: baked chocolate with violin chords, orange peels with flute solos, maple syrup with string quartets--a wafting swirl of enticement.

  Aurelia, Chris, and robert drifted from house to house, dancing at parties, tossing rings and darts in games of chance, and sampling salty-sweet pretzels dipped in melted chocolate.

  eventually they joined in a group of singers following a small band of walking musicians and tumbling performers. This group wound its way around several city blocks, then formed a large circle under the cherry blossoms by the great marble fountain. The singing grew louder as a crowd already at the fountain joined in. The performers led everyone in five or six more songs before guiding the entire group into a tavern.

  As Aurelia and her friends waited for crowd members to pass in front of them, a girl wearing a sleek black dress and the fabric wings of a starling crashed into Chris. Her mask consisted of little more than purple heart-shaped patches worn around the eyes. recognizing her at once as one of melony's friends from court, Aurelia hoped the recognition was not mutual. Fortunately, the starling did not look in her direction. giggling up at Chris, the girl tapped him on the shoulder.

  Chris encircled the starling's thin waist with his bare arm. "How did you find me?" he asked.

  giggling again, the sound grating on Aurelia's nerves, the starling said, "I know you well enough not to fall for that disguise. I'm afraid you were not raised to blend in." she slid her hand up to caress Chris's face.

  Oh, please. The falseness behind the starling's voice and actions made Aurelia want to strike her with a talon or two.

  shooting Chris a knowing look, she tugged robert a
way, calling over her shoulder, "Let's leave these two lovebirds alone."

  Together, she and her remaining companion struggled through the cluttered streets. They wove around vendors' stalls for a while. but Aurelia had already drained the slim purse she had bothered to bring along, and robert had no need for glass beads or decorative weavings. The tight crowd and combined smell of food and drink grew stifling.

  They stopped to catch their breaths beside the large fountain depicting rearing horses. robert knelt as if to help her mount one of the magnificent stone steeds. she took his hand and climbed up to walk along the fountain's circular rim.

  "Away, away!" shouted a man wearing a dark mustache and holding a painter's palette. Aurelia realized she had interfered with his portrait of a pair of revelers posing beside the fountain. He waved a paintbrush in anger, splattering red drops all over the white costume fabric of his paying customers.

  Apologizing and smothering her laughter, Aurelia steered robert away from the crowds, back toward the river. "I've had enough." she sighed as they wound their way up along the bank beside a curtain of willow boughs.

  Nodding his approval, robert walked beside her without speaking. The celebration sounds dimmed, and the number of paper lanterns decreased until only a scattering lit their way. He moved out on a carved bridge and leaned over the edge. people who did that always made Aurelia nervous, but she forced herself to hold her tongue, having learned from experience that protest only encouraged them.

  He pulled back slowly, continuing to gaze down at the dark water and the reflection of a single lantern's light. "This is what I missed the most," he said, startling her by breaking the companionable silence. "The river. I always felt so connected with it, connected with the world here on this bridge."

  Hearing him voice her feelings made her uneasy. "but now you've seen the world," she said, unable to keep the envy out of her voice.

  "Only another corner of it and the route on the way there." He turned around, resting his elbows on the railing and peering up at the patch of sky above his head. "I think the more you see, the more you realize you have yet to see."