The King’s Justice (59 page)

“Very well, then. Let's see them,” he said.

As Saer rose and turned to signal to one of his men in the rear gallery, Kelson caught the eye of the elderly Lord Rhodri, who had been waiting for his cue at the far end of the hall. Lifting his head proudly, the old man strode halfway up the hall, clearing an aisle, and rapped weightily with his chamberlain's staff.

“Your Majesty, an emissary of the Court of Torenth seeks audience.”

At Kelson's nod, the doors at the end of the hall swung back.

“They may approach.”

Kettle drums, struck with the hand rather than with sticks, heralded the entrance of the visitors. The black-clad drummers were Moors of some sort, as were the twenty white-robed warriors who followed them as an honor escort to the ambassador himself, who had not yet come into view. Scale armor glinted beneath flowing desert robes as the men impassively swept a clear path down the widening center aisle. They bore spears and small metal-studded targes as ceremonial adjuncts to the curved blades thrust through wide sashes of a pale yellow silk, and their carefully wrapped turbans only partially concealed pointed steel caps.

The Moors gave brisk salute to Kelson with spears against their shields as, by pairs, they split to either side to line the end of the aisle. And then, as the unexpected clatter of hooves on the stairs outside the hall heralded the approach of the ambassador himself, the Moors turned inward as one man and lowered their spears to the man they escorted.

By his dress, the Torenthi ambassador, too, was a Moor, though darker complected than any Moor Kelson had ever seen. He rode a tawny-colored desert barb, taller by several hands than the usual of the breed, and his flowing desert robes were of the same amber hue as the animal's shiny coat, though his turban was snowy white, a fold of it covering the lower part of his face. Most impressive of all was the vast cloak of spotted catskin curved around the man's shoulders, dappled and sun-tawny, the great fore paws clasped on his breast and the ponderous head resting on his left shoulder, all gleaming in the sunlight as he paused briefly in the doorway to take stock of the situation he was about to enter.

He bore himself like a prince as he minced his barb delicately down the center of the stone-flagged hall. He appeared to be unarmed—but any number and manner of weapons might be secreted beneath the cloak of spotted fur. Or perhaps he had no need for weapons, since cautious psychic probes from Kelson and several of the Deryni around him encountered closely guarded shields.

Deryni himself, then—or at least well protected by someone who was. His black eyes flashed, vibrant and aware, as he drew rein in the center of the hall.

Only, as he dropped the barb's reins and flung one leg over the pommel of his saddle, preparatory to dismounting, the golden eyes of the great cat's head on his shoulder blinked, the mighty head lifting as the jaws parted in a mighty yawn.

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Appendix I

THE KING'S JUSTICE

Index of Characters

AHMED
—a grain merchant.

ALAN
Sommerfield, Sir—a seasoned captain of the elite McLain lancers.

ALARIC
—see
MORGAN
.

ALROY
, King—late King of Torenth, eldest son of Duke Lionel of Arjenol and Princess Morag, sister of Wencit; killed in a fall from a horse while hunting, summer of 1123, shortly after his fourteenth birthday; succeeded by his younger brother Liam, age nine. Many in Torenth believe the “accident” was engineered by Kelson to eliminate a rival who had come of age.

ANNALIND
, Princess—twin sister of Roisian of Meara. After Roisian's marriage to King Malcolm Haldane in 1025, Annalind's adherents maintained that she, not Roisian, was the firstborn of the two sisters and, therefore, rightful heiress to the Coronet of Meara. Her descendants are Pretenders of Meara. Caitrin Quinnell is the current claimant.

ARDRY
MacArdry—eldest son and heir of Caulay; killed 1107, age twenty, in brawl with a McLain retainer.

ARILAN
, Bishop Denis—formerly Auxiliary Bishop of Rhemuth, now Bishop of Dhassa; secretly Deryni and member of the Camberian Council.

AZIM
, Lord—Rothana's uncle, and Richenda's former teacher; high-ranking Deryni adept and precentor of the Knights of the Anvil, at Djellarda, successors of the Michaelines.

BARRETT
de Laney—elderly Deryni; blind co-adjutor of the Camberian Council.

BELDEN
of Erne, Bishop—Bishop of Cashien.

BRADENE
, Bishop—former Bishop of Grecotha, now Archbishop of Valoret and Primate of Gwynedd.

BRAN
Coris, Lord—traitor Earl of Marley and former husband of Richenda; killed by Kelson.

BRENDAN
Coris, Lord—seven-year-old Earl of Marley, son of Bran and Richenda.

BRICE
, Lord—Baron of Trurill.

BRION
Donal Cinhil Urien Haldane, King—Kelson's late father; slain at Candor Rhea by the magic of Charissa, 1120.

BRIONY
Bronwyn de Morgan, Lady—infant daughter of Morgan and Richenda, born January 1123.

CAITRIN
Quinnell, Princess—the Pretender of Meara, age sixty-one.

CALDER
of Sheele, Bishop—one of the twelve itinerant bishops of Gwynedd, with no fixed see; great-uncle of Dhugal.

CAMBER
of Culdi, Saint—outlawed Deryni saint of two centuries previous; patron of magic.

CARDIEL
, Archbishop Thomas—former Bishop of Dhassa, now Archbishop of Rhemuth, age forty-four.

CAULAY
MacArdry—late Chief of the MacArdrys; Dhugal's maternal grandfather.

CIARD
O Ruane—Dhugal's old gillie.

CONALL
, Prince—eldest son of Prince Nigel, and Kelson's cousin, age sixteen.

CONSTANCE
, Sister—nun at St. Brigid's, killed in attack by Ithel's men.

CORAM
, Stefan—Deryni; deceased former co-adjutor of the Camberian Council.

CORMAC
Hamberlyn—border chieftain and brigand who defected to Caitrin's service; all but outlawed in Brion's day.

CREODA
, Bishop—Bishop of Culdi after dissolution of his former See of Carbury, and a conniver in Loris' return to power.

DELRAE
, Sir—captain of Jehana's Bremagni honor guard.

DHUGAL
MacArdry, Lord—foster brother to Kelson, age fifteen; Chief of Clan MacArdry and Earl of Transha; son of Duncan McLain by Maryse MacArdry.

DUNCAN
Howard McLain, Bishop—Deryni priest-cousin of Morgan, age thirty-one; Duke of Cassan and Earl of Kierney, following the deaths of his father and elder brother; auxiliary bishop under Archbishop Cardiel; father of Dhugal MacArdry.

EWAN
, Duke—Duke of Claibourne and hereditary Lord Marshal of the Gwynedd Royal Council.

GILBERT
Desmond, Bishop—one of the twelve itinerant bishops of Gwynedd.

GLODDRUTH
, General—aide to Kelson, formerly in service of Duke Jared McLain.

GODWIN
, General—one of Kelson's generals.

GORONY
, Monsignor Lawrence Edward—aide to Archbishop Loris.

GRIGOR
of Dunlea—a neighbor baron of Brice of Trurill, gone over to Caitrin.

HAKIM
—Emir Nur Hallaj, Rothana's father.

HELOISE
, Mother—Abbess of St. Brigid's Abbey.

HOAG
—a Haldane lancer.

HUGH
de Berry, Bishop—former secretary to Archbishop Corrigan and longtime colleague of Duncan, now one of the twelve itinerant bishops of Gwynedd.

ISTELYN
, Bishop Henry—former itinerant bishop and assistant to Archbishop Bradene; briefly Bishop of Meara; hanged, drawn, and quartered at order of Archbishop Loris; sainthood is being discussed.

ITHEL
, Prince—elder son and heir of the Pretender of Meara, age sixteen.

JANNIVER
, Princess—daughter of a Connaiti prince, betrothed to the King of Llannedd.

JASS
MacArdry—a MacArdry retainer.

JATHAM
—squire to Kelson.

JEHANA
, Queen—Deryni mother of Kelson and widow of King Brion, age thirty-five.

JEMET
—a Haldane scout.

JENAS
, Earl of—see
ROGER
.

JODRELL
, Lord—a young baron in Kelson's entourage, holding lands in Kierney.

JOLYON
, Prince—last sovereign Prince of Meara, father of the twin princesses Roisian and Annalind and a younger daughter.

JOWAN
—Conall's squire.

JUDHAEL
Michael Richard Jolyon MacDonald Quinnell, Prince of Meara—priest-nephew of Caitrin of Meara, age thirty-eight; illegally made Bishop of Ratharkin by Loris.

KELSON
Cinhil Rhys Anthony Haldane, King—son of King Brion and Jehana, now seventeen; Deryni.

KIRKON
—a R'Kassan scout in Kelson's service.

KYRI
, Lady—Deryni, around thirty, known as “Kyri of the Flame”; member of the Camberian Council.

LACHLAN
de Quarles, Bishop—newly appointed Bishop of Ballymar, in Cassan.

LAEL
, Father—Archbishop Cardiel's chaplain and battle-surgeon.

LAMBERT
MacArdry—one of Dhugal's retainers.

LARAN
ap Pardyce, Lord—Deryni physician, sixteenth Baron Pardyce, about fifty-eight; member of the Camberian Council.

LAUGHLIN
, Father—a priest with Kelson's army.

LEWYS
ap Norfal—an infamous Deryni who rejected the authority of the Camberian Council.

LIAM
, King—middle son of Duke Lionel and Princess Morag, age nine; King of Torenth since the death of his elder brother, summer of 1123; Deryni.

LLEWELL
, Prince—younger son of the Pretender of Meara, age fifteen; executed for the murder of his sister Sidana.

LIONEL
, Duke—Duke of Arjenol and father of Wencit's nephews and heirs; killed by Kelson at Llyndruth Meadows, 1121; succeeded by his brother Mahael.

LORIS
, Bishop Edmund Alfred—fanatically anti-Deryni former Archbishop of Valoret and Primate of Gwynedd; stripped of his offices and sent into forced seclusion at Saint Iveagh's Abbey by his fellow bishops in 1121, but escaped; an ally of Caitrin of Meara.

LUDOLPHUS
—Azim's peddler alias.

MACARDRY
—see
ARDRY
,
CAULAY
,
DHUGAL
,
MARYSE
,
SICARD
.

MACARDRY
, The Old—Caulay MacArdry, Chief of Clan MacArdry and Earl of Transha before Dhugal; believed to be Dhugal's father until Duncan proved otherwise.

MAHAEL
, Duke—younger brother of the slain Lionel, and his ducal heir; regent, with Princess Morag, of the young King Liam.

MALCOLM
Haldane, King—great-grandfather of Kelson who married Roisian, the eldest daughter of the last Mearan Prince, intending by that union to join the Mearan Coronet permanently and peacefully to Gwynedd; died 1074.

MARYSE
MacArdry—eldest daughter of Caulay MacArdry; died 1108, age seventeen; wife of Duncan and mother of Dhugal.

MATTHIAS
MacArdry—one of Dhugal's retainers.

MCLAIN
—See
DUNCAN
.

MERAUDE
, Duchess—Nigel's wife, and mother of Conall, Rory, and Payne.

MIR
de Kierney, Bishop—one of the twelve itinerant bishops of Gwynedd.

MORAG
, Princess—Deryni sister of Wencit of Torenth and widow of Lionel; mother of the current king, Liam, and Prince Ronal.

MORGAN
, Alaric Anthony—Deryni Duke of Corwyn and King's Champion, age thirty-two; cousin of Duncan McLain and husband of Richenda.

NIGEL
Cluim Gwydion Rhys Haldane, Prince—Duke of Carthmoor and Brion's younger brother, age thirty-six; Kelson's uncle and Heir Presumptive.

PAYNE
, Prince—Nigel's youngest son, age eight; royal page.

QUINNELL
—family name of Caitrin, the Pretender of Meara.

RAIF
—a Forcinn scout in Kelson's service (and Sofiana's); Deryni.

RAMSAY
of Cloome—a cadet branch of the Mearan royal line.

RANDOLPH
of Fairhaven—one of Ithel's officers.

RAYMER
de Valence, Bishop—one of the twelve itinerant bishops of Gwynedd.

RECHOL
—a blade merchant.

REMIE
, General—one of Kelson's generals.

RHYDON
, Lord—Deryni; a former Baron of Eastmarch, member of the Camberian Council, and ally of Wencit; deceased.

RICHENDA
, Duchess—widow of Bran Coris, Earl of Marley, and mother of the current earl, their son Brendan; now wife of Morgan and mother of his daughter Briony; Deryni; age twenty-four.

ROGER
, Earl of Jenas—one of Kelson's retainers.

ROISIAN
of Meara—eldest daughter of Jolyon, the last sovereign Prince of Meara, and queen to King Malcolm Haldane; died 1055; firstborn twin sister to Princess Annalind of Meara.

ROLF
MacPherson—Deryni Lord of the tenth century who rebelled against the authority of the Camberian Council.

RONAL
, Prince—Deryni younger brother of the current King of Torenth, age five.

RORY
, Prince—middle son of Prince Nigel, age thirteen.