The Topaz Quest (4 page)

Overnight the plain had been transformed into a sea of purple crocuses and people were everywhere, going up and down the ridges, stooping to pick the flowers.

Tia stared in astonishment. ‘But there were no flowers yesterday!'

Yonas laughed. ‘I told you, they just suddenly appear.'

‘And who are all these people? Where have they come from?'

‘Some are from the farms or the town but mostly they're Outsiders from the sorting sheds.' Yonas tugged at Tia's sleeve. ‘C'mon. No time for talking – the really hard work starts now.'

He grabbed a couple of baskets from a huge pile by the wall and led Tia to the nearest ridge. He bent down, carefully pulled out one of the purple crocuses and laid it in the basket. ‘You do it like that. Don't squash the petals or you'll ruin the saffron threads inside.'

Tia looked at her basket. It was very big and the flowers were very small – it was going to take a long time to fill. She bent down and started picking. As she pulled the first flower out of the ground a smell of honey and warm hay wafted up from the three red threads inside.

This is easy
, she thought but by the end of an hour she was beginning to ache all over from the constant stooping. She glanced at the other pickers. They were working steadily. She bent to her task
again and didn't stop till her basket was full. Then she straightened up and stretched. Yonas was also standing up; he'd finished at the same time. He grinned. ‘Bet you're glad you've done your first basket.'

First! How many was she expected to fill in a day?

‘We can have a walk now.' Yonas pointed to a dense stand of apple trees. ‘The nearest sorting shed's behind those trees.'

‘What are sorting sheds?' Tia asked as they set off.

‘It's where the threads are sorted from the flower and dried in ovens to make the spice.'

‘But you said that's where the Outsiders live.'

‘They do. There's living lofts over the sorting area and they stay there till the harvest's done.'

‘Then what happens?'

‘The Lady Luona opens the pass and they leave.'

‘Where do they go?'

Yonas shrugged uncomfortably. ‘I don't know. Stop asking so many questions.'

He quickly climbed over the wall and hurried off. Tia wondered why her questions had annoyed him.

When they reached the trees Yonas reached up into an apple tree and pulled down a branch so they could pick the fruit.

Tia tugged off an apple and risked another question. ‘How long does the harvest last?'

‘Only twenty days.'

‘Twenty days! I won't have any back left at the end of it!'

Yonas laughed. ‘You'll get used to it. Here we are.'

The ugly, long, two-storey building was well hidden by trees. Tia thought they looked as if they'd been planted on purpose to hide the grubby painted walls and the roof full of holes patched with branches and
leaves. The windows running all down one side of the ground floor were filled with precious glass but it was cracked and dirty.

Yonas and Tia went inside. Three long tables stretched from end to end of the room with rows of people sitting at them on benches; each person had a pile of purple flowers in front of them and a small bowl. They were carefully opening the flowers, pulling out the three red threads and dropping them into the bowls. They did this in silence as a man and woman walked up and down inspecting the work. At each end of the room an open clay oven smouldered with fire-rock, making the air hot and oppressive.

Tia and Yonas gently tipped their flowers onto an empty table at the top of the room then left quickly. Tia was glad to be outside again. She sat on the bottom step of a flight of stairs running up to a door on the upper storey and took deep breaths of fresh air.

The door jerked open and an Outsider woman in shabby clothes came hurrying down. Tia stood up to let her pass but the woman banged into her and she went sprawling on the grass.

‘I'm sorry,' the woman said. She pulled Tia up, brushed grass and leaves from her jacket, apologised again, then rushed away and disappeared among the
trees. Tia and Yonas looked at each other, startled; it had happened so quickly and the woman had behaved so strangely.

Are you all right?' Yonas asked.

‘Yes, just surprised.'

‘Off to the fields, then,' Yonas said.

With a groan Tia picked up her basket and followed him to the plain.

Back in the fields they saw the strange Outsider woman picking saffron flowers. Tia and Yonas decided to ignore her and work in a different area. At noon Jofranka brought them a meal and some news.

‘The Lady Luona is coming to see how work is progressing,' she told them as they climbed up on the wall and began eating.

Tia munched her pie thoughtfully. She was going to see her third High Witch aunt. Would she be beautiful like Malindra or ugly like Yordis? Whichever it was, she was certain to be just as cruel and dangerous as they were.

‘Do you know when she'll be here?' she asked.

Jofranka shook her head. ‘She'll come when she's ready.'

They three of them chattered away until the food was eaten, then Jofranka waved goodbye and Tia and Yonas went back to work. As Tia leaned down to start picking a small dark shape flew over her head and landed on the wall where they'd been sitting. It was Loki. He pecked at the crumbs they'd left behind. Tia hoped he was keeping one eye open for the white cats.

Luona didn't arrive till Tia had filled three more baskets and delivered them to the sorting shed.

The High Witch, accompanied by her women and surrounded by guards, walked haughtily along a stone-flagged path running round the field. Everyone bowed as she passed.

She was tall and slender and her pale blonde hair, decorated with plumes and glittering stones, was piled high, making her look taller still. She wore a white gown and an orange-yellow sash fastened by a buckle set with a large, deep yellow jewel. She stroked it and, just for a moment, Tia saw a shimmer of enchantment around it. The magic topaz!

Curious to see it more clearly, Tia made her way closer to the little procession. She'd almost drawn level with Luona when a hand fell on her shoulder.

‘What d'you think you're doing?' a harsh voice demanded. It was one of Luona's guards. He shook Tia so hard that her teeth rattled and she couldn't answer.

‘Where's your work badge?' He peered at her suspiciously.

‘It's here.' She pointed at her jacket – but the badge was gone.

Tia looked round wildly for help. The Outsider woman who'd banged into her glanced away furtively and put her hand over the badge pinned to her dress. Tia was sure that the woman had pushed her over deliberately and stolen her badge.

‘Unauthorised Outsider brat – it's the ice prison for you!' The guard started shaking her again.

‘Stop!' A blast of freezing wind wrapped itself round them. The guard instantly let go of Tia and dropped on one knee, head down.

The High Witch beckoned. ‘Come here girl.'

Tia hurried forward, heart beating fast.

Luona gripped her chin, forcing her to look up. She examined Tia's face, turning it this way and that.

‘Hmm.' Luona let go of Tia and gestured to one of her women. ‘Asta, take the child to the palace. Put her in a lesser guest room and keep watch until I send for her.'

‘Yes, Lady,' Asta said.

Without another word Luona swung round and she and her procession swept on.

‘My, but that was a close escape!' Asta said. ‘It was lucky that my Lady Luona took a liking to you.'

The woman chatted all the way to the palace; the only thing she asked Tia was her name and how she came to be in Stoplar.

They went through the imposing entrance, into marble halls, up stairs carpeted with crimson and into a grand chamber where a white cat lounged on a bed spread with fine coverings. Asta pushed it off and tutted at the scattered hairs it left behind.

The cat hissed at her as it slunk out, and snarled, ‘If you touch me again I'll give you a good scratching!'

Horrible animal! It's a shame I can't tell it off
, Tia thought.

She bounced on the bed and stared around. If this was a lesser guest room she couldn't imagine how grand the others were. The walls were hung with tapestries showing the seasons of the year and the
windows were draped with curtains embroidered all over with saffron flowers. The floor was cool white marble dotted with yellow rugs.

Asta opened a door to one side. ‘This is the bathing room. You need to be clean when the High Witch summons you. I'll bring you fresh clothes.'

Why did people always want to change her clothes? Tia wondered.

‘And you can get bathed while I go – you're all sweaty.' Asta shook her head in disapproval and went out locking the door behind her.

You'd be sweaty if you'd been picking flowers in the hot sun all day!
Tia thought indignantly. She rubbed her aching back. Perhaps plunging into hot water would be a good idea after all.

After her bath she found Asta waiting with a simple tunic and long skirt.

‘I have to wait on the Lady Luona. I've put a meal for you on the table by the window. Get changed before you eat and be ready for when she wants to see you.'

Tia nodded. As soon as Asta had gone she dressed in the tunic and skirt and went to the table. She looked out of the window as she ate; down on the plain the saffron pickers were still toiling away in the last of the daylight.

She opened the window and scanned the darkening sky. A small black bird with a grey head was flying slowly round the palace. It had to be Loki. She waved furiously. He saw her and flew in through the window, landing with a bounce and a hop on the table.

‘I see you've got yourself captured again,' he said.

‘It wasn't my fault!' Tia explained about the Outsider woman and the badge and Luona's sudden, unexpected interest in her. ‘I don't know why she wants to see me but at least now I'm in the palace I can find out more about the topaz and plan how to steal it back.'

A key rattled in the lock.

‘It's Asta! Hide!' Tia whispered and Loki flew behind a curtain.

Asta poked her head round the door. ‘Come on, girl – the Lady Luona wants to see you now and she doesn't like to be kept waiting.'

Tia hurried out. What could the High Witch want with her?

Luona was in a grand chamber sitting on a grand chair, carved with gilded symbols of the wind and sun, clouds and snow crystals.

She pointed to a padded stool at her feet. ‘Sit here, child,' she said sternly, ‘and look at me.'

Tia obediently sat down and looked up at the High Witch.

‘Asta told me your name is Nadya and you live with Traders.'

‘Yes, Lady,' Tia lied. ‘My parents died in a storm and the Traders took me in.'