The Wildkin’s Curse (14 page)

‘Gracious me! Is it a burglar?' the stranger cried in a high, shrill voice. ‘Please don't kill me. You can have all my rings and bracelets, and oh, my earrings too, as long as you don't kill me!'

‘As if there'd be burglars coming in the west door,' Zed said with disgust. ‘How do you think they'd get in the gate? Who is that anyway? Don't tell me . . .'

He pulled out his night-light and illuminated it. At once golden light flowed over the scene, revealing a tall, slender young man with pale, flowing curls. He was dressed in a diaphanous robe of silvery-blue, belted extravagantly at the waist with a purple sash with crimson and gold fringing, and high-heeled silver shoes with long pointed toes and an extravagant jewelled buckle.

‘Zakary?' Zed said, sounding unpleasantly surprised.

‘Zed!' the young man answered. ‘How delightful! And how unexpected. What in heaven's name are you doing here?'

‘I live here,' Zed said crossly. ‘The question is, what are
you
doing here?'

‘I've come to stay, my dear. Country air and all that.'

‘I thought you hated country air,' Merry said. ‘I seem to remember that the last time you came you swore never to return.'

Zakary sighed. ‘Yes. If only I had listened to myself. I had persuaded myself it could not possibly be as bad as I remembered . . . but one forgets.'

‘The sisika bird,' Zed groaned. ‘Of course, I should have recognised it.'

‘I heard dear Sugar screeching and came down to see if I could soothe him. He can be rather cranky in a strange place. Maybe it's the smell. There is a lingering odour . . .' Zakary pulled a purple silk handkerchief out of his sleeve and held it to his nose. ‘Why, I do believe it's you, Merrik! What have you been doing, wrestling with the pigs? Or perhaps it is that vile creature you have on your shoulder. What is it? A rat?'

‘I'd rather smell of good clean ferret than stink of scent,' Merry flashed back. ‘Whatever have you drenched yourself with, Zak? You smell like a strumpet's garret!'

Zed bit back a grin, saying mildly, ‘It is rather strong, Zak. Have you been romping in the rose garden again?'

‘Oh, Zed darling, you do make me laugh! It's all the rage. Princess Adora gave me a whole bottleful, to thank me for a quite trifling service I did her. But you have an excellent nose, my sweet, really quite an excellent nose. It
is
rose, with heart notes of amber and patchouli, and just a hint, the merest hint, of civet. Isn't it divine?'

‘It smells like that disgusting green slime you get at the bottom of a vase after the flowers have all rotted away,' Merry said.

‘Oh, Merry!' Zakary gave a trill of laughter. ‘What are we going to do with you? Such a rustic.'

‘Better than being a fop,' Merry replied.

‘A fop? Me? I do protest. I'm the pinnacle, the absolute pinnacle, of court fashion, my dear. But tell me, who is this rather pretty young man? I don't believe we've met.'

‘Zak, this is my new squire, Laurie. His aunt is a friend of my parents.'

‘Not, I will hazard a guess, from a starkin family? No? I thought not.' With a flick of his fan he dismissed Liliana. ‘But tell me, Zed, my dear, where have you been?'

‘A bit of hunting, a bit of fishing,' Zed answered vaguely. ‘Before that we were staying at my aunt's. But more importantly, what are
you
doing here? I don't believe you've come all this way for a breath of fresh air.'

‘Gambling debts is my bet,' Merry said. ‘That's what it was last time, wasn't it?'

Zakary shrugged. ‘My dear Merry, you malign me. Not that I haven't run up a few trifling debts, but nothing that my dear papa can't honour. Certainly not enough to drive me away from court!'

His voice faded as he stared dreamily out into the darkness. Then he sighed, waved his handkerchief, and resumed in a stronger voice. ‘The fact of the matter is, I was sent here to help prepare Zedrin for his court appearance. A little polish, as it were. I mean, it's not the poor boy's fault that he was brought up in the wilds, is it?'

‘Court appearance? What court appearance?' Zed demanded.

‘Oh, darling, don't you know? Whoopsies!' He clapped one hand to his mouth. ‘Have I let the cat out of the bag? I swear I
mean
to be the absolute soul of discretion, but really, how am I meant to remember who knows what?'

‘Jumping Jimjinny!' Zed exchanged a quick glance with Merry and Liliana. They had been expecting to have to convince Zed's family to let them go to court. This was a most unexpected development.

Zakary sighed and rolled his eyes. ‘Such vulgarity! We of the Ziv simply do not use such expressions. I can see my work is cut out for me here in Estelliana. Luckily there is no-one—
no-one
, my dear Zed—better equipped to teach you how to get on at court. The first thing we must do is find you a better tailor. What are you thinking, allowing yourself to be seen in public in such an outfit? So drab! So crude! Still, what else can be expected when one sees the company you keep?'

Zakary cast a condescending glance at Liliana and Merry and shook his head in sorrow. ‘Oh, la! The work that lies ahead of me. Fortunately I brought quite a number of trunks with me from Zarissa. I just might have a little something in there I can have altered for you.'

He slipped his hand through Zed's arm and drew him through the doorway. The last Liliana heard was a little trill of delight as Zakary exclaimed, ‘Oh, but Zed, your muscles!
Most
unfashionable! But delightful. I fear nothing of mine will fit you, I cultivate a far more delicate look . . .'

‘Who was that?' Liliana demanded. ‘Surely he can't be related to Zed!'

‘I'm afraid he is,' Merry replied. ‘He descends on us whenever he runs out of money, which is a little too often for my liking. I think he goes from one relative to another, living the high life at their expense. His father lost all his land years ago, gambling, and now they have nothing but the right to put “ziv” in their name.'

‘I don't like him,' Liliana said in a very definite voice.

Merry grinned at her. ‘I'm sure you don't. He's just what you expected me and Zed to be like, isn't he?'

Liliana smiled unwillingly.

‘Just try not to hiss “starkin scum” at him every time you see him.'

‘I'll try,' she replied with an exaggerated sigh. ‘But it's going to be very hard.'

Zed was waiting for them in the hallway above. ‘Zak's gone to get changed. I bet it's the tenth time today! Come on, Lili, let's go and introduce you to my mother. She'll be so glad to see you.'

Liliana took a deep breath as he led them into a warm, round room, hung with tapestries and embroideries. Its arched windows were set with amber-coloured glass so that the windows would blaze golden when lit from within and all the people of Levanna-On-The-Lake would know when the family was at home.

A beautiful, fair-haired woman in a loose blue mantle sat sewing in a winged chair by the fire, her feet resting on a fat velvet stool. A brown-bearded man sat opposite, strumming a lute which he held on his lap. A collection of other women sat on the floor or on cushions nearby. Some were embroidering, some were spinning, another two were weaving cloth on a loom. Most were dark-haired and dark-eyed, and dressed simply in grey wool. A slender girl of about fifteen was sitting on the hearth rug, playing with a fluffy white kitten. She was dressed gorgeously in pink silk, and wore her honey-coloured hair loose. Her nails were painted silver, and her eyes were a warm brown like her father's. She leapt up at the sight of Zed, shrieking his name and casting herself into his arms.

‘Hello, Priscilla,' he said and disentangled himself. ‘Should you shout like that? I'm not deaf, you know. Mama, how are you? It's lovely to see you!'

The slim, fair-haired woman rose swiftly to her feet. ‘Zed! What a wonderful surprise.' She embraced him, then held out her hands to Merry. ‘And Merry too. Look at you, you both look worn out. Have you just come from the Perilous Forest? You must be starving.'

Zed's father, Pedrin, shook both boys warmly by the hand, while Priscilla hung on Zed's arm, asking a dozen questions at once. Tom-Tit-Tot rose on his paws and chittered at her, and she shrieked, ‘Oh, keep it away from me! Does it bite? Where did it come from? It smells awful!'

One of the serving-women rose to her feet and gestured to all the others to rise also. They bobbed their heads respectfully and withdrew, walking backwards and bowing again twice before withdrawing. One pretty young woman, with a tumble of dark curls under her white cap, withdrew more slowly, eyeing the scene with avid curiosity, and had to be beckoned to hurry by the others.

‘But who is this?' Lady Lisandre smiled at Liliana and drew her into the circle. ‘We have not met before, have we?'

‘You'll never guess who it is!' Zed crowed. ‘She's Briony's niece!'

‘No!'

‘Briony has a niece?'

Liliana nodded and smiled, feeling shyer than she ever had in her life.

‘But he's a boy,' Priscilla protested. ‘Don't you mean nephew?'

‘Are you really Briony's niece?' Lady Lisandre said. ‘I didn't know she had a brother or sister.'

‘She only discovered me a year ago,' Liliana said. ‘We both thought we were foundlings, with no family in the world.'

‘How wonderful for you both, to have found each other. And I'm so pleased you've come to visit us. Zed, where are your manners? Introduce us properly.'

‘Mama, Papa, it gives me great pleasure to present to you Lady Liliana Vendavala, niece of the Erlrune and granddaughter of Avannia, the former Erlqueen of the Stormlinn. Lili, this is my mother, Lady Lisandre, and my father, Pedrin, and this noisy shrieking thing is my sister, Priscilla.'

‘I'm very pleased to meet you,' Liliana said. She winced inwardly at how awkward she sounded but lifted her chin proudly, determined not to show how overawed she was.

‘But why is she dressed as a boy?' Priscilla persisted, talking over the top of all Zed's parents' exclamations and greetings.

‘She's masquerading as my squire. You must call her Laurie.'

‘But why?'

‘Come, sit down, you must be chilled to the bone,' Lisandre said, drawing Liliana to the other chair by the fire.

Her husband Pedrin hastily caught up his lute and retired to stand before the flames, regarding Liliana with a twinkle in his eyes. ‘A girl masquerading as my son's squire? What coil of trouble have you got yourselves into?'

‘It's a long story,' Zed began.

Pedrin and Lisandre laughed. ‘It always is!'

The laughter died from their eyes when they heard the task Zedrin and Merry had been set. Both understood all too well how dangerous a task it was, because the boys not only risked being exposed as rebels and traitors but put the whole family in danger too.

‘I suppose it had to come at some point,' Lisandre said faintly. ‘I mean, we have done our best here in Estelliana and tried every way we could think of to change starkin rule without actually challenging the king.'

‘It seems fateful, somehow, that Briony should suggest such a task at the very time when Zed's presence has been called for at court,' Pedrin said slowly. ‘I wonder, did she know?'

‘There is little the Erlrune does not see in the Well of Fates,' Lady Lisandre said.

‘What's this about my presence being called for in court?' Zed demanded. ‘We saw Zakary on the way in, and he said he'd come to give me some court polish. I'd really rather he didn't.'

‘So would we all,' Pedrin answered with a stifled laugh.

‘There have been developments at court,' Lady Lisandre said. ‘I hardly know how to tell you this . . .'

‘The king has called for all the counts to present themselves at court,' Priscilla said, clasping her hands together and casting her eyes heavenwards. ‘Rumour has it that whoever pleases him shall be offered the hand of his granddaughter in marriage. Isn't it romantic?”

‘What?' Zed and Liliana cried together.

‘But I understood the king's granddaughter was kept captive, like one of his zoo of wildkin,' Merry said, sitting down on one of the footstools and taking the black ferret into his lap. ‘I thought they reviled her for her wildkin blood.'

‘The last little heir to the throne has just died,' Lady Lisandre said gently. ‘It is tragic for Princess Adora, she is only young herself and yet she has lost all of her children. Some kind of mysterious bleeding disease.'

‘That is what comes of marrying your mother's cousin,' Pedrin said grimly.

Liliana must have looked confused, because Merry leant forward and said, ‘Princess Adora is yet another of Zed's cousins . . .'

‘Third cousin,' Zed said. ‘Her grandmother was cousin to my grandfather. She married Prince Zander at the age of fifteen, even though he was her mother's cousin.'