Arutha smiled. "That's why I wanted you here."

Kasumi said, "Highness, perhaps it is as Lord Brucal states. We've had little contact with them in recent times. They may have tired of our steel and now move in small, stealthy bands."

Laurie shrugged. Yabon-born and -raised, the singer from Tyr-Sog knew as much about the moredhel as any in the room. "It is something to consider, that we have all these strange reports of goings on to the north at a time when moredhel hands can be seen involved with the attempts to kill Arutha."

"I would be less troubled," said Arutha, "if I knew that crushing them in Krondor would prove sufficient. Until we've uncovered the mystery of who is behind all this, I think we are not through with the Nighthawks. They may take months to re-form and be a menace, but I think they'll return. And as I sit here, I am certain there's some connection between the Nighthawks and what is occurring in the north."

A knock at the door preceded Gardan's entrance. "I have searched everywhere, Highness, and can find no sign of Squire James."

Laurie said, ""Last I saw him, he was standing upon the steps next to Swordmaster Fannon while the Tsurani were making their entrance."

Gardan said, "He was sitting on the steps after I dismissed the troops."

From a high window a voice said, "He's now sitting above you."

All eyes turned to see the boy sitting in a high-arched window overlooking Arutha's chamber. Before anyone could speak, he nimbly leaped down.

Arutha's expression showed mixed disbelief and amus.e.m.e.nt. "When you asked to explore the roofs, I thought you would be needing ladders and . . . help . . ."

Jimmy's manner was serious. "I saw little sense in waiting, Highness, and besides, what sort of thief needs ladders or help to climb walls?" He came up to Arutha. "This place is a warren of nooks and niches a man could secrete himself in."

"But first he must get onto the grounds," said Gardan. Jimmy gave the captain a look indicating that that feat presented no difficulty. Gardan lapsed into silence - Laurie picked up the dropped thread of conversation. "Well, while we don't know what's behind the Nighthawks, at least they've been destroyed here in Krondor."

"So I thought myself," said Jimmy, looking about the room. "But this afternoon, as the crowd began to break up, I saw an old friend in the square. Laughing Jack."

Arutha looked hard at Jimmy. "It was my understanding you left that traitor to the Mockers dead."

"As dead as any man with a six-inch hole in his chest from a steel bolt is likely to be. It's difficult getting out and about with half your lungs missing, but after what we saw at the wh.o.r.ehouse, if my own dear dead mum came to tuck me in bed tonight I wouldn't be surprised." Jimmy spoke in a distracted fashion as he prowled around the room. With a slightly theatrical show he said, "Aha!" and pressed down on something behind a decorative shield on the wall. With a groan a section of wall, two feet wide and three high, swung open. Arutha went over to the opening and peered in.

"What is this?" he asked Jimmy.

"One of many secret pa.s.sages throughout the palace. Back when we were hiding out together, Highness, I remember the Princess Anita talking of how she fled the palace with the aid of a serving girl. She once mentioned taking a pa.s.sage," and I'd thought nothing of it until today."

Brutal looked about the room. "This may have been part of the original keep, or one of the first additions. Back home we had a bolt-hole out of the keep to the woods. I don't know of a keep that doesn't." He looked thoughtful. "There may be more such pa.s.sages."

Jimmy smiled. "A dozen or more. You walk around the roof a little and you'll see some very wide walls and odd bends in pa.s.sages."

Arutha said, "Gardan, I want every foot of these pa.s.sages mapped. Take a dozen men and uncover where this one leads and where else it may empty. And see if the royal architect has a clue if any of these pa.s.sages are shown in old plans."

Gardan saluted and left. Vandros appeared deeply troubled. "Arutha, in all this I have had little time to adjust to thoughts of a.s.sa.s.sins and Dark Brothers secretly working with them."

"That's why I wanted this talk before the festivities get under way." Arutha sat down. "The palace is overrun with strangers. Every n.o.ble in attendance will have dozens of people in his retinue. Kasumi, I want your Tsurani in every key location. They would be impossible to infiltrate and are above reproach. Coordinate with Gardan, and if needs be we'll have only Tsurani, men I know from Crydee, and my personal guards inside the central palace." To Jimmy he said, "By rights I should have you strapped for this little escapade." Jimmy stiffened until he saw Arutha smile. "But I warrant anyone who tried would end up with a dagger in the ribs to show for his efforts. I heard of your confrontation with Squire Jerome."

"That snot thinks himself boss c.o.c.ky of the yard."

"Well, his father's very upset, and while he's not a very important member of my va.s.salage, he is certainly very loud. Look, you leave Jerome to play head rooster all he wants. From now on, you stay close to me. I'll tell Master deLacy you're relieved of further duty until I say otherwise. But keep your prowling under control until you tell Gardan or myself you're going up on the roof. One of my more excitable guards might put an arrow into you before he recognized you. Things have been somewhat tense around here of late, in case you failed to notice."

Jimmy ignored the sarcasm. "The fellow would have to see me first. Highness."

Brucal slapped the table. "Got a tongue in his head, that one," he said with a guffaw and approving nod.

Arutha smiled as well. He found it difficult to stay out of sorts with the young rogue. "Enough. We've receptions and banquets for the next week. Perhaps our concerns are for naught and the Nighthawks are no more."

Laurie said, "Let us hope."

Without further discussion, Arutha and his guests dispersed to their own rooms.

"Jimmy!"

Jimmy turned and saw the Princess Anita coming down the corridor in his direction, accompanied by two of Gardan's guards and two ladies-in-waiting. When she caught up with him he bowed. She presented her hand and he kissed it lightly, as he had been shown by Laurie.

"What a young courtier you've become," she observed as they resumed walking.

"It seems fate has taken an interest in me, Princess. I have never had ambitions above becoming a power in the Mockers, perhaps even the next Upright Man, but now I find my life has much broader horizons."

She smiled while her ladies whispered behind their hands. Jimmy hadn't seen the Princess since her arrival the previous day, and again felt the faint tugging inside he had known the year before. He had put his boyhood infatuation behind, but he still liked her very much.

"Have you developed ambitions, then, Jimmy the Hand?"

In feigned scolding tones he said, "Squire James of Krondor, Your Highness," and they shared a laugh. "Look, then, Princess: this is a time of change in the Kingdom. The long war with the Tsurani robbed us of quite a few men with t.i.tles. Earl Volney is acting the part of Chancellor, and there are no Dukes yet in Salador or Bas-Tyra. Three dukedoms without masters! It seems possible for a man of wit and talent to rise high in such an environment."

"Have you a plan?" Anita asked, her delight at the boy's impudence showing in her bright green eyes and her smile.

"Not as yet, not fully at least, but I can see the possibility someday of a t.i.tle beyond Squire. Perhaps, even . . . Duke of Krondor."

"First Adviser to the Prince of Krondor?" Anita said in mock astonishment.

Jimmy winked. "I am well connected. I am a close personal friend of his betrothed." They both laughed.

Anita touched his arm. "It will be good to have you here with us. I'm pleased Arutha found you so quickly. He didn't think it would be easy locating you."

Jimmy faltered a half-step. It had never occurred to him that Arutha wouldn't tell Anita of the a.s.sa.s.sin, but now he realized he hadn't. Of course, Jimmy thought to himself, he wouldn't needlessly throw a pall over the wedding. Quickly he recovered his poise. "It was more an accident than anything. His Highness never said anything about looking for me."

"You'll not know how Arutha and I worried about you all the time after we left Krondor. Last we saw you, you were fleeing across the docks from Guy's men. We had no word of you. We pa.s.sed through Krondor so quickly on our way to Lyam's coronation, we had no way to discover what had happened to you. Lyam sent warrants pardoning Trevor Hull and his men and giving them a commission for helping us, but no one knew what became of Jimmy. I didn't think he would make you a squire just yet, but I knew he had plans for you."

Jimmy felt genuinely moved. This revelation added double meaning to Arutha's remark before that he liked to think they were already friends.

Anita halted their walk, indicating a door. "I am to stand for a fitting. My wedding gown arrived from Rillanon this morning." She leaned over and kissed him lightly upon the cheek. "Now I must go."

Jimmy fought down strange, and frighteningly strong, emotions. "Highness . . . I am also glad to be here. We shall have a grand time."

She laughed and pa.s.sed through the door with her ladies, the guards taking up position outside. Jimmy waited until the door was closed, then walked away whistling a light tune. He reflected upon the last few weeks of his life and judged himself happy, despite a.s.sa.s.sins and tight boots.

Rounding a corner into a less frequented hallway, Jimmy halted. His dagger was instantly in his hand as he stood regarding a gleaming pair of eyes in the half-shadows before him. Then with a snuffling sound the owner of those nearly glowing red eyes ambled out. Covered in green scales, the creature bulked about the size of a small hound. His head resembled an alligator's, with a rounded snout, and large wings were folded across his back. A long, sinuous neck allowed the creature to look backward past an equally long tail as a young voice shouted from behind, "Fantus!"

A small boy, no more than six years old, came dashing forward to throw his arms around the creature's neck. He looked up at Jimmy with serious dark eyes and said, "He won't hurt you, sir."

Jimmy suddenly felt awkward holding his dagger and quickly put it away. The creature was obviously a pet, albeit an unusual sort. "What did you call it . . . ?"

"Him? Fantus. He's my friend and he's very smart. He knows lots of things. "

"I guess he does," agreed Jimmy, still uncomfortable under the creature's gaze. "What is he?"

The boy looked at Jimmy as if he were the living incarnation of ignorance, but said, "A firedrake. We just got here, and he followed from home. He can fly, you know." Jimmy only nodded. "We have to get back. Momma will be angry if we're not in our room." Pulling the creature around, the boy led him away without another word.

Jimmy didn't move for a full minute, then looked around as if seeking someone to validate the vision he had witnessed. Shrugging off his astonishment, the boy thief continued walking along. After a little while he could hear the sound of lute strings being plucked.

Jimmy left the hallway and entered a large garden, where Laurie was tuning his lute. The boy sat upon the edge of a planter, crossing his feet under him, and said, "For a minstrel, you're a sorry sight."

"I'm a sorry sort of minstrel." Laurie did look less than his usual spirited self. He fiddled with his lute strings and began a solemn tune.

After a few minutes Jimmy said, "Enough of this dirge, singer. This is supposed to be a time of cheer. What's gotten you so long in the face?"

Laurie sighed, his head c.o.c.ked to one side. "You're a bit young to understand-"

"Ha! Try me," interrupted Jimmy.

Laurie put up his lute. "It's the Princess Carline."

"Still wants to marry you, huh?"

Laurie's jaw dropped. "How . . .?"

Jimmy laughed. "You've been around n.o.bles too long, singer. I'm new to all this. I still know how to talk to servants. More important, I know how to listen. Those maids from Rillanon were fit to bust to tell the maids here all about you and Princess Carline. You're quite an item."

Laurie seemed unamused by Jimmy's mirth. "I suppose you've heard the whole tale?"

Jimmy took on an indifferent manner. "The Princess is a prize, but I grew up in a wh.o.r.ehouse, so my views on women are less . . . idealized." As he thought of Anita, his voice dropped a little. "Still, I must admit princesses seem different from the rest. "

"Nice that you noticed," Laurie commented dryly.

"Well, I'll say this: your Princess is the finest-looking woman I've seen and I've seen a lot of them, including your better-paid courtesans, and some of them are pretty special. Most men I know would sell their darling mothers to get her attention. So then, what's your problem?"

Laurie looked at the boy for a minute. "My problem is this business of being a n.o.ble."

Jimmy laughed, a genuine sound of amus.e.m.e.nt. "What problem? You just get to order people around and blame mistakes on someone else."

Laurie laughed. "I doubt Arutha and Lyam would agree."

"Well, kings and princes are a different sort, but most of the n.o.bles around here show me nothing. Old Volney has some wits, but he's not too anxious to be here anyway. The rest just want to be important. h.e.l.l, musician, you should marry her. You might improve the breed. "

Laurie swung playfully at Jimmy, laughing as the brash youngster easily ducked away, also laughing. A third laugh caused Laurie to turn.

A short, slender, dark-haired man in fine clothing of simple cut stood observing the proceedings. "Pug!" Laurie exclaimed, jumping up to embrace the man. "When did you arrive?"

"About two hours ago. I've had a brief meeting with Arutha and the King. They're off with Earl Volney now, discussing preparations for tonight's welcoming banquet. But Arutha hinted there was something strange going on and suggested I look for you."

Laurie indicated Pug should take a seat, and he sat beside Jimmy. Laurie made the introduction, then said, "I've much to tell, but first: how are Katala and the boy?"

"Fine. She's in our suite now, gossiping with Carline." Laurie again looked depressed at mention of the Princess. "William ran off somewhere after Fantus."

"That thing is yours?" exclaimed Jimmy.

"Fantus?" Pug laughed. "You've seen him, then. No, Fantus belongs to no one. He comes and goes as he pleases, which is why he's here without anyone's leave."

Laurie said, "I doubt he's on deLacy's guest list. Look, I'd best catch you up on matters of importance." Pug glanced at Jimmy, and Laurie said, "This fount of trouble here has been at the center of things since the first. He'll hear nothing he doesn't already know."

Laurie told of what happened, with Jimmy adding a few bits of information the singer missed. When they were done, Pug said, "This business of necromancy is an evil thing. If nothing else you said speaks of dark powers at work, that does. This is more the province of priests than magicians, but Kulgan and I will aid in whatever way we can. "

"Then Kulgan came from Stardock as well?"

"There would have been no stopping him. Arutha was his student, remember? Besides, though he'd never admit to it, I think he misses his arguments with Father Tully. And there was no doubt Tully would officiate at Arutha's wedding. I think that's where Kulgan is now, arguing with Tully."

Laurie said, "I've not seen Tully, but he was due to arrive this morning with those from Rillanon traveling at a more sedate pace than the King's party. At his age he tends to prefer things quiet."

"He must be past eighty now."

"Closer to ninety, but he hasn't lost a step. You should hear him around the palace in Rillanon. Let a squire or page fail at his lessons and he'll talk blisters on the boy's back. "

Pug laughed. Then as an afterthought, he said, "Laurie, how fare things with you and Carline?"

Laurie groaned and Jimmy hid a chuckle. "That is what we were speaking of when you appeared. Good, bad, I don't know."

Sympathy showed in Pug's dark eyes. "I know the feeling, friend. When we were children, back at Crydee . . . Just remember, you were the one who held me to my promise to introduce you if we ever returned to Midkemia from Kelewan." He shook his head and with a laugh added, "It's good to know some things never change. "

Jimmy leaped off the bench. "Well, I must be off. Pleased to make your acquaintance, magician. Cheer up, singer. You'll either marry the Princess or you won't." He dashed off, leaving Laurie struggling with the logic of that statement while Pug laughed aloud.

SEVEN - Wedding

Jimmy prowled the great hall.

The Prince's-throne room was being readied, and the other squires were supervising the activities of the pages and porters as all the last-minute touches were being applied. Everyone had their minds upon the ceremony, due to get under way in less than an hour's time. Jimmy found that the price of his being excused duty was having nothing to do at the last, and as Arutha certainly didn't want him underfoot right now, he was left to find his own distraction.

Jimmy couldn't shake the feeling that in the rush of excitement few were mindful of the past dangers to the Prince. The horrors found at the House of Willows had been hidden behind ma.s.ses of bridal flowers and festive bunting.

Jimmy noticed a black, sidelong glance from Squire Jerome and, irritated, took a menacing step in the older boy's direction. Jerome immediately had a need to be somewhere else and hurried off.

A laugh sounded from behind. Jimmy saw a grinning Squire Locklear carrying a huge bridal wreath past a Tsurani guard, who carefully checked it. Of all the other squires, only Locky showed Jimmy the slightest hint of friendship. The others were either indifferent or outright hostile. Jimmy liked the younger boy, though he tended to prattle on about the most insignificant things. He's the youngest child, thought Jimmy, his mother's darling. He'd last a fast five minutes on the streets. Still, he was a cut above the rest, whom Jimmy judged a boring lot. The only amus.e.m.e.nt Jimmy gained from them was their woeful imitations of worldly knowledge. No, Arutha and his friends were far more interesting folk than the squires with their lewd jokes and salacious speculations about this serving girl or that, and their little games of intrigue. Jimmy threw Locky a wave and headed toward another door.