now, at the edge of her dreams, the drowsy heat came back to her, the bees, the brass sphere against the sun.
'Claudia. You've missed the turn.'
She backtracked, and found him waiting, patiently. 'Sorry. Miles away.'
Jared knew the way well. The maze was one of his favorite haunts; he came here to read and study and discreetly test various forbidden devices. Today it was peaceful after the frantic packing and panic in the house. Threading the mown paths after his shadow, Claudia breathed in the rose-scents, fingering the Key in her pocket.
It was a perfect day, not too hot, a few delicate clouds. A shower of rain was scheduled for three fifteen, but they should be finished by then. As she turned a corner and came suddenly to the central glade, she looked around in surprise.
'It's smaller than I remembered.'
Jared raised an eyebrow. 'Things always are.'
The astrolabe was blue-green copper and apparently decorative; beside it a wrought-iron seat sank elegantly into the turf, a bush of bloodred roses rambling over its back. Daisies studded the grass.
Claudia sat, knees up under her silk dress. 'Well?'
Jared put his scanner away. 'Seems safe.' He turned and sat on the bench, leaning forward, his frail hands nervously folding together. 'So. Tell me.'
She repeated Evian's conversation quickly, and he listened, frowning. When she'd finished she said, 'It may be a trap, of course.'
'Possible.'
She watched him. 'What do you know about these Steel
Wolves? Why wasn't I told?'
He didn't look up, and that was a bad sign; she felt a thread of fear unwind down her spine.
Then he said, 'I've heard of them. There have been rumors, but no one's sure who is involved, or how real the conspiracy is. Last year an explosive device was discovered in the Palace, in a room where the Queen was expected. Nothing new there, but a small emblem was found too, hanging from the window catch, a small metal wolf.' He watched a ladybug scaling a blade of grass. 'What will you do?'
'Nothing. Yet.' She took the Key out and held it in both hands, letting the sunlight catch its facets. 'I'm not an assassin.'
He nodded, but seemed preoccupied, staring hard at the crystal.
'Master?'
'Something's happening.' Absorbed, he reached out for the Key and took it from her.
'Look at it, Claudia.'
The tiny lights were back, this time moving deep, a rapid, repeated pattern. Jared placed the artifact quickly on the bench. 'It's getting warm.'
Not only that, but there were sounds coming from it. She brought her face nearer, heard a clatter and a ripple of musical notes.
Then the Key spoke.
'Nothings happening'' it said.
Claudia gasped and jerked away; wide-eyed she stared at Jared. 'Did you ...?'
'Quiet. Listen!'
Another voice, older, rasping. 'Look closer, fool boy. There are lights inside it.'
Claudia knelt, fascinated. Jared's delicate fingers slid silently into his pocket. He took the scanner out and placed it beside the Key, recording.
The Key chimed, a soft sound. The first voice came again, oddly distant and excited. 'It's opening. Get back!'
And then a sound came out of the artifact, a heavy clang, ominous and hollow, so that she took a moment to register it, to recognize what it was.
A door. Unlocking.
A heavy, metallic door, perhaps ancient, because it groaned on its hinges, and there was a clatter and smash, as if rust fell, or debris shuddered from its lintel.
Then silence.
The lights in the Key reversed, changed to green, went out. Only the rooks in the elms by the moat karked. A blackbird landed in the rosebush and flicked its tail. 'Well,' Jared said softly.
He adjusted the scanner and ran it over the Key again. Claudia reached out and touched the crystal. It was cold. 'What happened? Who were they?'
Jared turned the scanner to show her. 'It was a fragment of conversation. Real-time. A phonic link opened and closed very briefly. Whether you initiated it or they did I'm not sure.'
'They didn't know we were listening.'
'Apparently not.'
'One of them said, 'There are lights inside it.''
The Sapient's dark eyes met hers. 'You're thinking they may have a similar device?'
'Yes!' She scrambled up, too excited to sit, and the blackbird flew off in alarm. 'Listen, Master, as you said, this isn't just a key to Incarceron. Maybe it's also a device to communicate!'
'With the Prison?'
'The inmates.'
'Claudia ...'
'Think about it! No one can go there. How else does he monitor the Experiment?
Overhear what's happening?'
He nodded, his hair in his eyes. 'It's possible.'
'Only...' She frowned, knotting her fingers together. Then she turned on him. 'They sounded wrong.'
'You must be more precise in speech, Claudia. How, wrong?'
She searched for the word. When it came, it surprised her. 'They sounded scared.'
Jared considered. 'Yes ... they did.'
'And what would they be scared of? There's nothing to fear in a perfect world, is there?'
Doubtfully, he said, 'We may have overheard some form of drama. A broadcast.'
'But if they have that ... plays, films, then they have to know about danger, and risk, and terror. Is that possible? Can you do that if your world is perfect? Would they even be able to create such a story?'
The Sapient smiled. 'That is a point we could debate, Claudia. Some people would say your own world is perfect, and yet you know those things.'
She scowled. 'All right. There's something else too.' She tapped the wide-winged eagle.
'Is this just for listening? Or can we use it to speak to them?'
He sighed. 'Even if we can, we shouldn't. Conditions in Incarceron are strictly controlled; everything was carefully calculated. If we introduce variables, if we open even a tiny keyhole into that place, we may ruin everything. We can't admit germs into Paradise, Claudia.'
Claudia turned. 'Yes, but...'
She froze.
Behind Jared, in the gap in the hedges, her father was standing. He was watching her.
For a moment her heart leaped with the terrible shock; then she let the practiced smile slip gracefully over her face. Sir!
Jared stiffened. The Key lay on the bench; he slid out his hand, but it was just out of reach.
'I've been looking everywhere for you both.' The Warden's voice was soft, his dark velvet coat an emptiness at the heart of the sunlit glade. Jared looked up at Claudia, whitefaced. If he saw the Key ...
The Warden smiled calmly. 'I have some news, Claudia. The Earl of Steen has arrived.
Your fiance is looking for you.'
For one cold moment she stared at him. Then she stood, slowly.
'Lord Evian is entertaining him but will only bore him. Are you pleased, my dear?'
He came to take her hand; she wanted to step aside to hide the glittering crystal from him, but she couldn't
