Despite the evidence of his senses, Tal was certain someone besides him and the tasloi was in the playhouse. Sword in hand, he stalked the unseen intruder, pausing every few moments to listen and sniff. He peered into the shadows between the larger props and scenery that lined the walls. Not even a rat emerged.
Tal looked over the backstage area again, hoping his threat would make the burglar nervous enough to break and run. No such luck.
Then Tal noticed one of the royal guards staring at him. Mallion always put the practice masks over the heads of the guards when practice was over. And now, four masks and a barefaced guardsman stood motionless against the wall.
The ruse amused Tal even as he pretended not to notice it. He feigned interest in the costume hampers while observing the masks out of the corner of his eye. None of them moved as he poked the baskets with the tip of his sword. He prepared to rush the intruder. He needed just a few more steps…
'Wait,' said a muffled voice from the fourth mask. It was a woman. 'I know you can see me.'
Tal moved to stand between the intruder and the nearest outside door. 'Show yourself,' he said.
The woman came out from behind the mannequins. Beneath the practice mask, her clothes were all dark gray, from gloves to tightly laced boots. Tal could see nothing else about her except that she walked with a confident grace. Awfully sure of herself for a captured burglar, he thought.
'Who are you?' he said.
'An admirer,' she said.
'A secret admirer, it would seem.'
The woman inclined her head. Tal wondered whether the gesture came with a smile under the wicker mask. 'I've been coming to the plays lately,' she said. 'You are very talented.'
'Thank you,' he said. 'And you are very mysterious.'
She made an elegant curtsey. Charmed by the gesture, Tal bowed in return.
'I'm fairly sure you're not here to kill me,' he said, 'and there's nothing worth stealing. But you know that, don't you? Why are you here?'
'I mean you no harm, Talbot.'
'That's not an answer.'
'I'm just here to watch you for a while, to make sure you are all right.'
'Thamalon sent you, didn't he?'
She didn't answer. Perhaps Tal's guess was wrong, or perhaps Cale was involved. His father's butler was as mysterious as they come, and Tal had often suspected that the man had some sort of criminal connections.
'Perhaps I merely wanted to learn why you've disappeared from the rest of the city. You spend all your time here these days.'
That was true. Except during the full moon, Tal went to his tallhouse to eat, bathe, and sleep before returning to the playhouse. His absences had begun to irritate Eckert, whose fussy reminders had been replaced by a moody silence. Perhaps this stranger had been sent to spy on him because Eckert had too little to report to Tal's father.
'I've been busy,' he said.
'Busy fencing alone at night? Are you expecting a fight?'
That was a question Tal hadn't seriously considered before. Chances were good that Rusk wasn't dead, but Tal didn't expect him to come back to the city.
'It's best to be prepared if one comes unexpectedly,' he said. 'After all, you came to me, didn't you?' He nodded toward the practice swords and raised his own to point at the woman's head.
She put a hand on the hilt of one of the wooden swords. It was little more than a slightly curved staff with a cross-guard, its length marred with thousands of dents and scratches. 'What will you give me if I hit you?'
Tal laughed, not just because he thought the woman couldn't hit him but because he admired her attitude. 'You came to learn how I'm doing. I'll answer a question for each touch.'
'Done!' said the woman. Before Tal realized she had the sword in hand, she lunged forward and stabbed at his foot. He withdrew it, but not before she grazed the tip of his boot.
'That was a touch!' she cried. She neglected to disguise her voice, but Tal still couldn't place it.
Annoyed by his own carelessness, Tal snapped at her. 'Ask your damned question.'
'Why are you so angry?'
'Because I should have been ready for you-'
'No,' she said. 'Why are you so angry all the time?'
'I'm not…' he began.
He kept up his guard as he considered both the question and the woman who asked it. For a moment he thought it might be his sister, Tazi, but she wouldn't disguise herself. Even more than Chaney, she could talk to Tal about anything. He decided there was no harm in answering, no matter who she was.
'I hate other people deciding my life for me,' he said at last.
The woman beat Tal's sword lightly then cut over it and feinted. He withdrew out of range, keeping the tip of his blade near hers.
'Who does that?' She cut under Tal's blade, then again as he followed. 'Your father?' Tal reversed and feinted, cutting under to attack her leg as she parried the false thrust. She barely managed to parry the real attack.
'You're good,' Tal said, 'but that's another question. I bet you won't hit me again.'
He attacked her blade in a flurry of beats interspersed with feints. She retreated and he followed, crossing over to put her back in the corner. She saw what he was doing and dived to the ground, tumbling away from the trap.
Tal nearly struck her as she escaped, but he hesitated to hit her in the back. As she turned, she saw that she had been vulnerable.
'How gallant,' she said, 'not to strike a lady in the back.'
'How do I know you're a lady?'
'You'll have to take my word for it,' she said with a sudden attack at his wrist. Now his blood was up, and Tal's blade moved with time to spare.
'I think it's my turn for an answer.' Tal stamped, but the ruse failed to shake her guard.
He tried a binding glide, but she caught it and withdrew as she parried, circling past the royal guards. She shoved one toward Tal and darted to the side, but he anticipated the trick and was already there. He rapped her lightly on the calf.
'Who are you?' he demanded.
'I didn't agree to answers.'
'It's only fair,' he said, moving closer. 'Besides, that's my mask. I think I'll take it back now.'
'No!' she said, putting both hands on the sword in an earnest guard.
This time Tal didn't hold back, attacking her blade with his full strength. Feeling the power of his blows, his opponent retreated and dodged to avoid taking his attack on her blade. She was as quick as he, but not nearly so strong.
When he came too close, she attacked his exposed head to make him parry. As he did, she threw her sword between his legs, almost tripping him as he lunged to follow. By the time he recovered his balance, she had the door open.
She was almost out of the playhouse when Tal caught the back of her tunic and pulled back hard, lifting her feet off the ground. She twisted around and kicked his knee hard, but he took it and snarled at the pain. He dropped the wooden sword, grabbed the front of her mask, and turned her to face him.
She punched him in the stomach. He didn't even grunt. She shot a knee at his groin, but he blocked it with his thigh.
'Don't,' she said. Her voice was strong, not pleading.
'You owe me an answer, and I intend-' Tal stopped.
With his face so close to her mask, he could smell the woman's skin. She was very clean, as if she'd bathed just before coming out to spy on him. Tal smelled the ghost of bathing oils and beauty creams, and a more familiar scent beneath them.
He released the woman, leaving her mask in place. Even so close to its narrow slits, he saw only the vaguest
