A heavyset woman with three eyes, greenish-gray skin, and a pair of short horns jutting from her forehead floated down to us, surrounded by four young women who held up corners of her heavily layered and more heavily bejeweled dress. I literally fought back nausea. I had never seen such a repulsive creature before.
“Countess Tsel,” Aber said to her, bowing formally. After a second's hesitation, I did the same. “May I present my brother, Oberon?”
“Please do.” She offered me a cool hand, scaled like a snake's. I kissed it unhappily.
“Enchanted,” I said.
“This is my brother, Duke Urchok,” she said, indicating the squat man with a face full of tentacles, who had just come up to join her. “And my niece, Lady Portia, and her husband, Baron Yorlum.” She indicated a well-dressed couple to her left, both with horns and slightly too-elongated faces, but human enough looking overall.
“I am honored, Duke, Baron.” I bowed to both men, then kissed Lady Portia's hand, my touch lingering for a moment. “And I am most delighted to meet you, my Lady.” Would that she were my bride, instead of Braxara!
Portia blushed. The Baron, with a dark glance at me, took her elbow and escorted her away. They stepped onto one of the floating rocks and drifted toward the ceiling.
“Oberon,” Duke Urchok said in a muffled voice filled with faint hisses and squeaks. He gave a nod. “Good to meet you. We have heard great things about you from your aunt.”
“Your house is old with tradition,” Countess Tsel said, regarding me, “and you might find it profitable to meet my daughter Eleane.”
I glanced at Aber, who gave a slight nod of encouragement. These two must be important. Somehow, I didn't think Aunt Lanara would approve of my dining with them.
“I would be honored,” I murmured, forcing a polite smile.
“Tomorrow?”
“Alas, I have a prior engagement.”
“Then we will do it the following day. For dinner.” He looked around the room. “Are any of your other brothers here? Locke, perhaps?”
“No,” I said. “It's just Aber and me. Locke is dead.”
“Dead! Oh dear. Poor boy, you're practically an orphan. Then you certainly must come to dinner. Bring Aber, but not your father. My dear Sikrad simply
Then the countess spotted someone else she desperately needed to talk to and swept away, followed by her brother and entourage. I stared after her, not quite sure whether to be insulted, bewildered, or amused.
“Who is Sikrad?” I asked Aber.
“Her husband. No one has seen him in decades. Half the court thinks Countess Tsel killed and ate him.”
“What!” I cried. “She's a“
“Hush! A cannibal. She's probably eaten a dozen husbands over the years.”
“And her daughter?”
“Nothing but rumors about her… so far.” He grinned at my horrified expression. “I'm sure you're safe enough, at least until
I swallowed hard. Monsters. Cannibals. Eligible daughters. What had I gotten myself into?
“You could do worse than her daughter,” Aber said. “The countess owns many of the finest
“In case you've forgotten,” I said, “my engagement is about to be announced here!”
“Do you really think that would stop someone like Countess Tsel from trying to marry you off to one of her offspring? After all, if you're good enough for Aunt Lanara, you're certainly good enough for the Countess! They have been rivals for longer than I can remember.”
“Why is it,” I said, “that half the people here seem to have matrimony on their minds?”
“Why do you think Dad's been married so many times?” he said with a laugh. “Maybe now you're beginning to see the reason I like life in Shadows better. I fully think half the females in Chaos are in search of mates at any one time.”
Then Aber's face hardened.
“Be on your guard,” he said, gazing over my left shoulder. “Our enemies approach.”
“Who?”
“Oberon,” Aber said loudly. He swallowed hard. “May I present Lord Ulyanash?”
I turned, forcing a half smiling. Finally I would meet one of our enemies face to face. I would not let any fear or apprehension show.
Ulyanash looked much like Rhalla's description—long, straight black hair, red eyes, two white horns on top of his head—and he dressed all in black, from pants to shirt to boots. Silver buttons at his sleeves added a splash of color. Rather than large and muscular, as I had expected, he was smaller than me and thin almost to the point of skeletal. I found it hard to guess his age, but it couldn't have been much older than I was—no more than five or six years. To my surprise, he carried no weapons.
As we came face to face, his red eyes narrowed. I could tell he was sizing me up, too.
“I am delighted to finally meet you,” I said, smiling with all my teeth. “We have several acquaintances in common.”
“Oh?” He set his hands on his hips and looked me over with contempt. “I find that difficult to believe.”
“Oh, it's true. Why, just this morning a friend told me how much she once admired you.”
“Just so.” He smirked and looked over his shoulders at his friends. “A woman I've cast off has made her way to you.”
His friends chuckled.
I folded my arms. “Her name was Rhalla.”
“I don't remember her,” Ulyanash sneered as he walked in a circle around Aber and me. I pivoted on my right foot, keeping us face to face. “Shows how good she is in bed.”
Once more his friends laughed.
“Actually,” I said, “her complaints were all about your skills in bed. And… certain other areas, where you don't measure up.”
He threw back his head and laughed.
“So, Oberon thinks himself a quick wit. The one great hope for that pitiful House Barimen—”
“Lord Dworkin,” I said. “I believe his titles are older and more respected than your own, few though they are.”
Ulyanash's face hardened suddenly. Apparently he wasn't used to being insulted.
“You are playing a dangerous game,” he said. “Want to raise the wager?”
Aber dropped his voice to a whisper:
“Ignore him. He's looking for a duel.”
“Then,” I said, as I looked Ulyanash up and down with a dismissive glance, “he's welcome to have one!”
Chapter 24
Ulyanash's followers formed a circle around us. A hush fell over the party guests. They began hurrying toward our side. I spotted Aunt Lan, looking down and wringing her hands, atop a floating stone three stories above us. She motioned frantically for us to stop. I ignored her.
“Time and place?” I asked. If I let him pick them, I would have choice of weapons… and the advantage, as I saw it.
“Here,” Ulyanash said smugly. “Now.” With one hand he reached out to the side and plucked from the air some sort of three-clawed weapon, the like of which I had never seen before. “Your trisp and fandon?”
