‘I don’t know what you expect me to do,’ he muttered. ‘It’s Maize Ear you’d have to convince, you know that. And I can’t show myself to him. It would be too dangerous.’
‘He wouldn’t have the nerve!’ Nimble cried. ‘You’re his father!’
‘He doesn’t have to believe I am who I am. More to the point, he wouldn’t want to believe it. I’d need to convince him of the truth before he set eyes on me. Of course, if we still had Jade Doll’s ring, I could have sent him that.’
‘How would that have helped?’ I asked.
‘After she was executed. Hungry Child always wore her ring,’ Mother of Light explained.
‘It was to remind me of my own stupidity,’ the King added, ‘in the hope that I wouldn’t be taken in so easily again! It was supposed to have been buried with me, but I managed to save it. I know Maize Ear would recognize it if he saw it. But we needed something distinctive to give to Hare as a token, something that was valuable enough to convince him we would be good for whatever price he wanted for the message. That was the point about the ring: there’s nothing else in the World like it. Hare wouldn’t have known what it was, of course, not being from around here, but he’d realize how valuable it must be. Nobody who did know it could fail to recognize it. But now it’s lost.’
‘A ring…’ Kindly murmured. ‘This is the first I’ve heard about it,’ he said, looking at me reproachfully.
‘Lily swore me to secrecy,’ I told him.
‘Oh. Um, what did it look like, this ring?’
I glanced at him curiously. He sounded unlike himself all of a sudden. His manner was hesitant, almost diffident, and he kept looking at the floor.
‘It was a big greenstone carved like a skull,’ Mother of Light said.
‘Why do you want to know?’ I asked.
His answer was to fumble about in his breechcloth for a moment before producing a large gold ring. It boasted a single jewel: an enormous, flawless greenstone.
The stone was carved in the shape of a skull.
It was a while before anyone was able to say anything. Even the King was speechless. Finally I managed to say, in a weak voice: Where did you get that?’
‘I found it.’
What do you mean, you found it? Where?’
‘Hare’s house. I told you-— didn’t I?-— the first thing you do when you go into a merchant’s house is look for the hiding places. I searched a few favourites of mine and Lily’s while you and Nimble were skulking about in the bushes behind the courtyard. Sure enough, this thing was pushed into the plaster by the doorframe — hammered in quite firmly, actually. Someone had taken a bit of trouble getting it in there.’ Correctly interpreting my look, he added defensively: Well, nobody told me it was important! I thought it might help me pay Obsidian Tongue’s fee.’
‘Why, you stupid, greedy old…’
‘You should have said! I can’t be expected to know everything. What am I, a bloody magician?’
I snatched the ring from him impatiently and turned to Hungry Child. ‘My lord, we have your ring. What now?’
‘Give me that,’ he snapped.
‘No.’
He took a step towards me. ‘Give it to me, or I will take it from you,’ he snarled.
I backed away, conscious of the fact that Mother of Light and her flint knife were very close. Out of the corners of my eyes I saw Nimble tense and Kindly straighten his back as best he could, his swollen knuckles clenched around his staff. Only Little Hen, still playing idly and muttering to herself where she squatted on the floor, seemed oblivious to the sudden change in mood.
It was hopeless, I thought, and then, because I could think of nothing better to do, I put the ring in my mouth.
‘If I swallow this,’ I mumbled, ‘you won’t get it back in a hurry!’
The King looked shocked. ‘What?’
I repeated my threat. I was not sure whether he was surprised by my action or confused by my indistinct speech.
‘You’re bluffing,’ he declared. ‘You can’t swallow that, it’s too big! You’ll choke! Mother of Light…’
He was right, of course, and for a terrifying moment I knew I was beaten, because no matter how hard I tried I could not get the thing on to the back of my tongue, never mind down my throat. But then Mother of Light responded.
‘No, my lord,’ she said suddenly, and I heard a thump as she dropped the knife. ‘We can’t do this.’
He seemed nonplussed. ‘What did you say?’
‘Haven’t you always said we couldn’t skulk around in this empty palace for ever, and the time would come when you had to show yourself? Maybe now’s the time. If we can get the ring to Maize Ear, he’ll have to acknowledge you for who you are. Then he’ll do anything you ask him to, so long as you promise to leave him alone!’
‘We’d have to leave Tetzcoco altogether!’ he protested.
‘But that’s what you intended to do all along.’
The King hesitated. He made a curious spectacle, this man who had ruled an empire and still had the air of a monarch, now apparently tongue-tied before a woman. In the end he said, in a small voice: ‘What about the girl? I haven’t finished with her.’
‘Take her with us. I’ll look after her.’
I spat the ring out on to my hand. As I reached automatically for an end of my breechcloth to wipe the saliva off it, I said: ‘So how about it, my lord? You ask Maize Ear for our lives in return for the ring.’
He looked at
