why it felt that way, but in the months he had been hiding with Ty he had come to rely more and more on his hunter’s skills, adapted to an urban setting. Alleys and streets were no more or less treacherous than trails and paths, and the predators in Roldem made up for their lack of fang and talon with guile and weapons.
It was early in the morning, perhaps an hour before sunrise, so the sight of three men skulking would certainly raise a hue and cry, given that the curfew inflicted on the population weeks before was enforced with severity by the roving gangs of marshals appointed by Lord Worthington.
Little word had reached them from their benefactor: Lady Franciezka had only visited them once in the last three weeks, and then had been tight-lipped. Something was afoot that she felt was best kept from the two young men, but both Hal and Ty could see that she was deeply troubled by whatever it was.
Since then they had been forced to endure isolation. For the frontier-bred Hal, used to wandering at will, it was more torture than he had endured in his life. He had combated it with a regimen of reading anything he could find — the lady had a prodigious library in every house she owned — and vigorous exercise, which he discovered not only enabled him to keep his weight under control, but reduced his worry and helped him sleep. And he spent hours practising his swordplay with Ty.
Ty was easily the most gifted swordsman Hal had ever faced. But in those hours of sparring, he had come to recognize patterns and weaknesses, and eventually he had begun to score his share of touches. Hal doubted he would ever be Ty’s equal, but it was likely he’d never face another swordsman better than himself.
Their guide held up his hand and they stopped. He peered around a corner and motioned for them to stay close and together they hugged the storefronts that were deepest in shadow as the dawn light shone into the city. As in most ports, there was a morning mist that would burn off early in the day, but for the moment it served their purposes in shrouding their passage.
They took a circuitous route but at last found themselves at the corner of an alley and a narrow street with high buildings of two and three storeys turning it into a dark canyon.
Hurrying along, they reached a door and were inside before anyone might spy them. Inside, two armed men waited and when the three threw back their hoods, sword points were lowered. ‘Good,’ said one of the two who waited. ‘This way.’
They followed their new guide down a short hall to the house’s back stairs — the servants’ passage — and ascended. On the third floor they entered a small room, used by the maid to prepare the service of meals.
The guide and the two armed men were unknown to Hal and Ty. All the two young men knew was they were working for Lady Franciezka Sorboz. All three looked dangerous. If nothing else had convinced them that the lady was important to the crown of Roldem, the seemingly endless number of these capable men at her beck and call confirmed it.
One, tall and heavily muscled, wearing the short-sleeved, close-fitting shirt and bell-bottomed trousers of a sailor said, ‘A pledge, gentlemen. Lady Franciezka asks you to swear that what you are about to see remains with you and no matter what may occur in the future, you will hold your silence. Agreed?’
Hal and Ty exchanged quick glances. Then both said, ‘Agreed.’
Their escort pushed open the door to the large master suite and the two young men entered. Three women sat quietly waiting inside a finely appointed parlour.
Lady Franciezka rose and waved with her hand for Hal and Ty to enter. They hesitated for a moment, for the second woman in the room — girl really — was Princess Stephane, the King’s daughter. The third woman was unknown to either of them, but she was as striking a beauty as the other two.
‘Your Highness, Lord Harold of Crydee and Tyrone Hawkins.’
Stephane smiled and both young men felt their stomachs tighten, as they had the first time they had been presented to the royal family after their duel at the Masters’ Court. Ty had won the Championship after Hal had been forced to withdraw due to a muscle pull during the final match.
The Princess was clad in a travelling dress, dark blue cut straight across the bodice and three-quarter- length sleeves, with a hem at mid-thigh and matching leggings. Her boots were plain and serviceable, suitable for hiking or walking. She wore no jewellery and her hair had been gathered back and pinned high.
‘This is Lady Gabriella, the Princess’s companion.’
Both young men bowed to the Princess and nodded acknowledgement of Lady Gabriella. Both Hal and Ty thought they must have caught a glimpse of Gabriella at the gala; but each wondered how he might have missed her if so. She was easily six feet tall in her stockinged feet, and like the Princess was dressed in travel garb: tight trousers and tunic, high boots, and a hooded cape.
Ty glanced at his companion and tried not to grin. If Franciezka noticed the byplay she chose to ignore it. ‘We have a problem,’ she said plainly.
Without hesitation Hal said, ‘How can we help?’
‘Can you sail a boat?’
They both nodded. Hal said, ‘I grew up in a coastal town. I’ve sailed small craft since I was a child.’
‘Me too,’ chimed in Ty.
‘Good,’ said Franciezka. ‘We haven’t much time, so attend closely. While you two have been doing a fine job of staying out of sight, there have been events unfolding both in the palace and here in the city that were not visible to the populace. The short of it is that a coup d’etat is underway.’
Both young men were stunned. At last Hal said, ‘The King?’
It was Stephane who replied. ‘Father and Mother are safe, for the time being.’ Obviously under stress, she still managed to remain admirably calm about the danger to those she loved. ‘Lord John Worthington wouldn’t harm either if he can convince them to sanction my marriage to his son. Once that happens, then he can do what he needs to do to make his son king.’
‘But your brothers-’ began Ty.
‘Safe, for the moment,’ said Franciezka. ‘None of them are where Worthington assumes them to be. For the time being, Lord John is content to think he has the three princes confined.’
The two young men glanced at one another, both instantly realizing that it would be futile to ask where they were.
Franciezka said, ‘What I need to do is take care of two problems at once.’ She looked at Hal, ‘Kesh has agents looking for you. I seem to have blunted their search, but there is another player, whom I do not know, and that has me concerned. Those agents are doubly dangerous because some of them used to be mine.’
Hal and Ty said nothing, but their expressions revealed surprise.
‘I was certain by now you had some sense of my role in the affairs of Roldem.’
Hal said, ‘I assumed your role was important, but I hadn’t thought about spies.’
Ty said, with some chagrin, ‘I did, but dismissed the idea. I thought you might be … a special friend to one of the princes?’
At that Stephane laughed. ‘My brothers? They are sweet, but none of them could keep up with our good lady here.’ Her tone revealed a mix of admiration and no little distrust. If Franciezka was the spy-mistress of Roldem, that distrust was likely well earned.
‘With former agents of mine in play, my identity is no longer a matter of state secret. Once this is over, and should we all survive, I will be of little use to the Crown in my current role.’
‘Are these turned agents working for Lord Worthington?’ asked Ty.
‘Almost certainly. I’m the only one who knows where the Princess is hiding. Otherwise Lord John would have sent squads of soldiers to my door to fetch the Princess back. The princes are currently surrounded by men of unquestioning loyalty, but those are few in number. The rest of the army and navy take their orders from the Crown, which at this point means they take orders from Lord John Worthington. But should he attempt to force them to return to the palace, it could start a civil war he’s not certain to win.’ She took a deep breath, crossing her arms. Her right index finger tapped idly against her left arm while she considered. ‘No, we’re dealing with a handful of my former men who know me well enough to pick their moment, once they discover exactly where I’ve hidden Her Highness. They don’t have enough swords to do otherwise, and even if they could overwhelm those loyal to me, they would expose themselves as traitors.’
Ty said, ‘What must we do?’
‘For about two hours, nothing; but then we must move and do so at great speed. Kesh’s flotilla is anchored less than a half-mile outside the harbour mouth. They are content to let ships bound for the Empire pass without trouble. Their position appears to be one of keeping a wedge between the two Kingdoms, and to keep Roldem’s
