Castle of Shadows (12 page)

‘Come out from your hiding place! If I’m forced to come and find you, you will regret it.’ Windlass’s voice echoed through the silence.

The skylights chequered the dusty floor with cheery patches of sunlight. Charlie stared at the tarnished brass of the generator three inches from her nose. This room had seemed so safe and dull a few moments ago. This couldn’t be happening. But it was.

How did Windlass know they were here? Her heart was thudding in her ears. In a minute he would find them. She could hear Tobias, breathing heavily beside her. He smelt of fear. Her own armpits were damp. She clenched her teeth to keep from screaming.

‘Come out from behind the generator at once, or I will come after you. And I am armed!’

Charlie felt sick. This was it. But Tobias squeezed her arm in fierce warning. ‘Stay hid!’ he mouthed. ‘Do it!’ He pushed her further down, shoving her against the generator. Before she could stop him, he had gone. For a moment, she was frozen. What should she do? He had told her to stay hidden. But she couldn’t leave him to face the Prime Minister alone! She crouched, uncertain, her heart pounding.

‘You!’ exclaimed Windlass. ‘Damn you, boy! What are you doing here?’

‘Just having a snoop round. Thieving runs in my family, Mr Prime Minister, and times are hard. I was looking for something I could nick.’

‘Don’t be ridiculous.’

‘How did you know I was here?’ Tobias asked.

‘Someone sent a message from this room twenty-five minutes ago. Once I was notified of that fact, I came to investigate.’

‘You’ve got a spy in the Exchange!’

‘Of course. I assume it was you who sent this message?’

There was a rustle of paper, and Charlie heard Tobias’s intake of breath. ‘Never seen it before.’ Tobias had recovered. His voice was as bland as if he were discussing last night’s dinner. He was a champion liar! She squeezed her eyes shut, squeezed herself into a tiny ball. She was shivering. It was the hardest thing she had ever done, crouching there listening to Tobias sacrificing himself, even though it wouldn’t help anyone if she were caught too. But she also knew that she wouldn’t stay hidden and let Windlass kill him.

‘No doubt your message was intended for Mr Peter Magorian, second-rate actor and sometime leader of an organisation that chooses to style itself the Resistance. Mr Magorian’s days at liberty are numbered. And you are a very foolish boy. You need to learn to pick the winning side, Mr Petch.’

‘That’s you, is it?’

‘It is.’

‘Then I reckon I’ll stay on the losing side.’

‘That is no longer your decision.’

Charlie tensed. Silence grew through long seconds.

‘So,’ said Tobias. ‘What you gonna do? Throw me in prison? Or maybe just kill me? You got a pretty little sword there. Dinky, ain’t it? But it looks right sharp. You gonna do the job yourself?’ His voice was shaking wildly.‘Or hire someone in?’

What was he doing?
Trying
to get himself killed? Charlie tensed her leg muscles, preparing.

‘Do you really think I would murder you in cold blood?’

‘I think you’d do anything it takes to get what you want, Mr Prime Minister. No matter who you hurt along the way. I’m nothing. What do I matter? A gardener’s boy? You wouldn’t lose five minutes’ sleep over me.’ Tobias’s voice shimmered with hatred.

Silence.

‘Get out.’ Windlass spoke at last with a voice like ice. She heard the sound of metal hissing on wood. Relief made her giddy, and she rested her forehead against the cold metal of the generator. He had sheathed his swordstick. ‘Go on, boy! Run to your friends in the Resistance. Tell them they’ll have to find another spy. Let them take you in if they will. But don’t dare to show your face in the Castle again, or you’ll find yourself on the next
convict ship to the colonies. You have ten minutes to get out of the Castle grounds before I unleash the Guard, and heaven help you then, boy, because no one else will! Go!’

Charlie heard the sound of someone walking, then running away. Then a sigh, so deep and full of pain that her eyes sprung wide in surprise. She heard Alistair Windlass stride out of the room and down the corridor. There was a squeak from the stairwell door. And then silence.

She waylaid Nell in the withdrawing room, a long room full of gold and green furniture, pale walls and vast oriental rugs. Cold radiated from the walls and the smell of beeswax and turpentine hung in the air. The maid was kneeling in front of one of the upholstered side chairs, polishing its gilded wooden legs. As Charlie ran in, Nell jumped to her feet. ‘What’s happened?’

‘Tobias!’ Charlie flopped into the chair, gasping, struggling for enough breath to speak. She had run all the way from the laboratory.

‘What? Tell me!’ Nell grabbed her shoulders and shook her.

Charlie pushed her away. ‘Give me a moment.’ She gasped several deep breaths, then looked up at the maid. Nell Sorrell had gone greyish-white, like suet pastry. ‘We were in the laboratory in the north attics. We sent the message to Peter, like you said…’

Nell nodded. She had wrapped her arms around
herself as though trying to hold in her shivers.

‘Only Windlass has someone in the Exchange too. His spy intercepted our message, sent it straight to the Prime Minister. He came to the laboratory. He found us. H-he had a sword.’

Nell looked like she was going to faint. ‘Toby! Is he…’

‘Windlass didn’t kill him. But he’s banished him from the Castle! He knew the message was for Peter.’

‘Then why didn’t he hand him over to the Guard? Throw him in prison?’

‘I don’t know. He let him go. But he said that if Tobias ever came back he’d be arrested and shipped to a penal colony.’

Nell clutched her head, paced in circles of frustration. She stopped in mid-stride. ‘So why are you running around free?’

‘Windlass didn’t know I was there. We hid, but he guessed someone was still there. And…’ Tears began trickling down Charlie’s cheeks. She rubbed them away angrily. ‘Tobias gave himself up to save me.’ Guilt was a horrible feeling. If she hadn’t insisted on staying longer, Windlass would never have caught them. It was her fault.

‘Oh, Charlie.’ Nell shook her head. ‘Don’t blame yourself. I should never have asked Toby to get involved. You’re both too young. He’ll be all right – stop fretting. Peter’ll hide him away if Windlass comes looking. What
a mess! I don’t know how Aunt Rose will manage without Toby’s wages…’ Nell groaned. ‘She’ll never forgive me for getting him mixed up in this.’ She began to pace once more. ‘I have to think! That message – Peter never got it?’

Charlie shook her head. ‘But I can make a copy,’ she said. ‘The notes are hidden in my room.’

‘Good. Do it and get back here as quick as you can – no!’

Charlie was halfway to the door. She whirled round.

‘It’s no good.’ Nell had gone pale again. She looked terrified. ‘I’ve got to get out! It must be fifteen minutes gone since Windlass caught Toby. I can’t wait. O’Dair knows I’m Toby’s cousin; odds are Windlass knows it too. He’s no fool. He’ll be after me. And it’s not just prison, Charlie. I’ve heard stories of what his men do to folks to make them talk.’

Charlie stared at her in horror, and Nell reached out and gave her a fierce hug. ‘Be careful, child. Don’t try nothing on your own. Stay away from that man. Someone will be in touch. Don’t worry about Toby. I’ll see him safe. Goodbye.’ She turned towards the door, but Charlie grabbed her arm.

‘Take this.’ Charlie pulled a crumpled paper from her pocket. ‘It’s Windlass’s appointments in the City.’

Nell’s eyes widened. She put out a hand to take the paper, hesitated. ‘Are you sure?’

‘Yes! Give it to Peter.’

Nell took it. Her face was solemn. ‘Thank you. You may just have saved a great many people’s lives.’

Not Alistair Windlass’s, Charlie thought, and shivered.

She sat next to the hob and sipped her tea. Moleglass sat beside her in his armchair. He placed his teacup in his saucer and looked at her. ‘Feeling better?’ he asked.

She blinked and stared into her cup. ‘Nell and Tobias are in trouble, and it’s my fault. What if the Prime Minister changes his mind and decides to arrest Tobias after all? He’s bound to set spies watching him in the hope that he’ll lead him to Peter.’

‘Do you think Tobias doesn’t know all that himself?’ Moleglass asked gently. ‘He will have gone into hiding already. As will Nell. He must just keep out of the way for a while. Try not to worry. He will be fine. Now, in order to take our minds off these unfortunate events, I will obliterate you at chess.’

Sometime later, he put his hand out to make a move. Paused and looked up at her with his seal’s eyes. ‘Have you forgiven me, Charlie?’ he asked. She knew at once what he meant: Mrs O’Dair.

‘I wish you had told me. Tobias knew.’ She couldn’t keep the bitterness out of her words.

‘I am not as brave as you.’ His voice was low. ‘Your regard means much to me. I feared to lose it.’ His brown eyes were wistful.

‘Silly! Of course you haven’t lost it.’

‘No.’ He beamed at her; swooped his bishop across the board and took her queen. ‘But you have, my dear. Checkmate!’

The next morning Professor Meadowsweet had only just begun Latin declensions when the pneumatic messenger on the wall behind him gave a shrill whistle and a capsule clanked into the catch basket. The Professor dropped his chalk.

‘Oh dear!’ he gasped, craning his neck around the blackboard to identify the source of the noise. ‘What is that machine? Drat this new-fangled technology! Never a moment’s peace. Now…’ He advanced on the messenger.‘Hmmm.’ He poked at the basket. ‘Do you know how to work this contraption, Your Highness? You do? Excellent! Would you be so kind?’

She was shaking as she took the capsule out of the catch basket. Wild thoughts sprang into her mind. The message was from Peter, saying that Tobias had been shot dead by the Guard. It was from the Prime Minister, telling her she was under arrest for treason. She pulled out the paper and handed it to Professor Meadowsweet. He unfolded the message and read it.

‘How very annoying!’ he exclaimed, frowning at the paper. ‘Ambassadorial Etiquette is next week’s lesson. Never mind, you are making progress in Deportment. It will have to suffice.’ He peered at her over his spectacles. ‘Very well. Off you go, Your Highness.’

‘Where?’

‘You must go put on your nicest frock and tidy yourself. The Prime Minister says that you are lunching with the Esceanian Ambassador today. You are to be waiting in the great parlour at precisely eleven o’clock. There will be an informal reception followed by luncheon in the state dining room. Now, run along. And do not forget your Geography revision for the morning: chapters seven and eight. There will be a written examination!’

Charlie stood in the middle of the great parlour, on a cream and pink rug. She smoothed the skirt of her blue silk dress and tried not to be nervous. She had always hated the parlour and its fake cosiness: its pink and gilt decoration, floral upholstery, large paintings of cupids smirking at plumply naked women. It was not a cosy room. It was far too large and the ceilings far too high, and it was always draughty, even when there was a roaring fire in the marble fireplace, as there was today. It was hard to look regal when you were shivering with cold and covered in goosebumps.

Precisely as the Castle clock struck eleven, the door opened and the senior footman swept in, bowed his long nose to the floor and stood back with a flourish. ‘The Honourable Citizen Oblique, Ambassador to the Court of Quale!’ he announced. ‘And the Prime Minister, Mr Alistair Windlass!’

A short, thin man with a face like a constipated fish strode into the room. He was dressed all in black, except for a severe white collar that dug into the drooping folds of his chin. His flat hazel eyes were embedded in deep pouches. The eyes fastened on Charlie, and he dipped his head in the most perfunctory of bows. He turned to
Alistair Windlass, who had entered the room behind him. ‘So, this is the Princess Charlotte? She does not resemble her mother. A pity.’

Charlie felt her face grow as pink as the rug. She had struggled into three petticoats and a crinoline; it still took her ten minutes to button each boot; she had even brushed her hair and tied it back with a blue satin ribbon. She should have stayed upstairs with the Professor and his declensions! She glared at the Esceanian Ambassador. ‘If you have any more personal remarks to make, sir, I would prefer you address them to me. I am not a piece of furniture!’

She widened her glare to include the Prime Minister. But Alistair Windlass was wearing his carefully solemn face, the one that meant he was highly amused. His right eyelid dipped, and Charlie’s eyes widened in astonishment. He had just winked at her!

A mauve patch blossomed on either cheek of the Ambassador’s cod-white face.

‘Ah, but you are mistaken, Oblique,’ Windlass said, moving forward smoothly, taking Charlie by the arm and guiding her to a chair. He all but pushed her into it, then took her hand in his and bowed. When he looked up, his eyes held a clear warning. She was to behave! ‘Her Highness shows every sign of having inherited a fair portion of her mother’s intelligence,’ he continued. ‘It would be a mistake to underestimate her, as I have learnt to my cost.’

Charlie felt her face go wooden as alarm shot through her. Did he know that the Resistance still had one spy at large in the Castle? But Windlass had turned to motion the Ambassador to a comfortable chair before settling himself in another. When he looked at her again, his face was bland and unreadable.

Charlie felt a strange recklessness seize her. Tobias and Nell were gone, and she was alone with her enemy. Alistair Windlass thought she was merely an actor in a play he was directing: a puppet to his puppet master. But she was going to pay him back for what he had done to her father, starting right now. She turned to the Ambassador with her sweetest smile. She hoped it poisoned him. ‘Did you know my mother, Mr Ambassador?’

‘Indeed,’ he replied. ‘I have been Ambassador to the Court of Quale for nearly eleven years.’

‘Ah,’ she said, ‘that would explain your talent for diplomacy.’ Windlass coughed. She avoided his eyes. ‘Perhaps you are familiar with her scientific research? She was interested in the synthesis of crystals, I believe.’

The Ambassador’s eyes widened. They looked like a pair of poached eggs with browny-green yolks. He shot a glance at Windlass. Charlie pretended not to notice.

‘I am surprised you know anything about it, Your Highness,’ Oblique said. ‘You were a mere infant when your mother ran away.’

‘I was six,’ Charlie said. ‘Not quite an infant. My mother often talked to me about her science. And I have
a very good memory. But why do you think she
ran
away? She might have been spirited away – kidnapped. Murdered, even. Many people think my father killed her.’ She had rattled him now. His mouth dropped open. ‘Perhaps…’ She dared a glance at Windlass; he was sitting quite still, watching her with an expressionless face, ‘…someone told you that she had run away?’

‘Not at all,’ snapped the Ambassador. ‘It is the only sensible suggestion. No one of intelligence could imagine that your father would harm her. I have never seen a man so deeply in love.’

They were the first words he had spoken which showed any humanity. Charlie drew in her breath. That had hurt. It had also brought her to her senses. If she wasn’t more careful, Windlass would realise that she’d been in her mother’s laboratory. Still, she had found out that Oblique knew about her mother’s research. Peter was right: Windlass was working for the Esceanians.

‘And now,’ the Prime Minister said, ‘our luncheon awaits. Your Highness.’ He rose and walked across the pink rug to stand in front of her. ‘May I have the honour of escorting you?’ His hand captured hers. He tucked it in the crook of his elbow and kept it imprisoned all the way to the dining room.

She behaved herself during lunch, listening politely to the Ambassador’s every word. There were a great many of them. Citizen Oblique, she found, was fond of the sound
of his own voice. But he seemed very happy to talk about her mother and the glorious days of the Court before her disappearance. He seemed to almost forgive Charlie her plainness as long as he could reminisce about her mother’s beauty. Men, she decided, must be very strange creatures.

Throughout lunch, she had managed to avoid Windlass’s eye. But when the Ambassador had escorted her back to the parlour and departed, after bestowing upon her a bow at least six inches lower than his first one, Charlie was left alone with the Prime Minister.

‘Another conquest, I believe,’ said Windlass, turning to her with an amused smile. She was not fooled. His eyes were intensely cold, intensely blue. ‘Rather an unlikely one, in this case. Citizen Oblique is not easily charmed. But you seem to have a talent for charm, when you care to exercise it.
What did you mean by that performance?
’

She jumped. She was standing beside her chair, and it was all she could do not to dodge behind it. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ She stared back at him.

‘Do you have any idea how important it is to keep the Esceanians pacified just at present?’

‘No,’ she said coolly. ‘You haven’t mentioned it.’ She was shaking, very slightly.

He stared at her, his eyes slightly narrowed. Then she saw him relax. An amused smile twitched up one corner of his mouth, and Charlie’s knees almost gave way. He had decided she was still useful.

‘Sit down, Charlie.’ She sat, numb with relief. ‘You remember that I said Quale needs a new technology of war.’ She nodded. ‘Your mother’s research was to provide the basis of that technology. Unfortunately, she disappeared before she completed her work. My scientists are attempting to recreate her research, but we have not yet achieved what we need.’

He paused and stared into the fire, seeming to forget her. Then he walked to the adjoining chair and collapsed into it with a sigh. He rested his head on the chair back and closed his eyes. She stared at the hated face, noticing the shadows beneath his eyes. He looked tired to the point of exhaustion. She was glad. Alistair Windlass was not invulnerable after all. She thought of the paper she had given Nell.

He opened his eyes and looked at her. ‘You think I am colluding with the Esceanians against Quale.’ It was not a question. And it was the last thing she had expected him to say. Her mouth dropped open. Windlass smiled, and this time his smile had real warmth. ‘I like you, Charlie. You have intelligence and determination. You don’t give up. Neither do I.’

He sat up and rubbed the back of his neck. Sighed. ‘I’m not a traitor. The Esceanians believe I am selling them Quale because that is what I want them to believe. The Emperor’s ambitions do not stop with Quale. They extend to the whole of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. I intend to stop him. And yes, I will do
anything it takes. Quale will not become an Esceanian outpost if I can help it. But they have been capable of dominating us militarily for several years now. I have prevented an invasion through the use of lies and intrigue. Of course they know about your mother’s research. I told them myself.’

‘What?’

‘Think! Why else would they hold off – for more than two years – an invasion which would overwhelm us in a matter of months or weeks? Because they want something even more appealing than annexing Quale into their empire. I have promised the Emperor a weapon which would help him achieve his dearest dream.

‘That, my dear Princess, is what your mother’s research would have given us: a weapon so strong, so powerful, that we would be able to see off the Esceanian threat once and for all! So, I play a double game, gambling that my scientists will break through and recreate your mother’s discovery – or that she will return to us – before the Emperor grows tired of waiting.

‘Now,’ he said, leaning forward and gazing into her eyes, ‘have I regained your trust, Charlie? Because I need you to help me save Quale.’