The carriage pulled into the palace grounds, where it was stopped by an officer of the guards, and a squad of spear men. The man opened the door, saw the queen, and bowed low.
‘Thank the Source you are safe, your highness,’ he said. She gave him a wan smile, and the carriage moved on.
Inside the queen’s apartments Axiana sank to a couch, resting her head on a satin pillow, and fell asleep. Ulmenetha began to gather clothes for the queen, packing them carefully into an ornate wooden chest. Then she went with the children to the deserted kitchens, where she gathered food: sides of ham, some hard cheese wrapped in muslin, and several small sacks of flour, sugar and salt. The children sat close by, gorging themselves on bread and preserves, washed down with fresh milk. Ulmenetha paused and watched them.
‘What happened in that orphanage?’ she asked the red-headed boy.
His bright blue eyes were suddenly fearful, but his expression remained set and hard. ‘Children died,’ he said. ‘Everybody said Kalizkan was kind. You could be sure of a meal there. Lots of my friends had already gone. We went there ten days ago.’ The boy closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ‘Most of my friends were dead by then, but I didn’t know. They used to take them underground, but you could still hear the screams.’ He opened his eyes. ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’
165
‘I understand,’ said the priestess. Moving opposite the children she sat down. ‘Listen to me. We are leaving the city. Tonight. You can come with us if you wish, or you can stay in Usa. It is up to you.’
‘Where are you going?’ asked the older girl, her deep, dark eyes holding to Ulmenetha’s gaze.
‘We will try to find a way to the coast, and then a ship to Drenan. It is a long way, and I think it will be a perilous journey. You may be safer here.’
‘I am Drenai,’ said the girl. ‘Or at least my father was Drenai. I will come with you. There is nothing here for me. I do not want to stay.’
‘You won’t leave me here!’ wailed the small blonde child, taking hold of the girl’s hand.
‘I won’t leave you, little one. You can come with us.’
‘Why should we go?’ asked the boy. ‘I can steal food for all of us.’
Reaching out she ran her fingers through his tangled red hair. ‘Maybe in Drenan you won’t have to steal food. We could live in a house.’
The boy swore. ‘Who’s going to give us a house, Pharis? Nobody gives anyone anything. You get nothing for nothing. That’s the way of it.’
‘You found food for me, Conalin. And you looked after Sufia when she was sick. You got nothing in return.’
‘You’re my friends and I love you. That’s different. How do you know you can trust this fat woman?’
The girl looked up again into Ulmenetha’s eyes. ‘She came to rescue her friend. And she fought the beast. I trust her.’
‘Well, I don’t want to go,’ said the boy, stubbornly.
‘If you don’t come, who will protect little Sufia?’ she said.
166
‘Oh, please come with us, Con,’ pleaded Sufia. ‘Please!’
He sat silently for a moment, then stared up at Ulmenetha, his eyes angry. ‘Why should we trust you?’ he asked her.
‘I can offer no reason, Conalin. Save that I never lie. And I promise you this: If we reach Drenan safely the queen will buy you a house.’
‘Why should you? You owe us nothing.’
‘That is not true. Your bravery, and that of your sister, helped to kill the . . . beast, as you call it. Had you not helped me I would have been killed.’
‘She’s not my sister. She’s Pharis, my friend. And if she and Sufia are going, I’ll come too. But I don’t believe you about the house.’
‘Wait and see,’ said Ulmenetha. ‘Now let’s find some sacks for supplies, and fill them. We don’t want to be hungry when we reach the mountains.’
Back in the apartments the queen was asleep on the couch, and Dagorian had swapped his beggar’s rags for one of Skanda’s grey woollen tunics. It was emblazoned with a rearing white horse at the shoulder. He stood now on the balcony, watching the glow from the fires in the western quarter.