‘Y’ paid them in advance?’ he asked incredulously. ‘Wherever were
yer brains, Lady-O? Y’ never want t’ do that. Th’ pay comes after th’
work’s done, not before.’
‘I didn’t know that,’ I confessed.
‘Oh, dearie, dearie me!’ he sighed. ‘Tis a poor lost lamb y
are, darlin’ girl. Did y’ happen to’git th’ names of these lazy
boy-os?’
‘I think the one who did all the talking was named Skelt,’ I replied
in a half-ashamed voice. How could I have been so gullible?
‘Ah, that one,’ Killane said. ‘He’s almost as dependable as th’ spring
weather I’ll run him down fer y’, Lady-o. There’s little hope that
he or his lazy relatives have any of yer money left, but I’ll make
’em come back here an’ work off what they owe.’
,Why?’ I swung immediately from extreme gullibility to extreme
suspicion.
‘Because y’ need a keeper, lass,’ he told me bluntly. ‘Now, this is
th’ way we’re goin’ to’ do it. I’ll round up Skelt an’ his worthless
crew, an’ I’ll beat th’ work they owe y’ out of ’em. If, after a week,
things ain’t t’ yer satisfaction, we kin part friends, an’ no regrets.
But if Y’ like me way o’ doin’ things, we kin discuss somethin’ more
permanent.’
I probably should have been offended by the way he just walked
into my life and took charge, but I wasn’t. Quite obviously, he was
right. In this particular sphere of human activity, I was indeed a
,poor lost lamb’. We talked for a bit longer, and Killane modestly
confessed to being ‘th’ best builder in all Arendia, don’t y’ know’.
Then we went through the house and I told him what I wanted. He
agreed with most of my ideas, and pointed out the flaws in the
notions with which he disagreed. Then, once our survey had been
completed, he passed judgement. He rather fondly patted one of
the walls. ‘She’s still a sound old dear, though she’s been sorely
neglected. We kin have her back in shape in jig time.’ Then he
looked at me rather sternly. ‘Let me tell y’ right at th’ outset, Lady-o,
I’ll not be after cuttin’ no corners, so this is goin’ t’ bite yer purse
a wee bit. But y’ll be after livin’ here fer a long time, an’ I’ll not be
Puttin’ meself t’ shame by havin’ th’ old dear fallin’ down about
yer ears a few years hence. Y’ll be havin’ notions that just won’t
work, an’ I’ll be after tellin’ y’ right t’ yer face that yer bein’ silly.
Yer a spirited lady, I’ve noticed, so we’ll scream at each other from
time t’ time, but when it’s all done, y’ll have a house y’ kin be proud
t’ live in.’
‘That’s all I really want, Killane,’ I told him.
‘Then it’s settled. Y’ kin go back t’ yer embroidery now, Lady-o.
Just leave th’ old dear t’ me. I’ll fix her.’
I’ve known very few men who’ve had such straightforward
honesty, and I liked Killane right from the outset. As a matter of fact,
I was so impressed by him that I ultimately married a man who
could have been his brother.
I stopped by my house a few times while it was being renovated.
skelt and his assorted cousins, brothers, and what-not were a sullen
group now, but most of the cuts and bruises had healed. Killane
drove them unmercifully, and the work was progressing, though
far too slowly to suit me. I really wanted to get out of that palace.
it was more to get away – and to avoid nagging Killane – that I
rode on down to Vo Mandor that autumn to pay a call on Asrana
and Mandorin. That odd marriage seemed to be working far better
than any of us could possibly have had reason to believe that it
might. Mandorin was absolutely enthralled by the mischievous
Asrana, and his expression of vapid adoration had the peculiar effect
of curbing some of her more outrageous pranks. Their marital bliss,
however, failed to dull their political acumen, and they were
generally successful in keeping the Mimbrates and Asturians from each
other’s throats.
It began to get a bit cloying after a while, so I went on down to
Vo Mimbre to look in on Duke Corrolin. There were Tolnedran
merchants in Vo Mimbre, naturally, since Tolnedra lay just across
the river, but a bit of careful probing verified the fact that they really
were Tolnedrans instead of Dagashi. Evidently the nose-bleed I’d
given Ctuchik had persuaded him to pull in his horns.
Then, just to avoid any seeming favoritism, I rode on north to
visit Mangaran in Vo Astur. There were some problems there, but
I saw no evidence that they were of Murgo origin. The removal of
Oldoran from the seat of power had mightily offended his family,
who for some generations had looked upon all of Asturia as a pi
estate. For the most part, Oldoran’s relatives were incompetents
who satisfied their urges toward belligerence by denouncing
Mangaran in highly unflattering terms. One nephew, however, a scruffy,
uncouth young man named Nerasin, had actually gone beyond
denunciation and was busily forming alliances in preparation for
the day when the elderly Mangaran should die and the Asturian
throne would fall into the hands of whoever was nimble enough to
seize it. I had the strong feeling that Nerasin would have to be dealt
with eventually, but for right now, Mangaran’s grip on power was
firm enough to keep the young trouble-maker in line.
I visited with Mangaran for a week or so, and then I went on
back to Vo Wacune to see how Killane was coming with the
renovations. It was autumn by now, and, though the Arendish forest
consisted largely of evergreens, there were enough groves of maple,
birch, and aspen to add vivid reds, yellows, and pale oranges to the
vast wood, and there was that faintly dusty smell of autumn in the
air. I found that to be absolutely lovely, and I didn’t really hurry
as I rode east. I reached the city of Vo Wacune about mid-afternoon
on a lovely autumn day, passed through the ornate city gates. and
rode directly to the quiet, tree-lined street where my house stood.
I noted with some satisfaction that Killane and his work-gang had
repaired the marble wall which surrounded the house and that the
rust-riddled old iron gate had been replaced with a new one, far
more imposing and ornate.
one of the attractions of my house was the fairly extensive
grounds surrounding it. At one time there had been gardens there,
but when I’d bought the property, those gardens had long since
been taken over by weeds. I was a bit startled when I rode through
the gate. The weeds were gone, and the ancient hedges were
neatly trimmed. Killane himself was over near the side of the house
spading up one of the flower-beds. He looked up as I dismounted.
‘Well, now, there y’ are, lass,’ he greeted me. ‘I was about t’ send
out search parties t’ find y’, don’t y’ know.’
‘Gardening, Killane?’ I said. ‘You’re a man of many talents, aren’t
you? How’s the house coming?’
‘She’s all finished, Lady-O,’ he replied rather proudly, ‘an’ she
came out better than we might have expected. I’ve been just passin’
th’ time until yer return by gettin’ yer flower-beds in order fer th’
plantin’ next spring. I took th’ liberty o’ bringin’ in a crew o’ cleanin’
ladies t’ polish things up inside. Would y’ be after wantin’ t’ have
a bit of a look-see?’
‘I thought you’d never ask.’
‘I’m hopin’ that what we’ve done t’ th’ old girl satisfies y’ enough
t’ smooth over th’ jolt yer goin’ t’ get when I hand over all th’ bills.
I haggled ’em down as best I was able, but th’ total’s just a wee bit
alarmin’.’
‘I think I can manage it, Killane,’ I assured him. ‘Let’s go look at
my house.’
The newly renovated house far exceeded all my expectations. The
rooms – even in the servants’ quarters – were spacious, and the
bathrooms were large and well-appointed. The walls, which had
looked more than a little scabby, had been freshly plastered. The
floors, both wood and marble, gleamed. There was a solid,
comfortable quality about it, and the high marble wall surrounding it and
the trees and hedges in the garden muffled any noises coming in
from the street to give the entire place an air of seclusion and peace.
‘It’s perfect!’ I exclaimed to my Wacite friend.
‘Well, I don’t know that I’d go that far, Lady-O,’ Killane replied
modestly. ‘I did what I could w’ th’ old dear, but there are
some nooks an’ crannies that I’d have designed differently, don’t y’
know.,
I’d more or less decided on something during my travels, but I
wasn’t certain how to broach the subject to Killane. Finally, I just