Order of Swans (The Blue Swan Duology #1)

Chapter 5

5

When Kaley woke up, she knew it was early. She also knew she should behave by staying in her room and waiting for Jobi to come and get her to go meet the king. She’d already screwed up when she met the guide, so she shouldn’t repeat her error.

On the other hand, she really, really wanted to see the place. And not with an escort who’d only show her the sites she was supposed to see.

She looked at her watch on the bedside cabinet. It wasn’t quite 6:00 a.m., but she could see that it was light outside. Maybe if she just took a walk, not toward the water, but somewhere she hadn’t been, it would be all right. No one had warned her not to go out, and the little she’d seen seemed safe.

The table holding last night’s food was there, and she was glad to see it was untouched. She didn’t like the idea of someone in her room while she was sleeping. She quickly pulled on a tunic top, the most bland she could find, leggings and light sneakers. She didn’t want to draw attention to herself, but if Jobi showed up, she wanted to be able to move quickly. She grabbed a big bread roll from the basket, put a piece of cheese inside and left the room.

As she started walking in the opposite direction of the water, she told herself she’d not go far from the king’s house.

The sound of voices made her quicken her step and she came to a small plaza. The houses surrounding it were low, mostly one story, light brown and pretty. There were flower boxes with bright red blossoms. In the middle was a stone-floored area with a raised wooden platform. It was like where a band would play. But now it had four short masonry towers on it and each one had a single stone in front of it. The rocks were progressively larger until the last one was almost a boulder.

The plaza was filled with men. She saw a few women, but it was mostly excited men and it looked like money was being handed back and forth. It appeared that a contest was about to begin and the men were laying bets.

She didn’t want to draw attention to herself as she watched what was going on. She went up three steps of a doorway and slipped back into the deep shade. She had a good view over the heads of the many men, but then, they were too excited to notice a stranger.

A man stepped onto the platform. He had a large belly and a very loud voice—and he was speaking in a language she didn’t understand. But it was easy to figure out what he was saying. He was challenging someone to come up and try his luck in a strength contest. For a fee, of course. The man was waving a large bag of jingling coins in temptation. Wonder whose face is on those coins? she thought. Is it the king’s? But didn’t Jobi say he is no longer the real king? Is there a story in that?

Kaley couldn’t help laughing at herself. She watched as three brawny young men tried their luck at picking up the stones and putting them on top of the towers. One man made it to the second rock, but the others couldn’t even pick up the first stone. When the announcer faked sadness at their failure, the crowd booed him. He laughed and rattled the bag. It was growing larger. He waved his arm, trying to get more people to try their luck, but no one did.

Kaley could feel the excitement fading. The contest was too difficult and the crowd knew it. Thinking she should go back, she went down a step, but then a hush fell over the crowd. She saw that on the far side, something was happening. She stepped back up to her hiding place and waited.

When the crowd parted, she saw a head above them. It was a man, probably in his forties, with a shiny bald head and a full black beard. When the crowd stepped aside, she saw that he was at least six foot eight and probably weighed about three hundred pounds. He wore baggy tan trousers and heavy leather boots. Above the waist, he had on a dark vest and nothing else. There was not an ounce of fat on him.

“My bet’s on him,” she whispered. Everyone seemed to agree as there was a flurry of money going back and forth. The announcer was frowning as he dumped coins into the bag, which grew substantially larger and heavier. He won’t like losing all that , Kaley thought.

As the big man mounted the steps up to the stage, she saw the audience looking at each other in question. He’s a stranger , Kaley thought. They don’t know who he is. Interesting.

The man so easily and quickly picked up the stones and mounted them on the towers that it was almost an anticlimax. The crowd’s attention was fully on the big man, their breaths held. But Kaley, from her higher stance, saw something else. The announcer had stepped to the far side and she saw him give a nod to someone in the crowd. Whoever it was began to move through the throng. The people were so intent on the man on the stage that no one noticed him.

He moved toward Kaley, then stopped not far from her. He was a small, lithe-looking man, like a runner. As she watched, he did a few stretches, as though he was about to enter some competition.

There was something suspicious about him. She went down the steps and moved closer to the man. He didn’t notice her, but turned to the stage, where the announcer was handing over the purse of coins to the big man. The crowd erupted into cheering and the man went down the stairs to the plaza. As he walked forward, people slapped him on the back in congratulations.

When he got to the edge of the crowd, and closer to Kaley, the small man made a leap. He grabbed the pouch of coins out of the big man’s hand and took off running. Kaley was prepared. She put out her foot, then her entire body, and the little man went down. The bag of coins flew upward and she caught it. It was similar to what she’d done so many times in the gym with Jobi when he tossed her a weighted ball. She threw the bag back to the big man and he grabbed it.

Obviously, the whole contest had been a scam. They were never going to allow anyone to win the money. She was glad she’d been able to help beat them at their own game. As she made her way through the crowd, she was pleased with her interference, but she also hoped that Jobi wouldn’t find out. He didn’t like her risking danger. But it was over and she’d won.

It was a full three minutes before she realized she was being followed. Uh-oh. Did the scammers think she was part of some gang? Should she run back to the king’s house? But that would lead them there. This was bad!

In the next second, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her between the buildings. She prepared to fight as Jobi had taught her, with teeth, headbutts, whatever she could use. But then Kaley saw it was the big man. She followed him without question.

They ran between the buildings but unfortunately, he didn’t appear to know his way around any more than she did. When they came to a dead end, he put her behind him, his arms extended in protection. The men chasing them would find them soon.

It was Kaley who saw the low roof. She couldn’t get up to it by herself, but he could, and he could give her a boost. They could hear men’s steps and their angry voices. They were very close.

She pointed to the roof and gestured up. He nodded, then grabbed her by the waist and practically threw her up. She landed on her stomach and skidded a few inches across the rough roof tiles. She spit out dirt and what she hoped weren’t bird droppings. The heavy pouch of coins landed near her head. She hoped his aim was that good and he’d meant for it to land where it did.

When she saw the man’s hands as he was pulling himself up, she tied the strings of the bag onto a loop on her trousers, and stuck what she could into her pocket.

The man was right behind her. He grabbed her shoulders and lifted her so far up that her feet were in the air, then he let her go and she hit the roof running. She followed him as best she could until they reached the edge of the building. Below them was an alleyway with a building on the other side, but in between was empty space. It was a long way down.

Kaley looked at the man and shook her head. She couldn’t jump that far. He probably could, but not her. She motioned for him to go, then started to untie the bag of coins for him to take.

Instead, he walked back a few feet and motioned for her to come. She knew what he meant. She was to run and jump.

Again, she shook her head. Behind them, they could hear men shouting. They were going to be on the roof in seconds.

The man gave Kaley a look that said she either ran or he’d throw her. She ran. When her feet reached the edge, she felt a strong hand hit her in the lower back. As if she were a Ping-Pong ball, he swatted her across the empty space.

This time, Kaley landed on her feet in a one-leg squat. In the distance, she could see the king’s house. Oh no! What time was it? She looked at her watch. She had eleven minutes to be on time for the king’s appointment.

When she stood up, the man was beside her, and she pointed to her watch. So far, they hadn’t spoken a word, but then she had no idea what language he spoke.

With a nod of understanding, he went to a door that led to a stairwell. It was locked. Wide-eyed, she watched the man pull the door off the hinge, set it aside, then motion for her to go first.

Kaley went down the stairs two at a time and reached an outside door quickly. At the bottom, they stopped, their backs against the exterior wall. For a minute, they listened, but they heard no voices or steps.

The man tapped his wrist, meaning Kaley’s watch. She didn’t hesitate as she ran in the direction of the king’s house.

When she reached the door closest to her room, Jobi was waiting for her, and he was dressed splendidly. All blue and gold. He downright sparkled.

As he looked her up and down, she kept her shoulders straight. She knew she was a sweaty mess. Not what one would wear to make an appearance before a king.

“Do I want to know?” he asked.

“Absolutely not.”

“What is that?”

He was nodding toward the fat pouch of coins tied to her trousers. “Oh no,” she said. “I forgot to give it back to him.”

Jobi’s look softened. “You’ll see him in a few minutes. Give it to him then.”

“You know him? Oh. Wait. You think I mean Swan Boy. Nope. Not him.”

Jobi’s eyes widened. “You... With another man?”

“Give me some credit. What happened wasn’t sex. It was straight out of Aladdin . We—” She broke off. She had no idea how to explain what happened. “Are we going to be late?”

“Hope not. There are public executions for that.”

Kaley looked at him in shock.

“Come on. Whatever happened, I bet Tomás has heard about it. He has his own Jafar.” The stories of Aladdin were some of Jobi’s favorites.

“Now you tell me.” The main thing in her mind was how she was going to find the big man and give him back his money.

By the time she and Jobi got to the throne room, Kaley was quite nervous. She’d never dreamed of meeting a king. If she had, she would have imagined herself wearing a beautiful gown. Something à la Princess Catherine. Kaley’s grandmother would probably have made it on her Bernina, but it would certainly be better than what she had on. The front of her shirt had been scraped raw when she slid across the roof. There were streaks of dirt and debris all over her. She picked off a little bird feather.

“That won’t help,” Jobi muttered.

“Great,” she muttered. “Now I feel even worse.” The heavy pouch hit her leg but she didn’t tighten it. Maybe the king would know who the winner of the strength contest was. Did she dare ask?

When they entered the big room, the sheer brilliance of it so dazzled her that she forgot everything else.

She paused at the doorway, looking at the chandeliers, and the walls of what appeared to be gold and crystal. It all sparkled and shimmered. If the opulence wasn’t reminder enough of who lived there, every ten feet or so stood one of the muscled guards, a long sword sheathed at his side.

She followed Jobi to the back of the room. There were several people ahead of them, all of them seeming to be waiting to speak to the king.

Kaley looked through the crowd toward the front. Sitting on a rather plain chair was a small man wearing a long robe with colors that moved even when he was sitting still. She wasn’t sure, but it looked like the fabric had feathers on it. So that is what he does with the swans , she thought. They clothed the king. He was talking to three men and seemed unaware of the others in the room.

“Speak of the devil,” she whispered to Jobi. Coming toward them was the swan herdsman, Tanek. It was hard to believe but he was dirtier than Kaley was.

“What the hell?” Jobi muttered. “What a disrespectful, lazy generation you kids are.”

“ I was saving a life,” Kaley said. “I have no idea what he was doing. Maybe he—” She stopped talking because coming from the opposite side of the room was the big man from the morning. He was as dirty as when she’d last seen him. Everything they’d done went through Kaley’s mind and she was joyous at seeing him again. Since she was hidden by Jobi, he didn’t see her. She untied the pouch, stepped to one side, then yelled, “Hey!” She threw the pouch in his direction, then ran full speed toward him.

His reaction was as fast as she was. He caught the coin bag with one hand, tossed it to Jobi, then grabbed Kaley by the waist, lifted her and turned her around full circle in the air. The people around them watched in shocked silence.

“I’m Kaley,” she said.

“Sojee.” He set her down, then they stood beside each other and looked toward the king on his throne.

Jobi put himself beside Kaley, with Tanek on the end.

“I, uh...” Kaley began.

“Don’t even try to explain,” Jobi said under his breath. It was the first time she’d ever heard genuine anger in his voice.

Since they were far back in the room, Kaley thought the king probably didn’t see her display with the big man. But she was wrong. He waved his hand and all the people moved to the sides of the room.

Kaley and the three men were now in direct sight of the king. Behind him was a tall, thin man, wearing all black and holding a tall staff. What appeared to be a huge emerald was on his headdress. Bending, he said something to the king.

“Jafar?” Kaley whispered, but the look Jobi gave her made her stop talking.

The thin man stepped back and the king spoke. “I see that small effort has been made in dress. Perhaps being a King of the People can be carried too far.”

Kaley wanted to defend herself, but she said nothing.

The king looked at her. “It seems that you will have no objection to Sojee being your guard.”

His sarcasm made Kaley smile, and it made her know he was aware of what was going on—as a good king should. Was it Jobi who’d told him there were problems between her and Tanek? Or had he complained about her ?

She didn’t know what the protocol was, but she dipped into a curtsy. It lost a lot considering what she was wearing, but she did go down rather low. From the look on the king’s face, the movement was not something he was familiar with, but he seemed to like it. “Yes, thank you, sir.” She wasn’t sure what to call him. “May I say that your wisdom and insight into this matter is commendable? The replacement is very welcome.”

The king looked puzzled. “Replacement?”

Again, the man in black said something only the king could hear. “Really?” The king stared at Kaley. “Is it true that you’d rather go on your journey with big, ugly Sojee than with Bellis’s finest? With Tanek?”

Kaley wanted to be diplomatic. “I think Sojee and I are better suited personally. We work well together.”

The king looked at Tanek. “Can it be that there exists a woman who doesn’t want you above all other men? I believe the sky may be falling. Should we consult about the coming storms? Is our world in danger?”

Kaley choked on a giggle, but again, Jobi gave her a look to behave herself. “I’m sorry, sir,” she said. “I don’t mean to disparage Mr., uh, Tanek. He’s probably a very nice man, but the swans need him. Sojee seems more one of the ordinary people. It’s them I want to talk to and hear their stories.”

“Ah, yes,” the king said. “Our Tanek can be intimidating.” He seemed highly amused by the idea that Tanek was not a woman’s first choice for anything.

Jobi spoke up. “Obviously, Kaley and Sojee have been somewhere together .” He gave her a glare of reproach. “However, I have not been told where or when or even why . After we have talked—”

The king waved his hand in dismissal. “Yes, I’m sure you will fix it, Jobi. You always do. But now I have something important to say.” He looked at Kaley. “I have a small request of you. My youngest son is on Selkan and I want you to find him. You must tell him that Princess Aradella has agreed to marry him.”

“That sounds lovely,” Kaley began, but beside her, Sojee took a step forward. There was anger in his step—and he was headed toward the king. The guards around the room also felt the anger. There was the sound of steel being drawn.

Without taking time to think, Kaley pretended to trip and put herself in front of Sojee. She glared up at him in warning. Whatever he was about to do, he had to stop.

He didn’t look down at her, but he gave a quick nod and stopped moving.

Kaley turned to face the king, her back to Sojee, but she didn’t move away from him. “I’m sorry, sir. I’m a clumsy person. Ask Jobi. Thank goodness Sojee caught me before I fell and harmed your beautiful floor.”

The king frowned, not sure what had happened. He looked at Jobi. “My son will be found and the message given?”

“Of course,” Jobi said, then turned to Kaley. “Go!”

The four of them hurried through a side door, then stopped in a small room. As soon as the door closed, each person gave a sigh of relief.

“I think we all need to talk,” Jobi said, but no one agreed.

Kaley looked at Tanek. “We have an excuse for the way we look, but what about you?”

Through it all, Tanek had not spoken, but he’d been the recipient of the king’s derision. “I was out all night searching for a missing little girl.”

Kaley’s eyes widened. “She was wearing a red cloak?”

“Yes.” He showed his surprise.

Her voice lowered. “Did you find the wolf?”

“We did, but how did you know what it was? You should have told us. It would have helped.” He was frowning at her.

Jobi stepped forward. “She knew but she didn’t know. I think we should prepare to leave. After today, I think the sooner you get out of here, the better.” He looked at Kaley. “ Both men are going with you, as well as some of the king’s guards. Right now you need to get clean and pack enough clothes for three days. Leave the rest here.” He looked at Sojee. “You will meet us at the lake.” He turned to Tanek. “You will come with me.”

No one questioned his authority. They just silently obeyed.

Jobi looked across the table at Tanek. He could tell the young man was unhappy. They were in an old restaurant that was a common type on Bellis. Centuries ago, some bored, homesick Bellisan guards had created one on an Earth island called Britannia. The earthlings called it a “public house” and the concept stuck. They shortened the name to “pub” and they now believed it began with them.

“I’ve always known I was to do something,” Tanek said. “Grandpapá made sure I studied and trained. I thought it was so I could fight the tyranny that we live under. So far, we’ve done—” He looked around as if he were being heard.

“You’re safe here,” Jobi said. “You can speak your mind.”

“I’m to escort some know-nothing female from Earth to do what? Listen to stories? I’ve seen that she’s odd, but for all I know, all Earth people are like her.”

“They aren’t. There’s more to her than you can see, and much more than she knows.”

“What does that mean?”

Jobi didn’t answer his question. “She’s a beautiful young woman.”

“Oh no, you don’t,” Tanek said. “I’m not interested. It’s good that she dislikes me so much. I want to know what the truth is behind all this.”

“It’s as you were told. Story gathering is the cover. The true purpose of the trip is for you to find the king’s youngest son.”

“Right. Then I tell him he’s to marry some princess of the old kingdom. I don’t think King Aramus is going to give up his throne to some girl. Not that he actually has a throne any longer. They saw to that!”

“This marriage will help reunite the kingdoms. Put us back together.” Jobi took a swig of his drink, a locally made beer that wasn’t very strong. “You’ve been on Earth and so have your parents. You’re well qualified for the job. You have any better suggestion of who to send with her?”

“I was a child when I was there and I remember very little of that time!” Tanek snapped, then calmed. “I’m willing, but you should go with us. You can distract her while I do what I need to. I have people to meet, information to gather. Go with us.”

Jobi gave a shiver. “That island scares me. It’s a violent place. As for Kaley, you should be grateful she’s here. It’s because of her that the king is paying all your expenses and hiring guards to protect you. And there’s Sojee! He can break a man in half like a twig.” Jobi lowered his voice. “Most important is that you get open passage to go to the island. You don’t have to hide or sneak. You’ll be able to do what you must under the cover of working for the king.”

“What happened between her and that man? She made a fool of herself in front of the king.”

“I think the king rather enjoyed it. But I don’t know what Kaley and Sojee did. Whatever it was, it seems to have made them friends.”

Tanek looked away for a moment. “You know that our homeland is on Selkan. I’ve always wanted to see it. Grandpapá told me so much about the place. There’s a type of swan there that we don’t have. It’s pure white.” He tore off a chunk of bread from the basket in the middle of the table. “What’s she like? Really?”

Jobi took his time answering. “She’s more independent than she knows. I spent years training her so she can do things. She’s not as strong as you, but she has the advantage of speed.” He gave Tanek a look of warning. “She has her entire life planned out, down to her old age. Once she gets her stories, she’ll demand to return home.”

“And it’ll take another three years to get there.” He gave Jobi a hard look. “She doesn’t know where she is and when she finds out, I’m sure she’ll take it out on me. She’ll—”

He was interrupted by a Never appearing out of nowhere. The pretty little creature’s wings glistened even in the low light. She said something to Tanek but Jobi couldn’t understand her. It always annoyed him that, even with his abilities, he couldn’t decipher the language of the Nevers. The fairylike people bonded with one person and they never shared, never betrayed, thus their name. As though she could read his thoughts, she gave Jobi an insolent little wink, then poof! she disappeared.

“She says the king wants you. Now.”

Jobi sighed. “He is a man who can’t bear to be alone.”

“That’s a good quality in royalty since they’re always surrounded.”

“I guess so.” Jobi stood up. “Don’t let Kaley get near The Museum of Earth. That could cause problems.”

“The what?”

“You heard me. Take the ferry to the island, meet whoever you need to, get the king’s youngest son, then send him back here. You can stay on the island. As for the stories, if Kaley hears two or three new ones, that’s enough. Tell her some swan legends, then show her your back. That’ll make her happy. I must go. That man is going to use me to death.” He took a step toward the door then looked back. “Zeon is my friend. You can trust him. If you have problems, go to him and he’ll help you.”

“Does this person know our goal?”

Jobi gave a one-sided smile. “He started it. He’s the leader.” He hurried to the heavy door and left.