Текст книги "The Sword and the Dagger"

Автор книги: Ardath Mayhar

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 16 (всего у книги 21 страниц)

28

Ardan, standing behind and to one side of his Prince, looked from one to the other of the men in the doorway. His mind reeled. For a moment, he felt a return of that terrible disorientation that had plagued him before his recovery.

The man in the corridor stepped inside the room, followed by Cleery, the Maître of the Household, and Ekkles, Hanse Davion's aide-de-camp.

"There! That's the imposter. And even Sortek! We have caught both the prime conspirators at once," the newcomer said.

Hanse backed up several steps to stand beside Ardan. "It looks as if you were correct, all the way," he said quietly. Then, more loudly, "I'd like an explanation of this charade. Cleery, who admitted this man into my house?"

The Maître looked perturbed. "No one admitted this man to the Summer Palace. He emerged from the Prince's chambers and rang for assistance, after receiving an unexpected messenger just arrived by shuttle." The man's discomfort was obvious.

Ardan felt for him. Dressed exacdy alike, with the same bodies, faces, gestures, and voices, the pair could not have been distinguished by Hanse's own mother, if she had still been alive. Yet Ardan knew with his heart as well as his mind that the man at his side was his old friend. He needed no more proof than that.

"I have known the Prince since I was a boy," he said, with all the confidence he could muster. "This man is my old friend. I will vouch for that"

"You!" Ekkles snorted. "You, too, are a part of the plot!" he said. "It is well known with what bitterness you left New Avalon and our Prince. Now you appear from nowhere beside a man pretending to be Hanse Davion...The connection is obvious. Not only are you mentally unstable, but you are a traitor as well!" He turned to the guard beside the door. "Arrest these two!" he ordered.

Hanse, however, was not outwardly disturbed. "Let us consider this matter a bit further," he said calmly. "For example, there are affairs, secrets of state, of great importance for the future of the Federated Suns. I have in mind one, in particular. Can you tell me what it is?" he asked the man who was his double.

The other Hanse wrinkled his nose in a manner all too familiar to everyone in the room. "You presume to question me in my own house? But I will answer, if only to reassure my people. You can only mean the secret treaty between the Houses Davion and Steiner, which includes promises of mutual aid, as well as my betrothal to Archon-Designate Melissa Steiner. And how you came to know of it, I cannot imagine!"

Ardan cleared his throat. "What happened on the day Hanse and I almost drowned?" he asked. "Over twenty years ago, it was, on New Avalon. Can you tell me that?"

The false Hanse stared at him sorrowfully. "Ah, yes, that was a time when we were, indeed, almost brothers," he said. "Well do I remember that day...and the two fishermen who pulled us from the river, wet as frogs, and took us to your mother. She dried us out, scolded us well, and didn't inform my father." He laughed.

"However, those fishermen were not the chance-comers they seemed to be. It was from them that my father heard of the incident. It turned out that those two had been set there to guard my life, as I was the second in line for the throne. Does that satisfy you, who have returned to my house as a traitor and possibly a spy?"

Ardan refused to concede defeat. "What did you give me for my twelfth birthday?" he asked.

The other turned on his heel and walked to the window. He was jiggling the fob attached to his belt with Hanse's own nervous habit. Ardan felt sick.

"The warrant admitting you to the Battle School. And my promise to oversee as much of your training as I could possibly manage."

Ardan turned to look into the eyes of the real Hanse, who still stood beside him. There was deep shock and growing concern in those familiar gray eyes. Hanse was just now realizing what kind of trap had been sprung for him.

The young warrior had one last weapon. It was a slim hope, but he had to try it.

"And to whom did you say, 'The Starbird weeps inside'?" he asked the newcomer.

The man did not turn, did not answer, but his hand twitched jerkily at the fob. Hanse, however, gasped with astonishment. "Melissa! I said that to Melissa! How did you know?"

But the aide and the Maître were not convinced. "Arrest these men," Ekkles said once more to the guard beside the door.

The new Prince of Davion turned sharply. "You cannot drag them through the palace as they are. We can't have the servants babbling about seeing their ruler arrested and thrown into the detention cells beneath the house. And we certainly can't let it be known that Sortek is involved. That could be awkward, as he is a favorite of House Steiner.

"No, they must be concealed, disguised...You think of something!" he said to the aide. "I have other important matters that await me."

Ardan had donned full-dress uniform for his reunion with Hanse. That included a light laser pistol, a sidearm that was now in his hand as the guard approached.

"I don't really want to kill anyone, but I cannot allow you to arrest the Prince of Davion," he said. "Step aside. We are going out through that doorway."

The guard, the aide, and Cleery had no choice but to step aside, to stand with the man who was now, at least temporarily, the ruler of the Federated Suns. Ardan was sorely tempted to kill the imposter where he stood, but Hanse read the thought in him and shook his head.

Then they were outside the door. It could not be locked. The computer in the study gave those inside instant access to the entire complex, anyway. Forgetting dignity, the pair ran pell-mell down the corridor.

"Here!" panted Ardan, pulling Hanse aside into a niche containing a small fountain and green plants.

"You're going to try hiding me under a philodendron?" asked Hanse. He came into the shallow curve of the wall unwillingly and stood listening intently for sounds of pursuit.

Ardan didn't reply. He pushed aside the woven-reed tapestry covering the section of the wall from which the marble arm and hand poured water from a silver pitcher. A push sent the entire segment pivoting on some hidden central point, so that the pouring pitcher and the basin to catch the water moved aside as they slipped through a narrow crevice.

"Help me push it back," whispered Ardan. "The curtain will return, just as it was."

Hanse was muttering quiet curses under his breath, but he put his shoulder to the smooth side of the stone and lent his strength. The pivot moved back silently.

Now they stood in a narrow space barely wide enough for Hanse's powerful shoulders, which was lit dimly from above.

Ardan gestured upward to indicate the slit that evidendy went from this floor of the palace all the way to one of the skylights in the roof. "This is a ventilation duct. Lets the moisture from all that marble in the walls dry out...feel the breeze? It has slits into the outer air on several levels, and the marble behind the fountain is pierced to allow the freshness into the corridor."

Hanse looked stunned. He had lived in the Summer Palace almost every year since ascending to the throne. Before that, he had come here with his father on many occasions. Never had he suspected that behind the fountain alcoves in each floor of the house was what amounted to a secret passage.

"I never knew!" he said. His tone was rather wistful.

"You didn't have to design a defense for the house. We did. The architect's records are in the computer, ready to be called up at any time. But the only ones likely to do that are those charged with your personal safety."

"Where does this come out?" Hanse asked quietly.

Ardan turned to follow the cranny out of the dimly lit portion into blackness. "In the wall above the kitchen wing. We'll have to wait for darkness before we try scaling the wall to the roof."

Hanse's eyes lit up. On the roof was, of course, his personal air car. With it, they could be away before the imposter and his crew could finish searching this tremendous and complex structure.

They crept like mice through winding, impossibly narrow spaces. Ardan's impressive uniform acquired a coating of dust and cobweb that added nothing to its appearance. Hanse, attired in plain clothing for work in his study, fared a bit better. Brown woven stuff showed the deposits of debris far less than did the buff and gold, slashed with scarlet, that Ardan wore.

From time to time, Ardan paused. Lateral spaces crossed their path, even narrower than the one they followed. More than once, one of those ran away at an oblique angle, and Ardan had to recall to mind the plans he had committed to memory years before.

"What are those?" asked Hanse at last, indicating one of the dark tunnels.

"They go between the walls. Keeps the walls from sweating and rotting the paneling and tapestries on the inside. Stone is terrifically sweaty stuff, particularly in such a humid climate," Ardan whispered.

Hanse seemed unsettled by this warren of passages between the walls of his summer home. "Why, anyone who knows the plan could slip into the place at will," he murmured.

Ardan glanced back over his shoulder. Hanse's bulk was a deeper black against the darkness.

"They could...but I know where the traps are that keep them from succeeding. We've passed three, so far. Another is just ahead. Want me to point it out?"

"It wouldn't do any good. How could I see it?"

Ardan chuckled quietly. A few more paces and he paused to take Hanse's hand. "Feel, as I hold back the trigger," he said.

Their hands moved together to feel along the wall to their right A slender rod extended out into the narrow passage. Even a man with some sort of handlight would not be likely to see it, for it was at shoulder height

"It's painted black," murmured Ardan. "If you went staggering along here without knowing it was there and then brushed against it, a metal panel would slide into place before and behind you. You'd be caught here, while an alarm went off in the guardpost. You'd be neatly trapped. Here, let me move it aside."

He caught the rod in his hand and gave it a twist, at the same time lifting it straight up. After Hanse squeezed past him, Ardan let the rod down gently and twisted it back into its original position.

"Why didn't I have to squeeze past you before?" asked the Prince.

"Oh, the others are all different. You have to know where each one is and also WHAT it is. Else you're in bad trouble. The next one is a dilly...and I'm not quite certain where it is, either."

"Oh, wonderful," grunted the ruler of the Federated Suns.

29

No one had ever accused Hanse Davion of being tight-fisted. Sep blessed that fact as she counted out the store of C-Bills he had provided for their rendezvous with Ardan. She had spent relatively few, leaving plenty for bribes and other emergencies.

Jarlik was the one who found them transportation with a pilot named Dahl, skipper of an InvaderClass JumpShip. The two shared a few mugs of ale in the local bar, where Jarlik learned that Dahl had a grudge against Sallek Atrion, the garrison commander. The man would be happy to secretly pilot them and their DropShip to Dragon's Field if it might eventually mean trouble for Atrion.

Once aboard Dahl's Invader,with their DropShip safely attached, Sep said, "When we hit Dragon's Field, we'll get our bearings first at the deep-space station. There's bound to be another 'cooperative and discreet' pilot looking to make a few extra C-Bills."

Dahl said, "Why don't you let me check things out for you? As a pilot, I'd never be suspect And once you're gone to worlds distant, I'll just be sitting here nice and innocentlike, recharging my ship."

Dragon's Field was a snap. Dahl found some friendly pretext for inviting another pilot aboard the DropShip, where Sep, Jarlik, and Ref were waiting.

"These folks need to use your ship," said Dahl reasonably. "They'll pay you well. And if anybody asks, just tell them you were kidnapped. How about it?"

Dahl had chosen well. Within fifteen minutes of docking their DropShip to the new pilot's JumpShip, they were on their way. No hue and cry was raised, nor would any be until someone wanted to board the charged ship that had vanished so mysteriously.

The jump from Hamlin was a bit more difficult. Their last pilot had been willing to be "kidnapped', but not to compound a felony by helping them hijack another ship. Again, it was Jarlik who did reconnaissance in port, where he strolled about, observing the possibilities. When he learned of a JumpShip that was currently idle, he told Sep and Ref, "I'll persuade the pilot to transport me to some phony destinadon, while you and the crew hide snug in the DropShip. Once we're aboard, well introduce ourselves and our real desdnadon to the captain."

As the new pilot was making ready for jump, Jarlik approached, his hand laser drawn. "What we really need is a lift to Ral," he said, his tone as mild as a rumble can be. The pilot came up swinging, but one shove of Jarlik's big hand convinced him that the bigger man outdid him, armed or otherwise.

They popped into being near the Ral system, where four JumpShips were charging not far beyond their position.

Jarlik patted his captive on the shoulder. "Nice work. Here's a bit to make it worth your while, and also enough to pay for the extra charge. You'll have to report this, but you don't have any idea who has taken you for a ride, do you?"

The pilot shook his head. He didn't, and that was the truth. He barely understood what had happened, as such a hijacking had never been tried before.

The three companions then selected one of the Jump-Ships waiting nearby, and had their current pilot signal that he wanted to board to get some assistance with a minor mechanical problem. Then Ref, Sep, and Jarlik got into their DropShip, and had their crew pilot them over to the new ship. In less than half an hour, they had jumped again, with another JumpShip pilot wondering if it were all a bad dream.

The last jump, from Vincent to Argyle, was accomplished in much the same fashion. "You won't know where you've been," Jarlik told the pilot, handing him a wad of C-Bills, "and you won't know who took you there, now will you?"

The pilot shook his head. "But I'd like to know how you made out when this is all over," he said. "Here's my call number. Get a message to me when you can."

Jarlik nodded. "Will do...if we live."

They landed their DropShip in a meadow outside the city of Stirling, which housed Hanse Davion's Summer Palace. Not wanting to be seen in port, they had chosen a spot that seemed safe for a private landing.

This early in the morning, mist was rising from the streams that made a webwork of waterways through the countryside. The 'Mechs stalked from the DropShip, and stood like prehistoric monsters in a dawn-world. The Drop-Ship crew, meanwhile, had orders to keep quiet and stay undercover.

"We'd best stow the 'Mechs in the woods and check out the palace on foot," said Sep. "One of us can stay to watch them. The other two can split up to see if we can find out what is going on."

They thudded through the summer grass toward the towering forest that stood between the meadow and the grasslands around the Summer Palace. There was enough cover there for an army of 'Mechs. Stowed in a thicket of heavy-leaved bushes, the heads and shoulders of the ‘Mechs were screened by arching boughs of the trees overhanging the thicket. From a distance, nothing was visible to anyone who didn't know to look closely.

It was decided that Ref and Sep would probably be able to melt into the palace background fairly easily, but that Jarlik would probably be recognized instantly. They decided that he would remain behind.

Sep and Ref went to separate entrances, where their retinal scans admitted them through the portals into the complex. Almost reflexively, Sep found herself headed toward the barracks.

Denek was coming down the steps as she mounted them.

"How goes it Den?" she asked. He looked up, startled, then grinned. "Sep, by golly, it's good to see you back. I never knew managing a unit could be so much hassle. Come with me and tell me what you've been doing!"

She turned companionably and moved with him toward the Palace. "Everything going well?" she asked again.

He looked doubtful. "I don't know about well. Not that there's any trouble, but with getting the guard ready to move back to New Avalon and all, it's been confusing. And the trouble with Steiner, too, right on the heels of that."

Sep stopped in her tracks. "Trouble with Steiner? What trouble? I've been on R and R, remember?"

He nodded. "Come on, then. I've got to hurry. Final inspection before jump. Davion's already gone. We all registered a protest that it was a bad move, but he insisted that he must attend to some important business on New Avalon. So off he went, with just a skeleton guard, his aide, and one unit."

"But what about Steiner?" she asked impatiently.

"We'd all thought there was some sort of agreement between the Commonwealth and the Federation. You remember, we used to talk about it. Well, just a week or so ago, Hanse went up by Command Circuit to meet with Katrina on Sol. Came back in a towering rage, saying he'd rather tie up with a she-bear. All connections have been severed."

Denek turned abrupdy into the gate of the drillground. "And it puts us into a real bind, if Liao tries to retake Stein's Folly. We'll be standing alone now, with all the major systems against us."

Sep digested Denek's words as he checked out the unit and sent the 'Mechs to their DropShips, the warriors to quarters. When Denek was done, she pulled him aside. "We have to talk. Now," she said, and began at the beginning. Denek listened, but his expression grew more and more skeptical as she spoke.

"Sep, Ardan was out of it. The doctors, the Meds, everyone said so."

She stared at him sternly. "So just about the time Ardan would have gotten here, Hanse just happens to change drastically. Not to mention the fact that there's no sign of Ardan and hasn't been, even though he was using the Jump-Ship Hanse Davion assigned to us so that we could get to the Folly and meet him."

She set her hand on his shoulder and shook him gendy. "Ardan got into that installation where he'd been held. He found a holo set up with pictures of Hanse in every sort of situation. Also of Argyle, in detail. When he brought Ref and me back to see it, the booby-traps began to go, and we had to get out or die. But he had put a set of holos in his pocket."

"He what?"

"Just what I said. He had a packet of them in his pocket. When we put them in the viewer, we saw the Palace at Argyle. There were holos of everything, in so much detail that if you studied them, it'd be almost like having lived here most of your life. From the Prince's private can to the bird sanctuary, with the names of all Hanse's favorite birds marked onto the case of the holo. It told ussomething. Doesn't it say anything to you?"

Denek might behave as if he were a foolish young fellow out for a good time, but he was a MechWarrior, and a good one. That meant he was no fool.

"They were training someone to take the Prince's place. And he's done it. If Ardan did show up here unannounced, he was probably either killed or is in hiding or has been ...detained."

He looked steadily into Sep's eyes.

"I have to get the unit offworld right now. You stay here and learn what you can. There's a ship, for emergencies only, stashed in Hangar Twelve at the private port. Old Sarnov lives in the village north of the grounds. He was one of the best pilots ever. When you find something...if you find something...you come to New Avalon. You're due back off leave, anyway. Nobody is going to ask how you got onworld, once you're there.

"I'll put your impending arrival on the incoming chart, as soon as I get in, with the notation that you are allowed recharge time and your exact time of arrival is unknown."

She patted his shoulder. "Good thinking. And put it as 'Candent Septarian and group', will you? We just might be able to slip Ardan in that way. Not to mention Hanse, if he should still be around."

She turned back to the forest, her mind busy. Where would the false Hanse have put his captives? Would he be naive enough to put them in the cells beneath the palace?

Where?