“Well, it didn’t exactly help,” Derk said. “Was letting me down over the demon and the god part of it, too?”
Querida nodded her little dry chin. “But I was very busy. I was organizin
g the women wizards to send everything wrong that they could think of, you know.”
“So,” Derk asked, hoping, “might it have been you who lent Mara money?”
“I gave her money,” Querida replied. “I can afford it, and she was working on my plans after all.”
“And are you satisfied now?” Derk asked.
Querida looked a little glum. “I’m not sure. I didn’t in my wildest dreams ever think you’d shut the Pilgrims out. I really don’t know what’s going to happen about that. I’ve done my best to exploit the situation by putting the women wizards out there waving placards that say, ‘Go Home, Pilgrims,’ but I really don’t know where we go from here. I think we may be in bad trouble. You wouldn’t consent to open your gates again, would you?”
Derk smiled down at Mara. “No. Not yet.”
Querida sighed and watched the dwarfs hurry back with hastily carved plates of chicken and beef and a stack of bread. Evidently Fran was not having them in the kitchen for long. Some knelt down on the flagstones and made sandwiches, while others went around with mugs of beer.
“You owe for the beer, too,” Callette said to Galadriel. “I’m keeping a list.” She reached over and took all the sandwiches that had been made so far. Don dashed out onto the terrace, a much paler gold, with pearls of water hanging on his feathers, and saw her eating them. He squawked indignantly. “Wait your turn,” Callette said calmly. “I’m still bigger than you.”
“Oh, food!” someone cried out. “Let me at it!”
Shona came limping up the terrace steps. She was followed by Geoffrey, the Ledburys, Dad and Mother Poole, and everyone else in Blade’s Pilgrim Party. The dwarfs exchanged looks and sped back to the kitchen for more. Fran could be heard as soon as they got there, making as much noise as the pigs and the dogs.
“We’ve been walking for over a week!” Shona said, flopping down onto the flagstones. “I am so tired! When I saw the hills were full of dragons, I simply thought, I don’t care if they eat us, I just want to get home! But all they did was stare at us. Dad, I hope you don’t mind me bringing everyone in through the back way.”
“Not at all,” Derk said vaguely, as all the other Pilgrims flopped down, too. Most of them thankfully hauled their boots off. Geoffrey took his socks off as well and ruefully showed Shona some very well-developed blisters. So he’s not totally perfect! Derk thought with some relief. He wondered who the small blond girl was and the rather ragged young man, and why they did not seem as footsore as the rest. He watched these two help themselves to a sandwich each and come over to him.
The young man bowed. “Lady Mara, Wizard Derk. I am Reville, and this is Sukey. We’ve got some rather unpleasant news for you, I’m afraid. Your son Blade was with us when we discovered that Mr. Chesney was stealing magic by mining earth here and taking it into his own world. Wizard Barnabas was in charge of the mining, and I’m afraid he caught Blade.”
“Barnabas!” said Derk.
“Are you sure?” said Mara.
“I saw him myself,” said Reville. “Sukey and I tracked them all the way down to Costamaret—”
Sukey smiled adoringly at Reville. “He learned to translocate. He took us both.”
“With a few side trips,” Reville said. “I haven’t got it perfect yet. That’s part of the reason we were a bit slow getting here. The other reason is that Costamaret has a Thieves Guild—”
“What’s all this? What is this about?” Querida cried out, leaning down from her apparent wall. “You did say Barnabas, did you—Regin, isn’t it?”
Reville bowed. “I didn’t see you there, ma’am. It’s Reville really. Thieves Guild policy is to give a false name for all public meetings.”
Querida disregarded this and hissed at him to say, say, say. The dwarfs handed them all sandwiches and mugs of beer and stood by listening while Reville and Sukey gave the history of their adventures in the mine. Querida shot Derk a quizzical look when they mentioned the demon, but she did not interrupt until Reville was saying, “And Thieves Guild in Costamaret was very sorry about it, but they say the arena is protected by magic and there’s nothing they could do for Blade—”
“So that’s why magic was draining away!” Querida interrupted. “What we must do—”
Reville interrupted her. “No need to do anything, ma’am. Stealing is the business of my guild. We deal with nonguild thieving. Costamaret Guild has gone in to close the mines down—they’re doing it at this moment. Sukey planned the operation. She’s a wonderful planner.” He put his arm around Sukey’s blue silk shoulders and squeezed proudly. “I don’t think anyone will get away.”
“But I insist on dealing with that traitor Barnabas myself!” Querida said, loudly, because Mara was saying to Derk, “No, I know Blade’s all right. Scales—”
“No,” Derk said grimly, around Mara. “Whether Blade’s all right or not, I’m the one who’s going to deal with Barnabas.” He put his head up and bellowed, “Talithan!”
Silvery music swept across the terrace. Several dwarfs carrying plates backed hastily away from the greenish haze that was opening by the front door. When Talithan stepped out of it, he was evidently in the middle of some kind of celebration. His clothes were gorgeous even for an elf prince. He had a harp on one arm and the other arm draped over Pretty. Pretty gave everyone a coy look and bent his neck to nuzzle Talithan. “You called, Lord?” Talithan asked.
The Pilgrims stared at him yearningly. Mother Poole was in tears, sobbing, “But he’s so beautiful!” while Professor Ledbury got up and stood staring.
“Sit down, Eldred,” said Miss Ledbury. “Finish your sandwich.”