How to Spell a Lie: Episode 1
Here it is: the first instalment of my fantasy novel How to Spell a Lie, the opening book in the Tevni series.
Episode 1
‘Drink this, Raoul.’ Severine Ladrone held death in the centre of her palm.
Breath catching in my throat, I shrank deeper into the chair.
Her free hand tickled its way along my right arm as far as the wrist. She held out the tiny phial, its ruby-red contents sparkling like a forbidden jewel.
‘What are you waiting for? “This will taste of whatever fruit you like best. It will be painless and quick, like stepping through an open door.” That's what you said to Eleni, wasn't it?’ Her smile was dazzling.
‘You know I can't drink that. It's poison.’ I struggled to control my trembling.
‘Oh? Would you prefer something else?’ Her father’s voice was cold. ‘Jarcis, is your dagger well honed?’
The guard standing to the left of the door snapped to attention. ‘It is indeed, sir.’
‘Good. Please lend it to our guest. I believe he wishes to slit his wrists.’
Dizzy, so dizzy; shivering, as though in a fever; unbidden tears welling up.
The guard now at my shoulder, the tip of his long, sharp blade slid against the skin of my neck.
Farbien Ladrone folded his arms. ‘All right, young man. You allowed Eleni to choose how she was to die. Now it's your turn. And I’m minded to grant you similar choices. Hmm, let me see. Well, we don't have a hanging tree, but a noose could be strung from the rafters. And a bath does as well as a lake for drowning if you're face down in it. No picturesque cliff, I'm afraid, but this building is high, and a jump from the roof should have the same effect. I'm a busy man, Raoul, with a great many other things to do today. Please get on with it. Hurry up and make your choice.’
The toxic contents of the tiny flask shimmered; firelight cast rainbows from the razor-sharp edge of the dagger.
Severine removed the golden stopper, grasped my hand, and with surprising strength, tore it from the chair arm. Closing the fingers round the open bottle, she supported my nerveless arm all the way up.
Until the venom dampened paper-dry lips.
A whisper from beside me. ‘Drink, Raoul.’
As the unwelcome sweetness swept over my tongue and I wondered how much time was left, my mind flooded with images of when all this began, such a wretched mischance of a winter's day.
*
Snowflakes swirled in a blinding blizzard outside the arched windows of the House of Sorcerers. My mentor had summoned me, though I had no idea why. He still blamed me for the theft of his precious Unconjuring spell months before and was no longer speaking to me.
Durege paced back and forth across his priceless scarlet and silver rug, thumbs hooked into the pockets of a brocaded waistcoat. ‘I've found her, my boy. I've found her!’ No need to ask who he meant. ‘The minx has slipped up at last. I know where she is, in a little town just this side of the mountains. Here's your chance to sort her out, put things right.’
Put things right? What could he have in mind? Knowing him as I did, it was bound to be unpleasant. ‘Master Durege...’
But Master Durege wasn't listening. He thrust a long, spindly finger at me. ‘Yes, you'll be able to recover the spell she stole, then make her sorry for ever daring to cross a sorcerer. When you've finished her, come here for dinner and tell me all about it.’
‘Can't we just dismiss the whole thing? It's been such a long...’
The transformation was instantaneous. He became taller, mouth now a taut, thin line, cold eyes the colour of an angry sea. ‘Dismiss it, you say? Forget the mistake you made which cost me so much.’ He towered over me, eyes bulging. ‘Or did she steal my spell for you?’
An icy hand clutched my heart; Durege was losing control.
I was in mortal danger.
Forcing myself to meet his stormy eyes, I stuttered, ‘You know I-I'd never...’
‘I know nothing of the sort, boy. You could be a traitor working for my enemies within this House.’ His voice dropped to a low, menacing hiss. ‘Prove it, Raoul. Prove to me the girl is not your creature.’
A sharp forefinger stabbed at me. Once. Twice.
But a moment later, like the sun emerging from behind a thundercloud, he was all smiles. ‘Forgive me. I hate the thought somebody may be lying to me. All I ask is that you put right your mistake. Go and talk to her. If she still has the Unconjuring spell, I want it back. If not, there's nothing either of us can do about it.’ Despite the words, his green eyes continued to seethe. ‘It’s clear none of this was your fault. I do trust you. After all these years, why wouldn't I?’
‘What is it you want me to do? Make her ill, cause her to itch all over, give her a hook nose or render her so clumsy she can't steal any more...?’ My imagination ran riot, but my mentor remained unimpressed.
‘Don't be silly. No, after you've recovered the spell, you end her. And before she dies, I want her to regret she ever set eyes on you. Or me.’
‘What?’ I reared back, unable to catch my breath. This was asking too much. I'd never killed anyone or anything on purpose, not even a fly. Yes, Eleni had to be punished, but Master Durege had ordered me to take her life; take her life while looking into those clear, grey eyes. He was not only punishing her; he was also punishing me.
But what would my mentor do if I disobeyed? There was a tale told in the House of a master sorcerer who murdered an apprentice for failing him. If you asked what happened to the sorcerer, you were told nothing. Durege was responsible for my upbringing, more than a guardian, less than a father. Would anyone care what he did to me? No, I could not fail him.
I must not fail him.
Before being able to respond to him, he muttered something: words lost on the air. A flickering at the edge of my vision and Durege's suite vanished.
*
He had sent me to the edge of a country market. All around, stalls groaned under the weight of huge, round, yellow cheeses. Crisp, golden-brown loaves peeped out from straw baskets. Fruits of every colour spilled across counters. In the centre of it all stood a stall, where a plump woman in a red and white striped apron kept one meaty hand clutched round a fish, as a thief, our thief, reached out to take it.
Durege's final words were a distant echo. ‘...and be sure you don't leave her alive. No one steals from me and lives.’
For a moment, hands on hips, Eleni bartered with the red-faced woman, who maintained a tight grip on the silvery salmon. No doubt she was wise to do so.
Dodging between overladen stalls, I nudged a lettuce with my elbow. It rolled like a severed head under my feet.
Another few steps and I reached Eleni. Raising my arms to convey us away to...
‘Ah, Mr. Sorcerer, how nice to see you again. What perfect timing.’
I cursed under my breath, annoyed she had interrupted the gesture of isolation by grabbing my hand in a hearty shake.
‘See, Glenys. This is Raoul. He's a sorcerer come to hire me. He'll be happy to pay you for the fish.’
Too astonished to protest, I shook my fingers free and flicked myself away, dragging Eleni with me.
Oh, but something had gone wrong. I must have allowed my nerves to influence the strength of the spell and overdone it. Instead of a quiet side street close to the market, I had conveyed us to... to a mountain top.
‘Not fair!’ Eleni, hands on hips again, glared at me as though I was the one in the wrong. ‘What's your hurry? You could have waited until after I'd eaten before telling me what you want me for.’
Without giving me time to reply, she strode off.
We were on the summit, an elongated oval comprising a scattering of small, sharp rocks covered with a light dusting of snow. Over to one side, right on the cliff edge, was a strange formation of standing stones, each about the height of a man.
She went across, and holding tight onto the furthest of them, leant over the edge of the precipice.
‘We're a long way up. I've never been so high before. Look. Eagles are flying about down there. I'd hate to fall. It's such a steep drop.’
I should have given her a little... but too late. She had already seen enough and was on the way back.
‘I didn't come here to hire you, Eleni. I came to recover the property you stole from Master Durege.’
‘What? Are you serious? If there’d been anything left, why would I have been trying to steal my dinner? Don't tell me you're still annoyed about a bit of petty pilfering such a long time ago. Come on, Raoul. What's this all about? If we stay much longer, I'll freeze to death.’
To death... At that moment I understood the enormity of what Durege had ordered me to do. What right did the man have to demand I murder Eleni in cold blood? I was no assassin, but what would he do to me if I failed? If only it were possible to see myself as nothing more than an executioner appointed to carry out judgement over a wrongdoer.
‘Hey, wake up!’ Eleni shook me. She shivered. ‘Don't just stand there. Do something about this cold. We're neither of us dressed for it. At least make a fire.’
Why not? It would be easy to conjure up a little heat. My brain might work better if it were a bit warmer.
Spinning my fingers, I chanted soft words. The light around us shimmered in a rainbow of colours, not quite my intention but close enough. I brought her summer, the air warm and scented by a profusion of flowers growing all around. Bees hummed, butterflies fluttered. At the edge of the oval, a tall, strong oak tree reflected in the perfect blue of a shimmering expanse of water, the only discordant note in the idyllic scene the slender but strong rope in the form of a noose suspended from an overhanging branch.
‘What's this?’ She sounded more curious than frightened, but that would soon change.
‘Eleni, you ruined everything; made me look a fool in front of Durege, and he no longer trusts me.’ I held out my hand, and in my palm appeared a tiny crystal phial, its contents glistening like a thousand liquid rubies. ‘This will taste of whatever fruit you like best. It will be painless and quick, like stepping through an open door.’ I eased out the golden stopper and raised the bottle.
‘Oh, no you don't!’ She dashed it from my hand.
The liquid splashed over the red and yellow flowers at our feet, which withered and turned brown. ‘You don't have to do that.’ Her gentle fingertips trailing over the side of my face were so soft. ‘Nothing is ever as bad as all that. You don't need to take poison.’
What was she talking about?
I pulled away. ‘The poison wasn't for me. I've no reason to kill myself. No, it was for you.’
‘Why would you want to poison me? Is this what you sorcerers do for fun? I've had enough now. Take me back to Skippon.’
‘I can't. I wish I could.’ Oh, I did. How I did. ‘You must understand you shouldn't have stolen from Master Durege. You couldn't have made a worse enemy.’
‘What did you expect? I was hired as a thief. Remember? You needed someone to open locked doors and caskets because your master was frightened of setting off a hidden spell or something. Besides, all I did was take a little extra money and a few other bits.’
A few other bits? Those pages had been crafted by the greatest spell writer in history. They were priceless. A few other bits indeed.
This delay had gone on too long. ‘I'm sorry, you're out of time.’
‘What are you going to do? Hang me, drown me, throw me off the cliff or conjure up another of those bottles?’
I was numb but could not waver. ‘Eleni, please. You must make a choice.’
‘Don't I get a last request?’ I would describe her coy, little smile as sly but have to be honest: it was a rather attractive smile, a most attractive one.
‘Fine. What do you want?’
‘A picnic. The best I've ever eaten. Lots of different things: a feast of chicken, venison, rich sauces, puddings, cheeses, fruits, everything; gold cutlery, beautiful crockery, lots of courses. And wine, the best I've ever drunk and from the finest crystal goblets I've ever held.’
‘That's quite a list, but all right. Why not? I'll summon up something nice for you. After that, we finish this. No more delays.’
‘No more delays.’
I closed my eyes to better visualise what to bring. It was almost the last mistake of my life.
‘Ah.’
‘Let me go and I won't kill you.’ She held a blade against my neck.
A whisper, a single word, and the dagger became a long icicle. It fell from her frozen fingers, broke into a dozen jagged shards and melted away on the grass.
‘You can't win, Eleni. I ought to finish you for that but always keep my word so will honour your last request. Tell me, though. Why the hesitation? You'd have got away if you'd cut my throat instead of talking.’
‘I've never killed anyone.’
The simple statement took my breath away. What made her think I had?
‘Hey, don't look so surprised. I'm a thief, not a killer, and I don't believe you are either. So, why not let me go? I haven't lived yet. I'm only nineteen and don't want to die until at least seventy, in my own bed at Ladrone House, respected as a great thief. I want to have had many lovers and perhaps even a child.’
She had seemed so much older. Why should being the same age make killing her so much harder? Though I had to do as Durege ordered, I would make it as easy as it could be for her.
For us both.
Concentrating, once more spinning my fingers, whispering the words, and a beautiful ebony table with a pair of matching carved chairs stood waiting.
‘Sit. I'm not going to allow any more interference.’
She obeyed without a word, but just in case, I used a Hold spell to secure her before getting to work.
A tablecloth of the finest lace; the goblets gold, chased with silver inlay. All beyond doubt the best, conjured from the most exclusive goldsmith in the city of Tevni.
Excitement showed on her face, small, even white teeth biting her lip as she leaned forward as far as the spell would allow. Why are commoners always impressed by such simple magic? Except...
‘No, it's still not good enough.’
‘What do you want now?’
‘It's... Well, look at me.’
I looked.
‘Admit it: I'm not dressed for this, and I just know you could make me look... lovely.’ She needed no help from me on that score, but I wasn't going to say it. ‘I've never owned a proper gown or even had a cheap brooch to call my own.’
What was she up to now? There are limits to my patience. Or at least to Durege's.
Oh, why not? We had come this far. I might as well give her a dress and a necklace or two. She would not have them for long.
The dresses were from the most exclusive salon in the city, the one which provides gowns to the ladies of the court. With them I conveyed a tray of necklaces and rings from the same jewellers as the goblets. Oh, but the dresses, a dozen gaudy satin and silk confections, more boudoir than banquet, were not what had been intended at all.
I was about to try again, to fetch something a little more elegant, a little less showy but...
‘How gorgeous!’
Oh? ‘Wouldn't you prefer...?’
‘No, they're just perfect. Can you let me go now so I can try them on?’
I released her, and she raced across the grass. On reaching the rail, she winked at me. ‘Don't you know it's rude to watch a lady changing?’
‘Do you really expect me to turn my back on you again?’
‘Haven't we agreed I can't win?’
Turn my back? I might have been inexperienced, but not naïve. Instead, I presented her with an ornate, wooden screen covered with inlaid images of wild birds.
She spent ages behind it, but I refused to give in to impatience. These were her last minutes, so if she wanted to try on every dress twice, how could I begrudge her such a small, final pleasure?
A whisper of cloth, she stepped out from behind the screen and, oh!
Eleni transformed: pauper into princess, waif into woman. The gown of scarlet satin, long but far from concealing. It might just as well have been transparent. Around her neck glinted a slender, gold chain from which was suspended a single, radiant ruby reflecting the rays of the afternoon sun. Exquisite.
A pirouette and a curtsey as she approached, the plunging neckline and position of the ruby drawing my eyes into her. How had I failed to notice how enchanting this woman was?
‘Whenever you're ready, Master.’ Her wide, grey eyes fixed on mine. I so wished we were there for a different reason.
‘Yes. Yes, let's... er... eat.’ Sinking into the chair opposite her, I still couldn't tear my eyes away.
‘You're so clever. I never realised you could do all this. And you did it just for me!’ Had her voice always sounded so enticing?
She didn't eat much of the dishes I conjured up but enjoyed the wine, replenishing our glasses after almost every sip.
I raised mine to her. ‘It won't work, Eleni. I can take a great deal of this stuff and then clear my head. Just like that.’ A snap of my fingers.
‘The thought never crossed my mind. You're far too powerful for the likes of me. How could I have been so foolish as to steal from a man as remarkable as you? I expect one day you'll be a great sorcerer, perhaps even First Sorcerer. And forget all about me.’
My ears burned at the praise. ‘Oh, I'm not as remarkable as that, won’t ever amount to much. And believe me: I'll never forget you.’
I ought to have clicked to clear my head but was relishing her company so much, I didn't want it to end too soon. Why not leave it a little longer? Where was the hurry?
As I conjured up yet another bottle, I realised she was kneeling in front of me. ‘Do you really have to hurt me, Master Raoul?’
‘It's not me. It's Durege. He's the one who wants rid. I don't want to hurt you at all. I think you're lovely.’ Oops! Never meant to say that out loud. Was that me giggling? ‘Yes, it's such a good job I can hold my liquor.’
An instant later, she was in my arms.
I should have pushed her away, but my fingers disobeyed me, trailing down the side of her face.
Turning her head the tiniest amount, she kissed my palm.
My fingertips slid to the neck of the dress past the sparkling ruby.
She pressed her body closer into mine. ‘I want to thank you for all of this. Why not relax? Let yourself go a little. Let me please you, Master. You'll feel so good afterwards. You know you want me.’
I made a feeble attempt to pull back, but all I could do was push forward, further into her. ‘No, Eleni. We mustn't do this.’
Oh, but her skin was soft, sweet scented, so delicate and so warm, and she felt so wonderful in my arms.
We kissed, such a delightful kiss.
I was lost. There was nothing left in the whole world except Eleni.
Dizzy… dizzy… I closed my eyes.
*
Cold, I was so cold. And lying on hard ground. Everything I had conjured up had disappeared. And so had Eleni.
A crushing wave of nausea overcame me as I tried to sit up. I had never felt so sick in my life.
A clicked to clear my head, but nothing happened. Tried again. Still nothing.
Beginning to panic; what was wrong with me?
I closed my eyes to concentrate. First, on the House of Sorcerers and the spell which would convey me there, but the words wouldn't come. Perhaps something simpler would work so I attempted to shift a small stone.
But it wouldn't obey me.
What was going on? Why was my magic failing me?
Ah, Eleni and the spell she had stolen, the one she claimed to no longer possess. Had it been a lie? Had I just made the most stupid mistake of my life? While I was unconscious, did she read it out? Durege had called it an Unconjuring spell. I hadn't been sure what he meant but knew now. There was not a shred of magic left in me and no way to convey myself away from the mountain top.
To be continued…
I hope you enjoyed the extract. The second instalment will follow next Friday.
Published Books by Denarii Peters
Will You Walk into My Parlour The Reluctant Reaper