She told him. She started all the way back with her time at Carrington and her troubles with the school administration, culminating in her suspension and disgraced return to Landover. She related the events surrounding her flight from Sterling Silver, although it was unexpectedly hard to explain why she hadn’t wanted to come to Libiris but had ended up coming anyway and then staying. He listened without comment to all of it, and not once did she see even the flicker of a grimace or a look of disbelief cross his face.
“I guess I still don’t understand what happened,” she finished. “I mean, I still don’t know exactly how I ended up here.”
“Well, I think you just wanted it to be your idea,” he said, giving a shrug to emphasize that it wasn’t all that complicated for him. “I think you wanted to come here on your own terms, and that’s what you did. I also think you did the right thing.”
“You do?”
“Yes. Both for you and for Libiris. Maybe for your father and the Kingdom, too. After all, you’ve stopped the book theft and done something to heal the library so that the demons no longer have a way to escape Abaddon.”
“But His Eminence will already have found out what I’ve done! He’ll put everything back the way it was!” She felt suddenly disheartened. “A week ago, it wouldn’t have mattered. I didn’t even want to be here. Libiris was just an ugly building. But now I know the truth about her. She’s so much more—and she’s in such pain, Thom! I wanted to help her get better, and I thought that by tricking the Throg Monkeys into returning her books I had. But it will all have been for nothing.”
Thom shook his head quickly. “Don’t be too sure of that. He didn’t say much of anything when he caught up with me. He doesn’t necessarily know what you’ve done.”
“Maybe. But he’ll figure it out quickly enough, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know. Just don’t give anything away. He’ll try to get you to do that. Make him find it out for himself.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to help him.”
“Tell him he has to let you go. You are a Princess of Landover, and if your father finds out what’s happened, His Eminence won’t be able to run fast enough or far enough. That ought to make him sit up and take notice.” He paused. “Wait a minute! I’ve got a better idea. Tell him your father already knows you’re here!”
“Of course!” she exclaimed, remembering suddenly. “Questor told him! And Father’s on his way here to bring me home!”
“That’s right! He might even get here before sunset today!”
Mistaya looped her bound arms over his head and shoulders and hugged him as hard as she could. “Yes, yes, he might!”
Thom hugged her back instantly, and then as if realizing what they had done, they released each other at the same moment and looked in different directions, eyes lowered.
“Well, that deserved a hug,” she declared finally, looking him in the eye again.
“I thought so,” he agreed, and gave her one of his quirky grins.
They sat together in the small glow of the candle until the tiny flame went out, leaving them in darkness save for a faint wash of sunlight creeping with a thief’s hesitancy under their locked door from the hallway beyond. Time passed with agonizing slowness, and no one came. Mistaya was hungry and tired, but there was no food to eat and sleep was impossible. Instead, she talked with Thom about ways they might escape and things they might do to make His Eminence sorry for what he had done. The conversation helped keep her growing fears at bay—fears that seemed increasingly well founded. The more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that His Eminence was not going to be intimidated by anything she said. If he was willing to lock them up in the first place, he couldn’t be all that worried about what her father might do.
She spent a goodly amount of time during the silences between exchanges thinking about how she could summon spells that would help them. The problem was that virtually everything she knew how to do required a combination of voice and hands. You had to speak the words and make the signs if the spells were to work. It was a safeguard against accidental summoning and unfortunate consequences. If all that was needed to conjure a spell was a word or two, you might act inadvertently. But if you also needed to gesture, it was less likely that you would make a mistake. Questor had taught her this, explaining that using magic always required measured consideration beforehand.
She wished suddenly that she hadn’t left all her possessions tucked away in her sleeping chamber. She might find something useful in Questor’s book of magic if she could get her hands on it. There were all kinds of spells, incantations, and conjuring in there—maybe even something that didn’t require the use of her hands.
Nor, she realized with a shock, did she have the rainbow crush on her. That, too, was back in her sleeping chamber. She had been so sure she wouldn’t need it, so sure of herself.
Well, maybe Edgewood Dirk would come to rescue her.
Sure, and maybe cows would fly.
She had no idea how long she had sat in the darkness with Thom when she finally heard footsteps outside the storeroom door and the sharp snick of the lock releasing. She sat up straight at once, readying herself for whatever was to come. Beside her, Thom whispered, “Remember. Don’t tell him anything. Don’t let him trick you.”
The door opened and a flood of light spilled through, momentarily blinding her. His Eminence appeared, tall and vaguely spectral, his strange head canted over to one side, as if it were too heavy for his neck. Rufus Pinch followed close on his heels, sour-faced and pale from his illness, apparently determined not to miss out on whatever punishment was to be dispensed to the prisoners.
“Good day, Princess,” His Eminence greeted, beaming down at her. “Good morning, Thom,” he added, nodding to the boy.
“You had better let us go, and right now,” Mistaya snapped, glaring at him as she came to her feet and stood facing him, ignoring the weight of the restraints on her hands.
“Had I?” asked the other, an astonished look crossing his face. “Oh, dear. What will happen if I don’t?”
“My father will find out, that’s what!”
“Well, I certainly hope so.”
“He already knows I’m here, you realize. Questor Thews visited me secretly two days ago, and when he left he …” She caught herself, realizing suddenly what he had said. “You hope so?” She repeated his words back to him, not quite believing she had heard right.
His Eminence held up his hands and patted at the air, glancing at Pinch to share a secret smile before turning back to her. “Let me save you the trouble of puzzling it through. I already know Questor Thews was here. You both thought he got into the building without my knowing, but that is quite impossible. You talked, and he departed. I don’t doubt that in doing so he made you aware of the fact that he would have to report your whereabouts to your father. Am I right?”
She nodded dumbly, not at all liking where this was headed. “He said Father would be coming to get me.” This was not so, but she thought she needed to suggest that there was an urgency to things. “He’s probably already on his way.”
His Eminence looked even happier. “Excellent! Exactly what I was counting on!”
Mistaya stared. “What are you talking about? You hold me prisoner, and you’re telling me you want my father to come here to do something about it?”
“That is not exactly right. I do want him to come, but I do not want him to think you are a prisoner.” He held up one finger, as if lecturing. “In point of fact, if you hadn’t gone into the Stacks against my express orders, there wouldn’t be a reason for you to be a prisoner. But you just couldn’t help yourself, could you? Whatever was it that you were doing back there, little Princess?”