Desire

"Tis better if I drown."

"Mayhap, but you are not going to drown. I have other plans for you, vassal. Take hold of the belt."

Dalian reached for the belt.

16

The ominous silence in the firelit chamber made Clare uneasy. She knew that Dalian was beyond uneasy. He was terrified. They both sat very still on their stools and waited for Gareth to speak.

Clare gave Dalian a small smile of encouragement. Dalian did not return the smile.

Gareth did nothing to ease the oppressive atmosphere. Clare had begun to suspect that he was deliberately allowing it to deepen. He lounged in a chair in front of the fire and gazed into the flames with a dark, brooding expression that boded ill. His elbows rested on the carved oak arms of the chair.

He finally spoke, startling Clare.

"What is the name of this other master whom you serve, Dalian of Desire?"

Dalian flinched. Clare saw his mouth open and close nervously. His hands squeezed together in his lap. "My lord, I beg you, do not ask me for his name. To speak it will bring disaster down upon this isle."

"He is such a powerful lord, then?" Gareth's voice was very soft.

"Aye."

"A great knight?"

"Aye."

"You once told me that he went on Crusade."

"Aye."

"You fear him more than you fear me?"

Dalian looked down at his hands. "You will do no more than hang me, my lord. My master can do much worse."

"What is worse than being hung, minstrel?"

Dalian's eyes flickered to Clare. He licked his lips. "He has promised to kill my lady if I betray him."

A terrible stillness settled over Gareth. "He actually said those words?

He specifically threatened to kill Lady Clare?"

Dalian shivered, although he was now warm and dry. "He vowed that he would kill all those for whom I had any affection. And then he promised to destroy me in a most hideous manner. No offense, my lord, but I would rather hang than die by magic."

Clare stared at him. "Magic?"

Dalian pressed his lips together as if fearing that he had said too much.

"Magic." Gareth repeated the word curiously, as though tasting it. "This lord whom you fear is a great magician, then?"

Dalian looked down at his clenched hands. "Aye. He is a master of the dark arts. He can walk through locked doors. He can make objects disappear. He knows the secrets of the ancients."

Gareth's brows rose. "This great magician who can walk through locked doors and make things disappear must send a boy of sixteen to steal a book from a lady? Why did he not simply materialize in my wife's study chamber and select the volume himself? Then he could have whisked himself away before anyone was the wiser."

"My lord, I do not pretend to know his reasoning," Dalian said desperately. "He never confides his plans to me or anyone else. Tis not his way. He keeps his own counsel."

"What, precisely, did he tell you to do while you were here?" Gareth asked.

"He bid me come here to Desire and enter the household as a minstrel. He said I was to become familiar with the hall and those who live here. He told me to be ready for a signal from him."

Clare frowned. "He knew I would be glad of a minstrel?"

"Aye. My master?" Dalian broke off and cast a quick, uncomfortable look at Gareth. "I mean, my former master said?"

"What did he say?" Clare prodded gently.

Dalian sniffed back a few tears. "He said my foolish poetry would likely please you, my lady. He said you would welcome me because you had a great fondness for romantic nonsense."

"He was right about one thing," Clare said. "You are welcome here, Dalian."

"He was welcome," Gareth corrected quietly. "Until he betrayed this house and me."

"I had to do it," Dalian whispered. "I had to take the book. He commanded me to do so."

Gareth's gaze sharpened. "When did he issue this command?"

"He appeared on the last day of the spring fair. He sought me out in the crowd and described the book that he wanted. He said that if I did not bring it to him within a sennight, he would destroy this hall and all those within."

"The spring fair?" Gareth's eyes narrowed. "He was in Seabern?"

"Aye." Dalian sniffed again. "He materialized there in the guise of a peddler."

"So that was why your mood changed so drastically on the last day of the fair," Clare said.

"I had begun to believe that he had forgotten about me," Dalian whispered. "In truth, during the past two months, I made myself believe that he no longer had any use for me, that mayhap I was free."

"Was that why you swore fealty to me, Dalian of Desire?" Gareth asked.

"Because you thought the magician had freed you of your oath to him?"

"He never asked for my oath, as you did, my lord." Dalian gazed forlornly at the floor. "To him I was never more than a servant. One does not ask a servant to swear a squire's oath."

Clare looked at the volume lying on the desk. "How did you know which of my father's books your magician wanted you to steal?"

"He described it to me when he sought me out at the fair." Dalian raised his eyes to the book on the desk. "He said it would be a large volume containing many strange recipes scripted in a poor hand. He said it would no doubt be among the items that Sir Humphrey had sent home just before he died."

"You knew that I have been studying just such a volume lately because you had assisted me with some of my experiments," Gareth said.

"Aye, my lord."

Gareth's mouth twisted briefly. "I thought you had a rare talent for experiments. Tis because you assisted your magician from time to time, I'll wager."

"Aye." Dalian swallowed heavily. "He taught me the things I needed to know in order to aid him in his studies. My lord, I must know, are you going to hang me tonight?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I do not wish to die unshriven. I realize I have no right to ask for any kindness, but I will be very grateful if you will summon a priest before you hang me."

"By Saint Hermione's merciful heart, Lord Gareth is not going to hang anyone tonight," Clare said quickly. "Are you, my lord?"

Gareth said nothing. He continued to gaze reflectively into the flames.

Dalian bit his lip and looked down at his shaking fingers. "I pray that you will someday be able to forgive me, Lady Clare."

Clare scowled at Gareth and then turned back to Dalian. "Do not pay my lord any heed. He is in a foul mood. He is not going to hang you, Dalian."

Dalian looked at her as if she were mad.

"My lord, will you kindly tell Dalian that you are not going to hang him?" Clare snapped impatiently.

"I am still contemplating the matter," Gareth murmured.

"Sir, you know very well that you are not going to hang your own squire-in-training." Clare smiled at Dalian. "I understand that you took the book because you wanted to protect me, Dalian. Lord Gareth understands that, too."

Dalian appeared unconvinced of Gareth's understanding. "My lord, I know you believe that what I did was an act of betrayal. I wish with all my heart that I could have continued to serve you as your squire-in-training. But you yourself once told me that a man must do whatever was necessary to protect those who depend upon him. I had to protect Lady Clare."

"A man cannot serve two masters, Dalian of Desire."

"Nay, my lord. I know that. But when I gave you my oath, I truly believed that I was free to serve you.

I was nothing to the magician, you see. Just a boy he had bought for a few coins. After I had been here on Desire for a time, it was easy to believe that he had either forgotten about me or no longer needed me. I told myself that he would not come for me."

Gareth's eyes were the color of pale gray smoke. "I want the magician's name, Dalian."