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The play opened with a conversation between a merchant, played by Gerrig, and a scholar, played by Yona “Parmi, plotting the overthrow of the clown King. The parts were loosely modeled on Jagd and Kherda, and Pelmen watched these men carefully for their reactions. They gazed at the stage with identical expressions of disinterest, and it soon became clear that they failed to recognize themselves in these characters.

Ligne did, however, and it was she who began the laughter. So lightly did she take it all that Pelmen grew steadily more convinced. Of course she could enjoy it, for she was firmly in control. Pelmen shifted his eyes to look at Serphimera. As she stared at the floor between her feet, he recalled the message she had passed him in Ligne’s presence. Two plots against the Queen and both would fail. Once again, she’d proven right, but it seemed to bring her little satisfaction. The kidnap scene was quickly over, and Pelmen made his entrance, shouting in character:

“What? No Princess? Search the roof! Search the halls! Search the dungeon! Search the walls!

Search every room within this house

Except my mistress’ room,

For I’ll be searching her myself

That is, I mean, her room, this afternoon.”

He heard a cackle from the front row. Ligne, at least, seemed to be enjoying it.

“Through here,” Rosha murmured, and Bronwynn rushed past him into the kitchen.

“Come on,” she said as she grabbed him by the hand and they raced toward the cistern.

They quickly skidded to a stop.

“Going somewhere?” asked Lord Joss. He had perched his foot on the lip of the cistern and was casually sipping a cup of water. The warriors clustered around him did not appear so relaxed. Their pikes were leveled at the young pair, menacing them as the guards moved to encircle them.

“We… n-needed a c-c-cup of water,” Rosha stammered.

“Easily handled. I have a whole basin full right here, that I was fetching for the Queen. You, young lady would you be good enough to carry it in for me?”

“But what of the King? He’ll know, for sure,” said Yona.

“The King? Clown King? Why the fool is pure as driven snow.” Gerrig gestured to his face, drawing a laugh. “You say he’ll know? Then are you the clown! For it’s noised around, through all the ” Gerrig suddenly broke off. Pelmen, who had been following the scene attentively, traced Gerrig’s gaze to the source of the interruption and his heart stopped. Bronwynn, carrying an ornate basin, had just come back in the rear door of the stage, followed by a crestfallen Rosha and General Joss. As they crossed the stage to a stairway and down onto the floor, Bronwynn kept her eyes humbly lowered. But after she’d stooped to place the bowl before the Queen, she made a telltale grab for her hip, and Lord Joss leaped on top of her, knocking her to the floor. The first few rows screamed in shock, and some of them jumped to their feet, but Ligne kept her seat, beaming happily up at Pelmen.

Rosha jumped on Joss*

back in turn, but guards swarmed everywhere by that time, and he and Bronwynn were both swiftly subdued. The crowd came alive with animated expressions of disbelief and amazement, and Ligne was obliged to nod at the trumpeters. Their piercing blasts stunned the audience into quiet, and Ligne smiled at the players.

“Go on,” she said. “Finish it.”

“We… ah… we…” Gerrig gazed across the stage at Pelmen. His expression was far from kind.

“We can hardly finish it, with two of our players bound like that,”

Pelmen said. “Release them, and we’ll continue.” It was fruitless, he realized, but it seemed Ligne had decided to play out this cat-and-mouse game to the bitter end.

“Release them? Why, this girl just tried to kill me! And as for the lad, well… I have plans for him later. I don’t want him to injure himself.” She smiled fondly at Rosha, who jerked toward her in rage.

“Ah, Rosha, you can’t imagine how I’ve missed that side of you,” Ligne looked back at the stage. “You can’t go on? A shame. I did so want to see it I know. Why not let me play a part?”

“What part do you choose, my Lady? The stage is yours.” Pelmen bowed as he spoke.

“It is mine, isn’t it?” Ligne gloated, and she mounted the steps to look him in the eye. “Why don’t I play myself?”

“Type-casting, to be sure,” Pelmen responded. He wondered how much energy he could muster, and glanced over to watch Bronwynn struggle against Joss. A great sadness swept through him. Struggle that’s all the girl had been allowed to do for months. It wasn’t just. Pelmen thought of the Power, and murmured, “Are you seeing this?”

“What?” Ligne asked. The audience listened in rapt silence.

“Nothing, my Lady. I take it you want to play the scene where the mistress kills the King. I’m ready.”

“Oh, not kills,” Ligne smiled. “I didn’t kill Talith. Didn’t need to, he accomplished that all by himself. No, I only made a fool of him.

Kherda, the bowl of water.”

The Prime Minister rocked up to his feet and scooped up the basin off the floor. As he bent, his eyes swept across those of Princess Bronwynn , ..

“Kherda! Now!” Ligne waited until Kherda brought the bowl of water to her. “I made a fool of Talith,” she said to Pelmen then. “I intend to unmake a fool of you.” Pelmen stood in his place as Ligne dipped a cJoth in the basin and washed the white grease paint from his face,

“The first Prophet!” exclaimed Naquin, and he twisted around to Serphimera. “Look, it’s that Prophet who caused us both such misery.”

Serphimera didn’t respond.

“She knows, Naquin,” said the Queen, walking downstage toward him.

“She’s known for days. And last night at dinner when you berated Pelmen in her presence, so did I.” Ligne turned to face Pelmen, a sneer curling her pretty lips. “Oh, you managed quite well, Pelmen. I honor your talent for deception you had me fooled completely. But your little Priestess there is a revealer of secrets, not a hider of them.

She’d told me before of her intense feelings for you, be they love or hate. She couldn’t hide those feelings from me. Not from me!” the Queen finished with a dramatic flourish of her hand.

“You missed your calling, Ligne,” Pelmen said quietly. You should have been an actress.”

“Should have been? I am an actress. Mustn’t every regent be a player of sorts? As your little play makes clear, the halls of state are no place for the guileless innocent.” Ligne smirked. “And that’s what you’ve surrounded yourself with, Pelmen. Innocents. Fools.” Ligne turned to Joss and shouted, “Take them!” The armed warriors didn’t wait for their commander to pass along the order. They scrambled onto the stage immediately, and soon every player in the troupe was trussed as soundly as Bronwynn. During the interval, Ligne strolled gracefully off the dais and resumed her throne. The captives were then led to stand facing her along the apron of the platform. Obviously, she’d choreographed her triumph quite carefully.

“Now then.” She smiled. “What’s next? Pelmen, don’t we get some kind of speech from you?”

“To what effect, my Lady?”

“Why, I assumed you would attempt to arouse the rabble against me.

Wasn’t that your plan, your reason for ingratiating yourself with each of my servants?”

“There was no plan, my Lady, save to escape from you

“No plan. Oh, come now.”

“It’s true. I only wanted to protect my friends and loved ones.”

“Then how did this little Princess get back inside my castle?” Ligne jumped up, crossed to Bronwynn, and grabbed the girl’s chin.

Pelmen had hoped Bronwynn might go unrecognized under her makeup, but he was disappointed even in this. “She was brought into this house by the same man who took her out. Admon Faye.”