Read Tanith Lee - Claidi Journals 01 for Free Online Page B

enclosure.
    Doubtless this feat would also be blamed on Claidi. It occurred to me that my name might live on in history here!
    Then I could see the wall of the courtyard and the Pavilion cupola over the top.
    Well, I felt sick. But somehow I kept walking and found I’d knocked on the door in the wall. So there was no time to throw up.
    One of the Guards spoke harshly through the door.
    “Yes? What do you want?”
    “To bring you wine, respected Guard.”
    “Oh. Wine, eh.”
    Someone sounded pleased now. Then another one said, “Who sent it?”
     
    “Her Oldness, Princess Jizania.”
    The door was opened, and I pattered through, looking suitably timid and modest.
    There were five of them, sitting on benches under a lantern on a pole. They’d been playing cards. Behind them the Pavilion bulked, not a light showing.
    I gave them the two large wine bottles and handed them the two kitchen cups, all I could carry. They didn’t seem worried. One of them took a handy undoing-thing out of a pouch and uncorked the bottles.
    They passed them around, taking huge sloshing gulps, which was glorious. Jizania had drugged both bottles, I’d seen her do it, inserting a long needle through the corks and letting in some herbal stuff, drip by patient drip.
    It didn’t work instantly, unfortunately.
    “What’s in that bundle?”
    “Some things the princess sent for the prisoner.”
    “What things? What does he want with things? We’ll be stringing him up tomorrow, hopefully.”
    “Or we’ll behead him,” added a particularly jolly one. “Off with that goldy head.”
    “Too right, Jovis.”
    “Too goldy,” Jovis agreed with himself thoughtfully.
    I remembered it was his cannon that had brought down the balloon.
    “Here,” said Jovis to me, “come and sit on my knee, girlie.”
    “No, thank you,” I replied politely.
    They all laughed, and one kindly explained, “No, he’s not asking you, he’s telling you .” This sort of thing had happened now and then. I looked coy and half smiled at Jovis the shooter and would-be beheader.
    “I’d like to, respected Guard, but I have to get back to my lady. You know how it is.”
    “She wont miss you yet.”
    I fluttered sweetly, then said, ‘I’ll just go over and give the horrible prisoner these things she sent him.
    Then, well, maybe… just for a minute. I mean, I’ve always admired the Guards.“
    “Yes,” said Jovis, “all you girls like us Guards.” Pathetic, really—he believed this.
    But the wine was strong, and they were still gargling it down. They were getting extra stupid, having had a head start anyway.
    They waved me off to the Pavilion, Jovis promising me how nice it would be when I got back to him.
    As I reached the Pavilion, a lion roared—right outside the wall, it sounded like.
    The Guards chortled. “Lions re noisy’t‘night.” And one of them slumped forward and rolled off the bench. The other four looked at him, and it was good old Jovis who declared,
    “Carn’old’s‘wine.”
    I turned my back, more confident now, and called softly between the bars of Nemian’s cage. I used his name. The first time I had.
    At first, no answer. And behind me the Guards still toasting one another, not yet out cold.
    Then Nemian spoke to me from the center of the dark.
    “Claidissa?”
    My heart jumped. My heart has no sense, really.
    I coughed, recovered myself, and said, “Princess Jizania sent me.”
    “Claidissa,” said Nemian again.
    So I said fiercely, “Call me Claidi, please.” Because I couldn’t stand it. All this, and him, and this new name of mine.
    There was a clatter and bumping sound. I glanced back. At last .
    Nemian was suddenly right in front of me, up against the bars.
    “God,” said Nemian (another new name—some exclamation they use in the Waste?), “she did it, she drugged them. Its real then. You’re going to get me out. She told me you would. Clever Claidi.” So I undid the lock, and the bars unfolded, and Nemian stepped