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child. We live far away from it all. But perhaps if you were to listen to the slaves from the West, you might learn something of value." And with that briefest suggestion, she became a spy for her family. She was nine years old. Slaves from the Western wars who proved to be trustworthy were allowed to tend their captors. Among them were a handful from her father's house. She could still recall the few words of the language she'd acquired. They taught her more, and through them she learned something of her father as well. She feared him. To the child, it seemed that by sending her mother away, he had killed her as surely as if he had plunged a knife into her heart. Years later, when she thought of it, she realized that, in truth, he had. But though her father frightened her, her brothers did not. Radu she despised, because everyone who knew him seemed to. He was overly fastidious, fawning over his captors and making it clear to anyone who would listen that had no desire to ever return to the barbarity of his father's house. In a land where blood ties were so important, his opinions were seen not as a triumph for his captors but as a flaw, strong enough that he was not trusted. Vlad was a different story. Joanna would sometimes see him walking through the palace, always guarded, as if his captors were afraid to leave him alone. She was too young to guess that they feared him. She only saw the worn clothes, the oily hair, the frequently bruised face of a slave. They might never have met had it not been for a night when she attended a state banquet. She sat near the back of the hall with the other children, aunts and uncles who were often far younger than she. At the start of the meal, Vlad and his brother were brought in and introduced to visitors from the West. Vlad was dressed well for the occasion, but had men surrounding him. She recognized them as palace guards, though they tried to look inconspicuous as they led him to the visitors. She watched a quick exchange between the guests and her half brother, then listened in amazement as Mezid-Bey asked the boy to share his table. Vlad looked as starved as the lowest beggar, but declined. She watched as he left the hall so quickly that the guards who tried not to look like guards had to struggle to keep up with him. Curious, she slipped away from her family and followed the group, keeping to the shadows along the walls, darting out the door as quickly as a mouse. Once in the hall, she stood behind a post and listened to the exchange her eavesdropping made all the more difficult by the sudden shift between Turkish and Romanian. "Did he really think I would share food with him?" Vlad responded to the youngest guard's whispered comment. "Keep your voice down, fool!" the head guard said, grabbing his arm as Vlad tried to walk away. Vlad wrenched it free. "I've half a mind to go back inside and " She would have heard more, but his angry words were cut short by the sight of the head guard's sword. "I would not think that wise for yourself or our guests, young prince," he said, his voice low and lethal. As they walked down the hall, she noticed the youngest of the guards pull one of the small meat pies served at the banquet out of his pocket and slip it into Vlad's hand. As it disappeared into his robe, Vlad responded to the kindness with a quick nod. Joanna began to understand why he looked so lean, so tattered. Did her grandfather know that they starved him? Would she dare to ask about it and discover that he had ordered it as punishment? She followed the group, keeping well behind them and in the shadows, where the flickering lamplight did not touch. Under normal circumstances, she would not have tried to meet him, but tonight it seemed that she could at least find out where they kept him, then return to her group without ever being missed. So she went on, down turns in the hall and up a twisting, narrow flight of stairs to a plainer section of the castle, one where the most trusted guards of the family were lodged in comfort but not extravagance. She peeked around the final turn in the hall and saw the far room open and her brother step inside. She prayed that luck would stay with her, and it did. The chief guard and two of his men continued down the hall, leaving the kind guard and another behind. She had not intended to do anything more than what she had already done, but this seemed too fortunate an opportunity. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into their sight and walked confidently toward the pair. "And what brings you here on such a night, young princess?" the kind one asked. "I should like to see Vlad Tepes, please," she replied. He knew why she had come alone. Would he dare to help? She waited while the men looked at each other, saying nothing. "Do you order this, young princess?" he finally asked. She had never ordered anything and did not know if he were joking. "I understand that he is my brother. I would only like to meet him." The look that passed between them was longer this time. "Do you suppose he'll strangle her?" the second guard said. "He has not survived so long in this place by being a fool." The younger guard slipped the bolt, glanced into the room, then let her pass. A single candle lit the space, and there was a stench to the room that told her it was rarely cleaned or aired. He sat at a bare table, lit by a single candle. As soon as he saw her, he relaxed and casually finished the small meal he had been given. "Welcome, Princess Joanna," he finally said, his eyes glittering in the light, intense with interest. "Come closer so I can see you better." She did as he ordered. Thinking of the guard's comment, she stood out of reach. He opened a drawer in the table and pulled out a scrap of parchment. It flared as he held it over the candle flame, then closer to her face, letting it fall to the floor when it burned too close to his fingers. She stepped back quickly to keep from being burned, watching as the ashes died on the bare wood. "I'd heard that we looked much alike. Close up, it's more obvious." he said, commenting no further. She stared at him, trying to see what he saw. The long silence grew oppressive, and when he took a sudden step toward her, she cried out and jumped back. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |