An hour later, Diana was released from her chains, her silver caroli flower was returned to her, and she was allowed to heal her brothers, hanging unconscious on their racks. Then the three wizards were released as well, and after one last look at the two soldiers they were led out of the torture chamber and up a flight of steps to the mansion itself.
“You won’t leave them there, will you?” Diana asked one of the soldiers accompanying them.
“Don’t worry, miss,” said the soldier with a grin. “They’ll get a nice, cosy cell, and so long as you all behave yourselves nothing will happen to them.”
“And how long will they stay there, locked up in a tiny cell?” asked Thomas.
“That’s up to his Lordship,” replied the soldier.
They already knew the answer, though. Lord Basil would never let them go. He couldn’t take the risk that they might try to take revenge on him. He would use them for as long as he could and then kill them as soon as the danger they represented outweighed their usefulness. Unless they could find a way to escape, Shaun and Matthew would never leave their cells alive, and none of them would ever return to Tharia.
The flight of stairs rose past the ‘ground’ level of the mansion, the level that contained most of the rest of the city of Kronosia, and went straight up to the first floor; the floor containing all the bedchambers and bathrooms. At the top of the stairs was a door and, going through it, they found themselves in a wide, luxuriously decorated corridor illuminated by glowing globes of marble hanging at intervals from the ceiling. A beautifully patterned carpet covered the floor and paintings depicting tranquil, idyllic scenes of Agglemonian country life hung on the wood paneled walls.
There was a fancifully uniformed houseman waiting for them, and the soldiers turned them over to him before returning the way they'd come. "Welcome to the Konnen mansion," he said, smiling pleasantly. "Your rooms are waiting for you. If you'll follow me?"
He led the way, and the questers followed wordlessly. They had no choice.
The corridor had one fancifully carved wooden door on each side, facing each other, but at its end it opened out into a much larger passage, almost wide enough to be considered a very long room and so long that it clearly ran the entire length of the mansion. Pedestals were set on either side on which the busts of famous historical characters were set along with, they were willing to bet, notable past members of the Konnen family.
The houseman took them along it, strolling unhurriedly, and they passed many other ornate wooden doors, each presumably leading into a bedchamber. They also passed a maid in a pretty blue and white uniform carrying a pile of clean linen who stared at them in surprise as they went past. After they’d gone some distance they came to another smaller side corridor which contained two doors side by side and the houseman opened one of the doors for them, inviting them to precede him in.
They found themselves in one of the most extravagantly luxurious bedchambers they’d ever seen. Only the bedrooms in the shrine of the Sceptre of Samnos exceeded it in comfort and elegance. It was huge, and contained a pair of giant four poster beds separated by a low bedtable, opposite which was a connecting door into the next room. Various cupboards and dressing tables stood against the walls along with a washbasin full of warm, soapy water and a wide variety of soaps, towels and flannels hanging by ropes from the wall beside it. A huge wardrobe stood with its doors wide open revealing a vast quantity of ladies clothing, most of which were furs and silks. An aroma of expensive perfume hung in the air and their feet sank an inch into the pure white, deep pile carpet that covered the whole floor.
“This is the ladies’ room,” explained the houseman, smiling pleasantly at Diana and Lirenna in a way that made Thomas want to scream at him. Did the fool think they were willing guests? "You gentlemen will be staying in the room next door. There is a bellrope beside each bed if you desire anything. Please ring for food as soon as you want to, or if you prefer, Lord Basil has extended a standing invitation for you to join him for any of the day's meals. The next meal is evenfest and will be served in the green room at nine." He indicated a clock ticking away on the sideboard which showed a time of seven fifty. The houseman then bowed slightly and left, wishing them a pleasant stay before closing the door behind him.
They looked around the luxurious room, each of them thinking of the contrast between it and the tiny, bare cells in which Shaun and Matthew would be confined. Finally, Diana broke down in tears and collapsed into a bedside chair. “How can we stay in a room like this when Shaun and Matt are...” She was unable to go on as her entire body was wracked with sobs. Lirenna, also tearful, sat down beside her to take her in her arms, and the cleric hugged her tight.
“We have to, for the time being at least,” replied Thomas. “We have no choice. But we’ll keep our eyes open, learn as much as we can about them. Their lifestyles, their routines. We'll wait for our chance.” It suddenly occurred to him that Lord Basil might be listening in on them, perhaps by means of a listening tube or even with his Ring of ESP, but he decided it didn’t really matter. He must be expecting them to say things like that.
“Do you really think we might be able to rescue them and escape?” asked Diana hopefully, her eyes puffy with tears.
“Anything’s possible,” replied Thomas encouragingly, his heart aching at the sight of the normally irrepressible and optimistic cleric in such a state. “Remember what the Emerald Oracle said. Not even the Gods Themselves know what the future has in store. Remember that you’re a cleric of Caroli and have faith.”
Diana stared at him in astonishment, as if she had indeed forgotten and was unable at first to believe it. “Yes, of course,” she said softly. “You’re right. What am I thinking? Such despair is blasphemous! I must have faith and believe that everything that happens is the will of the Gods.”
She held her caroli flower in both hands, squeezing it tightly as if drawing strength from it, and seemed to come back to life in front of their eyes. She sat upright in the chair and looked around the room again, this time really seeing it as if for the first time. “This is a prison cell, no different from the one Shaun and Matthew are in,” she said, “but we will escape if it is the will of the Gods.”
She suddenly noticed the torn and bloody condition of her wrists, injured while struggling against her manages while her brothers were being tortured. She prayed for healing and watched as the broken skin closed and the blood disappeared. “See?” she said, showing the newly healed skin to the others. “Caroli is still with us. Now give me your hands.”
It took just a moment to heal the minor wounds, but the power of Caroli seemed to heal their spirits as well as their bodies, restoring their hope and optimism and even something of their sense of humour, although humour seemed horribly inappropriate in their present predicament. “Suppose we do escape,” said Jerry. “Where do we go? We can’t get off Kronos.”
“His Lordship has enemies,” replied Lirenna. “Perhaps they’ll take us in.”
“They might be even worse than this lot,” pointed out Jerry. “And even if they’re not, they’re not going to take very kindly to us after we’ve been helping this lot to fight them.”
“They’d understand that we were acting under coercion, surely,” said Thomas. “Especially if we only took their soldiers alive instead of killing them.”
The suspicion that the prisoners might be put to death the moment they were out of their sight began to surface in his mind; the terrible knowledge that would cost him either his life or his principles if he ever allowed himself to face it squarely. His subconscious slammed the lid and sat on it before he could do so. Of course they’ll keep the prisoners alive, he found himself thinking. Of course they will. Lord Basil might be harsh and cruel, but what kind of monster would kill helpless prisoners out of hand? His subconscious mind, which knew the truth very well, made sure he believed it and his mind cleared with relief. They’ll be prisoners for a while, he told himself, but eventually this war will be over and a deal will be worked out allowing everyone to go home again. All we’ll be doing is imprisoning people for a while. That’s all.
“In the meantime, though, we wait, we look and we learn,” said Jerry.
“Right,” agreed Thomas. “Hard though it may be to accept, that’s the only thing we can do at the moment. And now, I suggest we all get a good night’s sleep. It’s been a long day. I know it’ll be hard to think of sleeping while Shaun and Matt are stuck in a tiny, damp dungeon, but we can help them best by staying fresh and alert. Okay?”
The others agreed, and at the mention of sleep they suddenly realised how tired they were. “Don’t go, though, please!” pleaded Lirenna, looking really scared. “Those beds are big enough for two. Di and I can take one and the two of you can take the other. Please!”
“Okay,” agreed Thomas with great relief, as he’d been about to suggest the same thing. He wasn’t going to leave the women alone while there were soldiers like Lokus around, even though the guards didn't seem to be allowed in the mansion itself. “We’ll just pop next door while you have a quick wash.” He indicated the wash basin.
“No, Please!” begged the demi shae. “Not even for just a second! Do you think I’m worried about modesty at a time like this? Turn your backs if you like, but don’t go, please! Not even for a single second.”
Thomas agreed immediately. He’d seldom seen the demi shae this scared in all the time they’d known each other, and he hated the soldiers, and Lord Basil in particular, for creating that fear. They took turns to have a quick wash in the washbasin, therefore, while the others discretely averted their eyes, and then they pulled on dressing gowns while they ate a light meal sent up by a maid in response to their summons. When you're in the mousetrap, Thomas thought as he nibbled half heartedly on the fussily prepared food, you might as well eat the cheese.
He couldn't find the appetite to eat much of it, though, and left most of it on the side of his plate, as did the others, after which they crawled under the sweet smelling silken sheets of their beds and soon fell into a troubled, fitful sleep.