Bedlam Boyz(52)

"Come with me, girl," she said, abruptly turning and walking away. Kayla wondered whether she should follow, then saw the guy in the red cap watching her with eyes that burned. She headed quickly down the hallway to catch up with the woman.

Silently, they walked up a crumbling stone staircase, down shadowed hallways. What a dump, Kayla thought. This isn't how I imagined a faerie castle would look. I wonder why they've let it turn into this mess?

"Once this was a lovely hall," the woman said, as if answering Kayla's unspoken question. "Once this was one of the finest castles of the Unseelie, gold and silver and glittering with magic. Once I was Lady Catt of the Unseelie Court, the Queen's right-hand confidante, wearing fine silks and jewels in our moonlight dances, leading our Host to war against the Seelie. Now that is no more."

I'm surprised she's talking to me like I'm a real person! Kayla thought. "What happened?" she asked.

Catt didn't answer. She shoved at a closed wooden door, which creaked open slowly. Inside was a small room, not much different from a prison cell. There was only a cot with blankets laid over it, what looked like a large rack for armor, and a standing closet. Ignoring Kayla, Catt undressed quickly, dropping her cloak and pieces of armor on the floor.

Kayla bent to look at it curiously, then blinked. It's not steel . . . it's solid silver! She turned, to see Catt lifting a lovely blue and silver gown from the closet, slipping it over her thin shoulders. Her very thin shoulders. I'd think the lady was sick, she's so thin, but all these people look like that. . . . "Hey, this is silver, isn't it? That's worth a lot."

"Is it worth much in the human realms?" the elf-woman asked, lacing the front of the gown. "Silver is not very rare here in the Unseelie lands." She fastened on the gown's long sleeves with ribbon ties, and Kayla saw that the gown wasn't as beautiful as she'd thought—it was faded, marked with old stains, obviously old and worn. "I've thought of visiting the human worlds," Catt continued as she smoothed the heavy skirts of the dress. "To see the realm of folk who live without true sorcery, building their tall towers and mechanical magics."

"Why don't you go there?" Kayla asked.

"Only those who are banished can go to the human lands. That is by the Queen's command. But I am curious about them." She shook her head. "Come. It is time to bring you before the Queen. I wish I could delay that longer, because I have many questions to ask about the human lands, but the Queen will already be impatient."

"Hey, you can ask me those questions after I talk with her, right?"

Catt didn't answer.

This doesn't sound very good, Kayla thought, following Catt down the stairs and through the rabbit warren of twisty hallways. I guess I could try to run away from her, get out of here, but where would I go? I don't know this place, don't know anything about how to get home from here. . . .

As they walked down a last curved flight of narrow stairs, hands suddenly grabbed Kayla and pulled her away from Catt. Laughing, the Unseelie courtiers, garbed in faded velvets and silks, dragged Kayla out into the huge hall. They spun and pushed her around, until all she could see was a blur of colors, red and blue and gold and green, and their laughing, cruel faces. As they shoved her forward, she had one glimpse of a huge room with vaulted stone ceilings and giant fire pits along the sides of the room, filled with glowing coals. Stained and torn tapestries hung from the walls, which were black with soot and filth. Half-seen shadows flitted through the darkness of the hall behind the waiting crowd of brilliantly clothed elves.

The mass of people parted to admit her and her captors, revealing a silver-haired old woman with eyes the color of ice, seated upon a carved stone chair. A long velvet gown the color of blood draped her thin figure, and two silent guards stood on either side of her, so motionless that they could've been carved from stone.

"So what have you brought me, my dear Catt?" the old Queen asked in a thin voice, her eyes not wavering from Kayla.

Catt stepped forward and knelt gracefully. "A human child of magic, a gift to your Majesty,"

"Indeed," the Unseelie Queen said thoughtfully. "And do you have nothing to say for yourself, human child?" she asked, gazing at Kayla with her colorless eyes. "Or are you so awed by the glory of the Unseelie Court that you have been struck dumb?"

The courtiers tittered at the remark, and Kayla agreed with them. This place was shabby, not anything like what she'd imagined a queen's court would be.

"I'm not dumb," Kayla said, "And besides, this is only a dream. I don't believe in you!"

The elves laughed.