Page 30 of Feathered Thief

“Yes. So, you did see her?”

“You say she is tall for a girl her age?”

“Yes. About this tall.” Kazik approximated her height with one hand. “And very pretty.”

“Oh.” The mage cleared his throat. “Yesterday afternoon, when I first arrived at the grand duke’s castle, I sensed unusual magic emanating from unlawful containment spells concealed on the property. I made good use of their contents—a captive golden horse and golden bird actually volunteered to take part in my Kingdom of Gold Curse.”

“I know them,” Kazik said. “They were captives?”

“Yes, and I also discovered an orchard of quite extraordinary golden-apple trees.”

“At Mnisztwo Castle??” Kazik scoffed. “I’ve never seen any golden-apple trees.”

“The orchard was inside another containment spell. I would guess the duke’s been trading bushels of golden apples for political favors or treasures on the covert market. Your father has, or maybehad, quite the collection.”

“But about Helena . . .” Kazik continued his tale: “After the melee ended, I promised to meet her, but you already know my father delayed me for hours. Did you happen to see her in the gardens behind the castle?” He gave his head a shake. “My father tried to break our betrothal. What if she thinks I don’t care about her anymore?”

A strange expression spread across Bogumil’s face. “Break betrothal— Oh! Ohhhh-eeeee-noooo!” Clutching his head with both hands, he blew out quick breaths, pacing back and forth. “Imayhave pursued a certain action with undue haste . . .” Speaking the words seemed to cause him pain.

“What did you do?” Kazik demanded.

“Well, you see, when I discovered the orchard, there was a weeping maiden in a blue gown clinging to one of those golden-apple trees. When she told me of her young man’s betrayal in love, I kindly transported the poor girl and the tree that sheltered her to a kingdom where her heart would be safe, as any good fairy-godfather would do. She might even marry a handsome prince there.”

“You transported—! I never betrayed her!Never!” Panic and fury roared through Kazik. “Sending her away was your idea offixingthings? Bring her back! Where is she? When did you send her? She must be terrified!”

Bogumil raised both hands. “Oh no, never fear! You see, I blocked her painful past. She is peaceful and happy in a land where everyone is diligent, honest, and good. I was raised there.”Bogumil spoke with nostalgic pride and a hint of defensiveness. “She will thrive in that place, and so will the tree.”

Kazik managed to speak through his clenched teeth: “You . . . blocked . . . hermemories?”

“It was the only way to relieve her sadness. How was I to guess that such a disheveled damsel was a princess? Now you must take her place.”

“I—Whaaaat?” Kazik’s voice slid up an octave or two.

“You see, my curse-breaking puzzle is, as I mentioned earlier, mapped around three golden treasures—one planted at each vassalage of Ostrów. Since Princess Helena is no longer available to be the third treasure—the golden princess, of course—it is obvious thatyoumust take her place. It’s a shame that your hair is coppery, not golden, but one must make do in a pinch.”

Much though Kazik wanted to throttle the mage, he simply stared at him.

Bogumil stared back.

“You detect no weakness in this plan?” Kazik asked, tucking his clenched fists behind his back while drawing elemental magic into his core.

“Only you and I will know,” Bogumil explained, “that the ‘beautiful princess’ trapped in Castle Valga is really a prince. Once an adventurer arrives here, it will be too late for him to turn back. The curse will break as soon as some hero in the land follows all the rules to the letter.”

Kazik struggled to makesense of this. “You failed to specify a sleepingprincessin your curse?”

Bogumil shrugged. “It won’t matter. The point of this entire curse is to teach the wicked grand duke—your father—a lesson as a warning to other greedy magic-hoarders worldwide. Now, I must complete my assignment by coordinating the final feat.” He paused, frowning. “Epic curses frequently involve loose endsthat refuse to be neatly tied off.” He gave Kazik a disapproving glance.

Kazik shook his head while completing his invisible shield. “I prefer to tie my own knots, thanks. If some idiot adventurer mistakes me for a princess to kiss, I’ll soon teach him otherwise.”

Bogumil slowly paced away, then back again. “Your rescuer must followallthe rules to awaken this castle’s denizens. If you don’t allow yourself to be kissed—” In a flash, the fay mage underhanded a powerful spell at Kazik, who dissolved it, then tackled and pinned the fay mage in a wrestling hold augmented with magic. While Bogumil howled, Kazik demanded, “Submit? No more curses or spells? No lies?”

“I submit!” the mage groaned. “Now let me go, and I will try to help you, even though you may have ruined everything.” He sounded petulant, but his promise was genuine.

After releasing the mage, Kazik kept his guard up. “I will not allow any fool to kiss me. Send Princess Helena back here. I’ll accept any number of kisses from her.”

Bogumil scowled but nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll do what the rules allow, but I cannot force her or anyone else to choose wisely. The Magic Council never allows cheating. Princess Helena’s free will is involved, which complicates things, and heroic feats are tricky. I am honor bound to do everything possible to promote the land’s wellbeing and to encourage all greedy lords and kings to repent and do good.” Cynicism sharpened his voice and eyes. “If such a change is possible.”

Apart from King Ryszard, Kazik shared that doubt. “So, what next?” he asked.

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