The guard took Tiuri and Piak into a large hall, with a red-and-white tiled floor and painted pillars. At the other end of the room, a beautifully carved wooden staircase led up to another floor.
Piak gasped in admiration as he looked around the hall.
Shields and crossed swords hung from each of the pillars and there was a mosaic of coloured stones adorning the ceiling.
Piak whispered to Tiuri, “This mayor must be really rich.”
“If the young gentlemen would be so kind as to wait here,” said the guard. He walked across the tiled floor and headed up the magnificent staircase, passing a group of a dozen guards in armour, who came clanking down the steps. They raised their spears in greeting to Tiuri and Piak, and headed outside. Two more guards came in through a side door and one of them spoke to Tiuri, “Good afternoon. The mayor will be with you shortly.” The guards then headed upstairs, but stopped halfway, on the landing.
“Just look at this place,” Piak whispered. “Is King Dagonaut’s castle this grand? Does he have a court full of knights and warriors?” He walked around, admiring the hall, stopping here and there to study the shields on the pillars.
Tiuri wanted to follow Piak, but he stayed where he was, because he could see two more men coming downstairs and he suspected that the first of the two was the mayor. He was an imposing middle-aged man, dressed in long red robes with a fur trim and with a gold chain around his neck. Behind him came a pale young man, dressed in black.
Tiuri whispered urgently, “Piak!” But Piak had disappeared behind the pillars on the far side of the hall and seemed not to have heard him.
The man in the robes and chain came over to Tiuri with a broad smile. “Welcome to my fair city of Dangria!” he boomed.
Tiuri bowed. “My thanks, my lord mayor.”
The mayor shook Tiuri by the hand. “Yes, welcome, welcome, young man,” he said. “You must stay here! As my guest!”
The mayor looked around the hall. “I was told I had two guests to greet,” he said.
“Yes, my friend Piak’s here, too,” Tiuri replied. “He’s just admiring the hall. Shall I fetch him?”
“Oh, let him look around,” smiled the mayor. “After all, that is one of the reasons I invited you both here. There are so many things I would like to show you.” He turned to the young man standing beside him. “My scribe,” he said, “will ensure that a good room is provided for the two of you, here at the town hall.”
“That is most kind of you, my lord mayor,” said Tiuri. “And I appreciate this warm welcome. However, my friend and I are just simple travellers. We would dearly love to see more of your fine city, but sadly we are unable to remain here for long.”
“Oh, I am sure you can spare us a couple of days.”
“My regrets,” replied Tiuri. “Unfortunately, we cannot.”
At that point, Piak returned. He looked rather agitated, but Tiuri only realized that later.
“Aha, and here is your friend,” said the mayor. “Welcome, welcome. I hear you’ve been admiring our town hall.”
Piak gave the mayor a clumsy bow. “Yes, my lord mayor. It’s very beautiful.”
“You really should visit the rooms upstairs while you are here. I am sure you must have enough time for that. Come with me.”
“But we have to meet Ardoc,” said Piak, taking a step backwards. “I… I’ve left some of my things with him.”
“I shall have them fetched,” said the mayor. He raised his hand. It was a signal for the two guards to come downstairs from the landing.
“We would be very happy to accept your kind offer,” said Tiuri. “But, as I have said, I am afraid we cannot stay for long.”
“Why the hurry?” asked the mayor, who was now standing very close to Tiuri. “I really would be very interested to hear some news from the east.”
Tiuri was starting to feel uneasy. “We are just boys from the mountains, my lord mayor,” he said. “We have no interesting stories to tell.”
The mayor tapped Tiuri on the chest with a long finger. “Oh, but I am sure you must have some news from the east for me,” he said, almost whispering. “I really must insist that you spend a few days here with me.”
“I am very sorry, but that is out of the question,” said Tiuri.
“No, that just will not do. You must stay. There is a friend of mine… He is not here right now, but he is most keen to speak to you.”
Tiuri’s vague feeling of alarm was rapidly becoming a strong suspicion. “A friend, you say? I am afraid I don’t understand. Who exactly is this friend?”
The mayor smiled. “You will find out soon enough,” he said. “Now come along, young man.”
The guards came to stand beside Tiuri. They, too, had smiles on their faces, but their hands were resting on the hilts of their swords. Tiuri was startled to see more armed men appearing between the pillars. He had no time to decide what to do, because then a yell from Piak rang through the hall. He had slipped away and was standing by the door, clutching his hands up to his chest as if he were holding something important.
“Hey, Tiuri!” Piak shouted. “Don’t worry! I’ve got it here! I’ll deliver it! I’ll deliver it!” And then he turned, pulled the door open and flew outside.
After that, everything happened very quickly. The mayor’s welcoming smile became a snarl. “Stop that boy!” he roared. “Grab him! Stop him now!”
The guards ran for the door and disappeared after Piak. The mayor followed them. He hesitated at the door and glared back at Tiuri, but then dashed outside. The door slammed behind him.
Tiuri raced to the exit, but, as he opened the door, two spears came thrusting at him and angry voices ordered him to stay where he was. Then the door banged in his face. He could hear a commotion on the other side, but he had no idea what was happening.
“Oh, Piak!” he sighed, his voice trembling.
Piak had scented danger, so he had pretended he was carrying the letter. The trick had worked, but what was going to happen to him? Should Tiuri tell someone that he, not Piak, was the one who had the letter that the mayor seemed so interested in? No, he couldn’t do that. He could never reveal where the letter was. The fate of a kingdom might depend on it. He knew that he had to make use of the chance Piak had given him.
Tiuri ran to the side door, but he could hear voices through that one too. He couldn’t go outside; the mayor was sure to have the building surrounded. So he ran through the hall and raced up the staircase, two steps at a time, nearly knocking over the mayor’s scribe as he went. He ended up in a large room with doors on both sides, and chose one at random. He found himself running through more rooms and corridors. Behind him, he heard footsteps, and a voice shouted, “Stop that boy! Do not allow him to leave the building!”
As Tiuri ran through the armoury, he stopped to grab a bow and a quiver of arrows. Then he dashed up another staircase. On the next floor, he allowed himself a moment to pause and look out through a window.
He could see the marketplace below, and thought he could make out some kind of disturbance among the townsfolk. Yes, there came the mayor’s guards. Four, six, ten… no, there must have been twenty of them! Were they looking for Piak? Tiuri prayed that Piak had escaped. More noises were coming from below, so Tiuri hurried onwards, as quietly as he could. He knew what he had to do.
He raced up another flight of stairs, through yet another exquisitely decorated room, down more corridors and through various chambers and halls until, finally, he entered a room with two big doors and tall, narrow windows. That was where he would make his stand. Tiuri knew he was going to have to put his plan into action soon. The mayor’s men were bound to find him.
He was in luck. The door he had come through had a key in its lock. He quickly turned it and bolted the door for good measure. The second door led to a small chamber with no other exits, so he left that one open. Then he pushed a table in front of the main door, thinking to himself, I hope it takes them a while to find me. And, when they do, they’re going to have a devil of a job getting in here!
Choosing a spot where he could keep an eye on both the door and the windows, Tiuri knelt down, keeping the bow and arrows within easy reach. Then he took out the letter.
The time had come. He had to read the letter and destroy it, so that his enemy would never discover its secrets.