WithTheDuke
Tasha takes a ride - with the Duke - Missing Conversation "Now," he said, "you can beguile the journey by telling me all about yourself, Miss Minobee." "Oh, what is there to tell?" Tasha demurred. Yet she couldn't help fill the silence, as she admitted, "My parents sent me into shadow to... mature. I am fully prepared to do my duty for my family and my house, sir." "How very commendable," purred the Duke. "And what do you consider that duty to be?" "Oh, what is best for my house... and best for Chaos, of course." She nodded enthusiastically. "Isn't that right?" She had studied very hard and was sure she had answered that correctly.
"Oh, what is best for my house... and best for Chaos, of course." She nodded enthusiastically. "Isn't that right?" She had studied very hard and was sure she had answered that correctly. She felt approval radiate from the Duke, she went on, "Which is why I was very concerned that Mother thought it best for me to come to Amber. I don't know what service I can be to Minobee and Chaos so far from home." "I see," he said. "And have you not been told your duty is? To enrapture the King? Or does Minobee have another purpose here in Amber? We are old allies, you know, your house and mine - and we could work together." Tasha blushed and cast her eyes down, "Mother mentioned the King... but I think she would have been just as pleased if I had found another suitable mate... perhaps in Lord Mandor. She spoke quite highly of him. But from what your neice, Tear, told me, I do not know if Mother has his full measure. Tear seems very disillusioned with Lord Mandor...." "And quite correctly," said the Duke. "He's a dangerous man ... but not so dangerous as I am. Fortunately, Lady Tasha, you and I are ranged on the same side, aren't we? The side of Chaos." Her eyes glinted yellowly in the half light. "Of course! I am all for Chaos!" Her teeth, when she smiled were a bit sharper than were humanly possible. The Duke smiled at her approvingly. "And what, Lady Tasha, should be the fate of those who betray Chaos?" Her eyes widened innocently, "A Chaosian betraying Chaos? How could one? Certainly you can't suggest someone would do such a thing! That is... unthinkable! Unpardonable!" She sat forward in indignant anger. The Duke nodded slowly. "So think I. But the Emperor has charged me with a great task - to find out those enemies of Chaos, and to bring them to justice." His voice lowered. yes more seductive. "Would you help me, sweet Lady Tasha?" "Help you?" She practically bounced with excitement, "Help you carry out a great task for... the Emperor?" She nodded, her chest swelling, "Of course!" She looked positively delighted, though she tried to hide it behind what she perceived as a great show of dignified importance. "What may I do to serve the Emperor?" "By watching," he said. "By listening and learning - and then telling me of anyone who speaks against Chaos or against me, the Emperor's chosen representative. We are in a dangerous place, Lady Tasha, surrounded by enemies - even though they may pretend to be our friends. And the worst of it is ... there are Chaosians who help and support the enemy." Tasha was appalled that individuals of Chaos would do such a thing. She had been well instructed in duty and responsibility. She would not let the Duke... or her Emperor... down. Coming to that conclusion, Tasha nodded vigorously, "Yes, I can do that! I can listen... I have very good hearing." She smiled and her teeth again glittered in the half-light. "How should I contact you if I learn anything you may need to know?" He reached into his jacket. "Let me give you a trump," he said. "A very special trump ... " Tasha innocently took the trump, being familiar with trumps, and gazed at it. She gasped as she felt a power from it, unlike any she had felt before. Her body froze and she was unable to lower the trump or tear her gaze away. She felt a darkness slither into her mind, a slimy presence that settled into a recess just out of reach of her thoughts. As it settled, she felt herself melting, as if the ice her body had become turned into a soft clay to be molded to the Duke's liking. She shivered under the caress of the power. "There," his voice said softly, and his arm slipped around her, supporting her. "Now you are mine, my wild and beautiful Lady Tasha ... mine as you come to learn your true nature ... " His voice was lulling her almost into a sleep ... "Of course," he said. "Of course, my dear. And now we're here. Why don't you go in and find your friend, and tell her what a lovely surprise you have for her ... her old uncle has come to visit." He smiled, and stroked his finger gently over her cheek once more. Which might have distracted her from wondering just how the carriage had arrived so rapidly, even as the clouds of black mist that had surrounded it began to dissipate. |
