Read Online Leopard in Exile by Andre Norton, Rosemary Edghill - Free Book Online Page B

for the colors for which they were named—Red, Yellow, Violet, Blue—and which were carried
    out in their decoration and appointments, the four rooms were virtually identical. Even at this hour there
    were fresh candles burning on the mantel, and from behind the velvet curtains, the faint sounds of late
    revelry could still be heard on the streets without.
    He supposed that Charteris was waking Misborne as he waited. He doubted Misbourne would be any
    happier to receive this news than Wessex had been to gain it… assuming it were in fact true.
    He drew the Mirror Rose from his pocket and studied it. In the light of the clustered candles, the flaw
    that so resembled a silver rose in the heart of the ruby could be clearly seen. With this and its
    counterparts, Britain had an inviolable code to use in communicating with its politicals on station in Lisbon
    and elsewhere. Without it, they did not. It was bad enough that the secret should be known at all. Worse,
    that it should be compromised.
    The door to the Yellow Parlor opened.
    "My lord will see you now," Charteris said impassively.
    Wessex dropped the quizzing-glass into a pocket and followed Charteris up the curving staircase to the
    first floor of the town house concealed behind the haber-dasher's facade. No doors gave onto the
    corridor save the one at its end. That door was covered in padded red leather, and as always, Charteris
    pushed it open and allowed Wessex to pass through without announcement.
    Also as always, the room was frightfully dim, for Jonathan Milo Arioch de la Forthe, third Baron
    Misbourne, had been born an albino: strong light hurt his eyes, and sunlight blinded him. But these
    disabilities were insignificant in the face of Misborne's formidable intellect, a mind which had placed him
    as the spider in the center of the web that held the Grande Alliance together: the white knight who had
    taken the field against the Black Pope and the prospect of a globe-spanning French empire.
    Wessex forced himself to stand still, waiting for his eyes to adjust. The room was lit by several cobbler's
    lanterns; the candle flames reflected through flasks of spirits, filling the room with a warm, diffuse,
    brandy-scented glow. As his vision cleared, he saw Lord Misbourne seated at his desk. If the Baron had
    been roused from sleep by Wessex's visit, he gave no sign of it, rising to his feet when Wessex took a
    step forward.
    "Your Grace. What business brings you here at such a late hour?" Misbourne asked mildly.
    "This." Wessex stepped forward and laid the Mirror Rose on the desk.
    Misbourne did not touch it. "How did this item come to be in your possession, Your Grace?"
    "I held up Baron Warltawk's coach," Wessex said without further explanation. "I found it when I
    searched him. He gave me to understand that Geoffrey Hanaper was dead, and that Lord Rutledge
    cannot now be found."
    "And did Christian have any suggestion of where we should look for Lord Rutledge?" Misbourne asked,
    using Warltawk's given name. "The other is true, by the way. Mr. Hanaper died three days ago. We have
    been able to keep it secret thus far—with so many visitors in London, I felt it wisest. It is an unfortunate
    matter."
    "Lord Warltawk suggested that the Marquess had taken a repairing lease upon the Continent," Wessex
    said.
    Misbourne sighed, and rubbed his eyes. Endymion Childwall had been the closest thing to a friend that
    Misbourne had permitted himself, Wessex knew. It was the Marquess's own father who had recruited
    Misbourne for the Shadow Game, years ago.
    "Then we have lost him," Misbourne said with a sigh. "He was in Town this morning, but undoubtedly he
    was only awaiting Warltawk in order to flee. By the time I can contact Paris Station he will already have
    gone to ground upon the Continent; we will never take him then. I can only be grateful we have not lost
    this." He picked up the Mirror Rose. "Though I do not know how much use it will be to us once
    Endymion tells