The Truth-Teller's Tale by Sharon Shinn Page A

there were powers that could not be ignored. “It seems I must go,” he said, digging into his pocket and pulling out a few scraps of paper. “The passes. I hope you will use them.” He bowed again, kissed his hands to me, and with incomparable grace skipped down the bleachers and back onto the stage.
    Well. I could not help a sigh.
    â€œWhat a wonderful night,” I said, as Adele and I more cautiously made our way out of the stands. “And didn’t you think Edgar was just the handsomest man?”
    â€œIndeed I did,” she agreed.
    â€œAnd charming?”
    â€œHe has so much charm it’s criminal,” she said.
    â€œAnd he’s a very fine actor, too,” I added. “Even in such a silly play. I wonder what the historical play is like. More serious, I would suppose. I wish I could see him in that.”
    â€œYou might be able to get away one night.”
    â€œYes, but I couldn’t go alone!”
    â€œI’m sure Roelynn would find a way to join you.”
    Oh, yes, Roelynn would be the perfect companion for a trip to the theater to swoon over a dashing young actor. But. “Yes, but Roelynn is so much more beautiful than I am! And wealthy and delightful. What if Edgar liked her more than he liked me?”
    Adele smiled. “I imagine Edgar meets many young women at least as delightful as Roelynn on a pretty regular basis. If you can’t feel easy introducing him to your friend while you’re standing there watching, you could hardly relax a moment once he was out of your sight meeting fetching young women all over the kingdom.”
    That made me frown. I did not like the picture she conjured up of Edgar going from town to town, dallying with all the prettiest girls. Not that I didn’t realize it was true. I just didn’t like to think about it. “Well, maybe I won’t take Roelynn,” I said a little childishly.
    â€œOh, why not? Isn’t she all caught up in some intrigue of her own right now? The sailor Micah introduced her to—the one who’s working on one of her father’s ships?”
    I cheered up instantly. “Yes! She talked about him for hours last time we saw her. She wouldn’t be interested in Edgar. Anyway, Edgar wouldn’t be interested in her. I mean, he’s not even interested in me, really. He’s just flirting. It doesn’t mean anything.”
    â€œIt means he finds you attractive,” she said. “That’s always nice to know.”
    â€œYes, and isn’t he just the handsomest man?” I said again. I went through all the adjectives one more time as we walked down the dark and mostly empty streets of Merendon. Adele agreed to them all: charming and entertaining and talented and worldly. And just as we’d rounded the corner on our street, and the inn with all its lighted windows was only a block away, I said, “And you really liked him, didn’t you?” and she said, “Yes, I did.”
    And I stopped dead and peered at her in the dark because I could tell she was lying.
    She stared back at me, her face impassive, and neither of us spoke for at least a minute. And then I said, in a much different tone of voice, “Why don’t you like him?”
    She looked as if she was considering another lie, but then sort of shrugged and gave it up. “Because he’s handsome and charming and delightful, and I think he’s probably the most faithless man in the kingdom. And I don’t know why he would find it amusing to romance a fifteen-year-old girl, when he’s obviously twenty-five or more. I suspect his motives and distrust his honor.” She shrugged again.
    I was absolutely furious. “How can you say such terrible things? You don’t know anything about him! He could be the kindest man in the world! You don’t like him because he’s an actor—and you’re a snob, you’re like Mother and Father and even