Deathstalker 01 - Deathstalker

dear. There's someone I want you to meet."
    "fir…" said William.
    Adrienne rounded on him, and he fell back a step. "Did you want to say something, William? No? I didn't think so. You rarely do. Come along, Robert."
    And she took him by the hand in a viselike grip and led him off through the crowd. Robert went along with her. It seemed like the safest thing to do, if he ever wanted his hand back. They passed through the outskirts of the crowd, followed all the way by scandalized whispers, and then through a side door that led into a quiet sitting room decorated with antiques of considerable age and complete hideousness. And there, among the antiques like a single flower in a garden of weeds, sat Letitia Shreck, his bride-to-be. She jumped up the moment they entered, then stood quietly with eyes modestly downcast. She was sixteen years old and very pretty, with hints of a more mature beauty to come. The long white wedding gown made her look very fragile, like a delicate porcelain figure standing alone on a shelf. Robert looked at her and then at Adrienne with something like shock.
    "I know," said Adrienne briskly, "you're not supposed to meet before the ceremony, but they'll overlook it this time rather than have me make a scene in front of everybody. They tend to overlook quite a lot rather than have me make a scene. I can be very good at scenes, when I put my mind to it. Anyway, I brought you two together so you could talk, so get on with it. I'll run interference at the door. You've got about twenty minutes before they come and drag you off to the ceremony, so make the most of them. Just… chat together; you'll be surprised how much you've got in common."
    And with that she disappeared out the door, pulling it firmly shut behind her,
    leaving Robert and Letitia standing looking at each other. It was very quiet in the room. They could hear the murmur of raised voices beyond the closed door, but that might as well have been on another world. For a moment that seemed to last forever, neither of them moved, and then Robert cleared his throat awkwardly.
    "Would you like to sit down, Letitia?"
    "Yes. Thank you."
    They sat down on chairs facing each other, careful to maintain a proper distance between them. Robert searched for something to say that wouldn't make him sound like a complete idiot.
    "Letitia…"
    "Tish."
    "I beg your pardon?"
    "I… prefer to be called Tish. If that's all right."
    "Yes. Of course. Call me Bobby. If you like." They looked right at each other for the first time, and Robert smiled suddenly. 'Tell me, Tish, do you feel as uncomfortable in your outfit as I do in mine?"
    She laughed immediately, then put her hands to her mouth, looking at him to check he wasn't shocked. Reassured by his smile, she lowered her hands and smiled back at him.
    "I hate this dress. If it was any tighter, it would be inside me. I haven't dared to eat or drink anything. I don't think there's anywhere for it to go. And every time I go to the toilet, I have to take two maids with me to unlace everything. I've been going rather a lot. I think it's nerves. And of course if I say anything, or try to complain, they just say it's traditional, as if that
    solved everything."
    "Right!" said Robert as she paused for breath. "If I hear the word tradition one more time, I think I'll scream. I was told I was getting married about six hours ago. How about you?"
    "Same here. I suppose they thought if they gave us too much time to think about it, we'd run away or something."
    "They weren't far wrong," said Robert dryly. "This isn't at all what I thought I'd be doing when I got up this morning. If I had known, I'd have headed for the horizon so fast it would have made their heads spin. Of course, that was before I met you. I thought… well, I don't know what I thought, but you… you're all right."
    "Thanks," said Letitia. "You really know how to compliment a lady, don't you?"
    Robert grinned. "Well, actually, no. I've been a military cadet most of my life.
    It's expected for those in the Family unlikely ever to inherit. You don't get to meet many women in military training. How about you? Did you have anyone special… in your life?"
    "There was someone, but… that's all over now. They found out about us and stopped us seeing each other." Letitia smiled wryly. "He was one of my bodyguards. I'm not allowed out much, either. Not since the Empress started raiding the Families for maids. I knew poor Lindsey, the Shreck's niece who