CHAPTER 2
HIDDEN
In the days that followed, Alice remained hidden in a small chamber to the rear of Gaius' suite of rooms. It was small, with just enough room for a pallet of blankets on the floor. There was a window that looked down into the castle courtyard below. As the afternoon sank into golden light, she could hear the sweet voice of Joanna, the wet nurse, and the high pitched squealing laughter of her charge as they played in the courtyard.
The little Prince had recovered quickly with the help of Alice's potion and the spell that strengthened it. After a long sleep, the toddler had awoken ready to eat, and had gained back his strength quickly. No one would have guessed that the child playing in the courtyard below, had been at death's door only three days before.
Sick of hiding in the room, she whispered a spell to obscure her presence at the window. Who would notice a shadow in a window, she told herself. Gaius would warn her of the foolishness of such an action, knowing that an invisibility spell required a substantial amount of energy, but she was sick of the long hours of hiding. She needed a breath of air.
Gaius assured her, he could smuggle her out tonight, but she sighed as she turned her thoughts from the farewell that must inevitably come. It was growing more and more dangerous to remain in Camelot, plying her trade of healer, as news of her cures would flood into the market gossip. The morning of Arthur's recovery, the King had ordered an entire family rounded up and sentenced to banishment, for having been neighbors of an executed sorcerer.
As she mused on these dark tidings, she noted with delight that her invisibility spell had reached full power and her outline was only a faint shadow. She was safe! She moved to the window and looked down.
The Prince and his nurse were still at play. Arthur was standing in front of Joanna, his back to her and his hand held high, as if he brandished a sword at an imaginary foe, that threatened them both.
"It me," he crowed in his biggest toddler voice. "Prince Arthur!" Alice burst into an impromptu giggle that she quickly hushed.
"Go' way, bad dragon!" He looked back at Joanna, his little face wreathed in a fierce smile. "Look, Joanna! I win!"
As Arthur struck at the air, swinging his arms about furiously in an obvious imitation of the knights he adored, the maid laughed with delight, only to have her diminutive defender look back at her with an expression of disgust.
"No laughing!"
Even Alice, invisible at the window, instinctively schooled her face into a more serious mein as the small boy continued his imaginary battle. At last, he thrust his hand downward in a mighty stroke and ran back to Joanna, throwing himself into her arms with an abandon, that only came with complete trust. He kissed her cheek and waved his imaginary sword once more, as if in victory.
"See me win, Joanna?" he queried. The girl hugged him tight as she stood up.
"Yes, I did, my Prince. And I'm sure you will win many such battles when you are king like your father!"
Alice was struck by the blinding smile of delight that shone in the features of the little boy. He gave a shout of joy, his white gold hair shining in the slanting sun. He nuzzled his face into the neck of his wet nurse and gave her another hug. He cuddled into her embrace, laying his head on her shoulder as if he was suddenly tired, and Joanna began to amble towards one of the doorways, softly singing and swaying just a bit as she walked.
To her surprise, Alice noted that Gaius had been privy to the action of the maid and Arthur. She had not seen him standing in the shadows. King Uther was standing next to him, even deeper in the shadows of the covered entrance. There was a look on the King's face that did not bode well, and there was a stillness about Gaius that she knew brought no good news.
The doom that had gripped her heart as the message that had summoned her, suddenly returned. She stepped away from the window, doubly glad of her spell, and sank down on the bed. She closed her eyes in fatigue for a moment, when she heard the door to the outer chamber open. There were heavy footsteps, along with Gaius' lighter tread.
"Something must be done, Gaius!"
Fear gripped Alice even deeper and she held her breath, shrinking into the shadows of her hiding place. It was the King.
"How will we ever win against this plague of magic?" There was a note of despair in the angry voice she had identified as Uther's.
"It confronts me at every turn. It stole my wife. It almost stole my son."
"I have told you, Sire, Prince Arthur's illness did not come of magic. It was a virulent lung infection, and I have seen many children with this illness."
It came on too suddenly," said the King in a lower tone, almost as if he spoke to himself. "I still remember…" Here the King cut himself off, "I know it in my heart, Gaius."
"The child is well now, Sire, as you saw yourself."
"Yes," he said with a spark of pride. "My Arthur is a born fighter! He is a handsome lad, is he not?" She could feel Gaius' indulgent smile.
After a beat, the King continued. "And it's high time, he left his wet nurse.
"Sire, his second birthday was only three months ago…."
The King interrupted in such a tone of anger that Alice pressed deeper into the darkness.
"You need not remind me of that day! I know exactly how old the Prince is. It was the day I fought his uncle. "
"I merely was trying to tell you my lord, that Prince Arthur is still quite young."
"Time for him to grow up, then." Uther paced again. "Let him have a servant to tend to his needs in the nursery and I will see to it, that he spends more time among my knights and begins his education. Even you can see the boy was born to the sword, a true warrior. If Arthur is to be King after me, he will need to be strong. Best to teach him to be a man now and dispense with the nursemaid."
"He is a bright boy, Sire, but he will take to instruction better when he is closer to three or perhaps, four. He needs a bit more time to grow up."
The King paused and Alice took a breath.
"He will be King after me, Gaius! I must make him into a ruler who can hold Camelot against the constant evil tide of magic that threatens us. Do you think that magic will disappear from the land when I am gone?" There was no answer.
" It will attack anew, and with a renewed fury. Arthur must be ready to defeat it. Let him begin his training now."
There was silence again, but her heart sank as she heard Gaius answer.
"Yes, Sire."
There was defeat in her lover's voice, and she wondered, as she had many times before, how he could bear to stay by the side of this King.
Uther was evidently pacing, his booted feet ringing on the stones of the floor. She could see his moving shadow beneath the door. The nearness of her danger paralyzed her. Uther paused.
"You blame me for refusing to see my son." The monarch's voice was soft. "But you could never understand!" Here Uther paused as if he could not find the words. His voice was harsh when he spoke again." No king can build a kingdom without the surety of an heir. I needed a son for Camelot! But I never bargained the price that was paid. Ygraine…How could I know that his birth would bring me such grief and such joy? He is everything Ygraine and I dreamed he would be! He is the miracle we hoped for, and yet…"
The kings footsteps took him away from the door and towards the fire. Alice leaned forward, mesmerized by the scene she heard unfolding.
"And yet, when I look at him, Gaius," said Uther. He took a sudden breath. "When I look at him I remember, and I cannot bear it. " His voice was rough with tears. "He has her eyes, her coloring! Everything about him reminds me of the price we paid for his life. There are days I cannot bear the pain of looking at him, at everything that I lost , everything that might have been…" His voice trailed off and the King got up and began to pace again. "Magic killed her."
"You were warned of the cost," the physician said quietly.
"Nimueh and her lies! Speaking in riddles and half-truths until no one could see the truth of it. She tricked my Ygraine. She lied to me!"
Gaius murmured something, but Alice could not concentrate on the words. In such close proximity, and in a state of such high emotion, she glimpsed her lover's unguarded thoughts and they shocked her. She could not deny the image she caught from Gaius. The Queen had known the price of Arthur's getting. She paid the price willingly.
In her glimpse of Gaius' memory, Ygraine was standing by a window, her face turned towards the physician. The knowledge of her sacrifice was clear in the proud set of her head, and in every line of her body, for she bore herself like a warrior. It was in her incandescent smile as she caressed her pregnant belly. It was in the tears that stained her face. Gaius' heart still wept for the gallant, tender Ygraine. Only Uther had been blind to her sacrifice.
There was a heavy silence between the two men.
"Arthur must never know," the king said at last. "He must be kept safe from the taint of magic. He must never know the price of his birth, nor should he know the heritage of magic that runs in his veins from his mother's family." He hardly paused as he continued. "He will be a king over a land free of sorcery." His footsteps echoed a bit as he advanced upon the physician. There was a palpable threat in his tone, as he hissed his final words. "You may remain in Camelot, as I promised you, but I hold you to your oath, Gaius."
The king spun and left, the door closing with a huge bang as she heard her lover exhale. She edged open the door.
"Alice," he said, immeasurable sorrow in his eyes.
Her heart was silent, for in his eyes she saw pain and separation and longing. She knew somehow that all their dreams of a life together were ended, as they gazed at each other. She ran to him, folding herself tight against his chest. His arm tightened around her and for just one moment, she pretended she was safe. He spoke in a hoarse whisper.
"Your name is on the list for execution."
