Free Shields Lady by Jayne Castle Page B

be on display the night of the ball. I'm Luri."

                Gryph nodded and crouched down in front of the boy to examine the cage. "The luck of the day to you, Luri. You say this is to be a present for Sariana? It's a scarlet-toe, isn't it?"
                "That's right. Do you think she'll like it? It took me days and days to catch one. I finally found this one in the gardens down by the river."

                Luri held out the gold filigree cage. The small, brilliant red lizard inside bunked its scarlet eyes at Gryph.

                "That's a very handsome scarlet-toe," Gryph said as he admired the lizard. "Uh, do you happen to know whether or not Sariana likes lizards?"

                Luri shook his head impatiently. "She's never had one. In fact, I don't think she's ever had any pets. The people of the eastern provinces are quite strange, you know."

    "So I've heard." Gryph grinned at the boy.

                Luri automatically responded with a wide smile and then curiosity got the better of him. "Are you really a Shield?"

    "I'm a Shield in the same way that you are a Jeweler."

                Luri's chin lifted slightly with pride. "My specialty is going to be gemology. When I'm grown up I will be in charge of buying the uncut stones our craftsmen use in their work."

                "Sounds like a good profession," Gryph said seriously. "Bryer's an expert in fine metals."

    Gryph nodded as he studied the scarlet lizard.

                Luri shifted from one foot to the other, still clutching the cage carefully. His eyes darted-down to the weapon kit attached to Gryph's belt. Then he drew a deep breath and blurted out his next question.
                "Is it true that no one can open a Shield's weapon kit except the Shield himself?" Gryph glanced up and saw the breathless fascination in the boy's eyes. "That's not quite true," he
    explained quietly. "There is one other person who can open a Shield's kit."
                Luri's dark eyes grew wider. "Who?"

                "A Shield's lady can open the kit. She is the only other person on the face of the planet who can unseal the prisma lock."

    "Do you have a lady?" Luri demanded.

                Gryph shook his head. "Not yet." "Are you going to get one?"
    "If my luck holds."

                Luri chewed on his lower lip. "Are you sure you couldn't teach me how to open the kit?" Gryph laughed and rose to his feet. He ruffled the boy's bright blond hair with a friendly hand. "I'm
    afraid not."

                "But if you can't teach me or anyone else how to do it, how will you teach a wife?" "Every social class has its secrets, Luri. You know that. The way we teach our wives to open our
    weapon kits is a Shield secret."

                Luri nodded seriously, well aware of the inviolable laws that protected such secrets. He sought for a way around the problem. "Can you show me what's inside?"

    "Maybe," Gryph said thoughtfully. "Maybe I will do that one of these days when the time is right."
                "Why does the time have to be right?"

    "It just does. That's all."

                "Oh." Luri considered his words and then decided to try another angle. "If you won't show me what's inside the weapon kit will you at least tell me some good tales of bandit fighting?"
                Gryph gave that some thought. "I suppose I've got time for a quick one. Do you know the story of Targyn and the cutthroats of the Cretlin Mountains?"

    "I've never heard that one. Who was Targyn?"

                "He was a very strong and clever Shield," Gryph began with proper gravity. "He killed his first bandit when he was just a little older than you are."

    "All by himself?"

                Gryph nodded. "So the story goes. At any rate, as the years went by he spent more and more time in the