turned the television off, and then bowed properly to her, and to Aisling, who was on the other side of the room, scrutinising the dresser. âVery pleased to meet you. How may we call you?â
âIâm Julie,â said Julie, âand this is my â this is Aisling.â
The man with the moustache stood up, nodding, and bowed to them both. âTis an honour, indeed. You can call me Jo Maxi. This telly addict hereâs called Prawo Jazdy. Mr Unpronounceable can introduce himself.â
The black man stood up, gave a bow that was by far the most graceful of the three, and said, âYou can call me Abayomiolorunkoje. That means âPeople wanted to humiliate me, but God would not let themâ.â
âI see,â said Julie, though she didnât; not really.
âI was rude, I know, but you must forgive,â said Prawo Jazdy, gesturing to the television. âIs only programme about this city. Is not very good, but is all we have.â
âAnd he wonât let us say a word while heâs watching it,â said Jo Maxi, clapping Prawo Jazdy on the shoulder, ânot even to introduce ourselves to a guest. So donât think weâre always like that. Now, is there anything we can do for yous?â
âYour nameâs not really Jo Maxi, is it?â said Aisling, as she sat down at the kitchen table.
The three men looked at each other with baffled expressions. âOf course not,â said Jo Maxi. âSure, Aislingâs not your real name either, is it?â
âOf course it ââ
âWhat if it was?â said Julie, interrupting Aisling. âIs there some problem with using real names?â
The three men still looked baffled. Abayomiolorunkoje was the first to recover.
âNames are powerful things,â he said. âThere is magic in names. Give someone your true name and you give them power over you. Only the very powerful and the very foolish give out their true names to anyone who asks.â
No prizes for guessing which category weâre in , Julie thought grimly.
âWell, anyway,â said Aisling, smiling sweetly, âmaybe you can explain some things to us. Weâre new here, you see, and to be honest, weâre finding this city a bit hard to understand.â
âYou are not only ones!â said Prawo Jazdy, sitting down at the other end of the table. âIâve lived here five years now and I am still confused.â
Behind his back, Jo Maxi tapped his temple with a knowing expression aimed at Aisling, which prompted a disapproving look from Abayomiolorunkoje. For a disconcerting second, Julie thought there was something odd about his eyes, the way they glittered and refracted the light, almost like a flyâs eyes.
âWhat do yous want to know?â said Jo Maxi, sitting down next to Prawo Jazdy.
âWell â¦â said Julie slowly.
âThe queen,â said Aisling. âWeâve heard that sheâs closed the gates and brought in a curfew. Why?â
Abayomiolorunkoje looked around the room fearfully, then sat down at the table on Jo Maxiâs other side. Julie thought that made it look like Aisling was being interviewed for a job or interrogated by the police, and she didnât like that, so she walked over to the other end of the table and sat down next to her. Aisling gave her a brief grateful look before leaning forward towards the men and saying, âWell. Why? Whatâs going on? Why is the city so quiet? Why is the queen shutting things down? Who is the queen, anyway?â
Jo Maxi took a deep breath. âThis place has always had three queens â three queens for three castles, you see? The Queen-that-was, the Queen-that-is and the Queen-that-will-be. They turn and turn about and every one of them gets a go at being the Queen-that-is. The Queen-that-is dies, you see, and becomes the Queen-that-was, and the Queen-that-will-be becomes the Queen-that-is, and