"Brian Daley - Doomfarers of Coramonde" - читать интересную книгу автора (Daley Brian)
The master-of-arms' eyes were glazed with strong drink or drug. While his tone was almost amiable,
the arrow leveled at the Prince's heart was not. Springbuck stood near the roncin and watched the
bowstring as if hypnotized, but Eliatim showed no doubt about his weapon's effectiveness. The
older man's body was limber and relaxed, hand steady, and the string seemed taut.
As Springback shuffled his booted feet on the hard, tractive surface of the Western Tangent,
Eliatim smiled through his stiffly waxed mustache and suddenly lowered the bow, easing tension on
the string. "How is it,"
Of Deaths, Of Departure
29
he asked huskily, "that you never sensed how I anticipated this moment? Long and long I've waited
to put you to death, and send my star into the ascendant."
At this the Prince's stomach knotted with fear and the fist with which he held his reins balled
even more tightly. His fleeting impulse to leap back onto his horse was cut short at Eliatim's
next statement.
"If you try to run I can cut you down before you have both feet in the stirrups. But I do thank
you for saving me a long and tiring chase on horseback, for I fear that my bow cord became rather
wet as I waited for you. I'm grateful that you follow instructions so well and that you quailed at
the sight of my arrow. Now, you see, we can test whether the years I've spent teaching you the
policies of combat were wasted. Let us now weigh your prowess with the sword."
So saying, he hurled the bow and arrow aside and took from its scabbard his long, heavy cavalry
rapier. Springbuck tried to moisten his lips with a dry tongue. A vault to the saddle was out of
the question. He let fall his reins and took his cloak from his shoulders and draped it over his
file:///F|/rah/Brian%20Daley/Daley,%20Brian%20%20-%20The%20Doomfarers%20of%20CoramondeUC.txt
horse's croup. He reluctantly unsheathed Bar, whose grip did not feel slick despite the rain and
his clammy palm. Eliatim's eyes narrowed at Bar's bright aspect.
"That hanger is unknown to me," he said. "From whence does it come? Ah, let it pass. I shall have
a chance to inspect it at my leisure, presently."
He grinned wickedly. "And while I think to tell you, your ill treatment of the Lady Duskwind was
unwarranted. She was no part of our alliance against you. How you found out that Faurbuhl was with
us though, I cannot imagine. Serves him justly, the old dough-pate, that you garroted him; he was
so damnable certain that you trusted him."
Springbuck's mind whirled as he juggled this new information. Faurbuhl a traitor and Duskwind
loyal? He played a gambit to learn more.
"How high do you stand in this, Eliatim? How many are arrayed against me?"
The other threw his head back and gave a short crow of laughter. "How many? Oh you fool! AH, or
almost all!
30
THE DOOMFARERS OF CORAMONDE
Duskwind proved difficult to subvert, but we had little need of her. She's probably been attended
to already. The Court's been weeded carefully, with some stubborn holdouts like Legion-Marshal
Bonesteel exiled to duty on far marches and some, like Hightower, killed." He sighed, then
giggled, and shook his graying head regretfully. "I'm sorry I missed the end of the great High-
tower, but I have business of my own tonight.
"I must say, though, that you were quite clever to kill Faurbuhl and depart while I was gone.
Since he had no opportunity to signal your escape, no one suspected it at first. But when Novanwyn
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