"doyle, deborah - mcdonald, james d - circle of magic 02 - The Secret of The Tower" - читать интересную книгу автора (Doyle Debra)

from using
steel
. But if I
knock him down,
his friends
will probably kill me.
A boot hit Randal in the knee. He
collapsed, and this time he stayed on the ground. He
rolled into a ball on the packed dirt, hoping
to protect himself from serious injury while the group of
knights worked off their bad temper.
The next kick did not land. Instead, a deep and
somehow familiar voice called out, "Let him go."
I've heard that voice somewhere,
thought Randal. So, it seemed, had the ones who'd
been bullying
him. He sensed them drawing back away from him, and
then heard one of them-the young knight who had started the
game-ask in a surly tone, "Who dares command
me?"
"Sir Walter of Doun," said the newcomer. "Who
asks?"
"Sir Reginald de Haul Desert," said the first
knight stiffly, like a dog backing off from its prey
when it sees the pack leader coming. "I have
heard of you, sir."
And so have I,
thought Randal miserably, pressing his head into his
knees where he lay in the dust of the inn yard. His
cousin Walter was the last person in Brecelande he
wanted to see at the moment. Even
getting kicked senseless by Reginald and his friends would
have been preferable.
"And I have heard of you, sir." Walter's voice
was courteous, but unyielding.
There was a pause, and then another voice from the
circle around Randal said, "This one isn't worth
dirtying my boots on. I'm going back
inside."
From the sounds, Randal knew that the others had left with
him. Walter spoke again out of the darkness above
Randal.
"Here, now, boy. Are you hurt?"
Randal stayed curled up on the ground and shook his
head. Maybe his cousin would go away. But no ...
Lord Alyen and Sir Palamon had always taught that
a true knight took the less fortunate under his
protection, and Walter seemed intent on living up
to the ideal.