"Mckenna,.Juliet.E.-.Einarinn.01.-.Thief's.Gamble" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dragon Stories)

I saw the shadow of concern cross the lad's freckles. He looked at his boss and something unspoken passed between them. It struck me as a pity I could not get him in a game, he'd lose his breeches with a face like that.
'It was your grandfather's? How do you come to be looking to sell it?' The boss smiled at me in what he clearly thought was encouragement. I giggled: wearing skirts does that to me nowadays.
'Oh it's mine all right,' I lied fluently. 'He gave it to me on his deathbed, for my dowry. I wouldn't sell it but you see, I need to get away from home. I want to sing but my father wants me to marry his partner's son. He's a clothier and fat and boring and only interested in wools and satins. I had to get away.'
Freckle-face's mouth was open and his expression was full of sympathy but the other two looked less impressed. Perhaps I'd laid it on a bit thick; I blame the dress. 'So how much would you give me?' 'What do you think it's worth?' The man in red leaned forward and I took a pace back, his gaze was uncomfortably piercing.
'Um, well, I'm not really sure.' Should I take a low price and get out or show them I knew its real value? 'I'll give you six Marks for it.'
'Caladhrian or Tormalin?' Either way, the offer was a joke.
'Tormalin of course,' he assured me; as if the six extra pennies would make any real difference.
'The reeve always said it was very valuable.' I looked up, wide-eyed and woebegone. 'Isn't it?'
Freckles shifted in his chair and would have spoken but Lanky in the green silenced him with a gesture. The boss sat back and ran a hand over his beard.
'It's worth what I'm willing to pay for it,' he said silkily, 'and that's six Marks, which I feel is more than generous, since I know it's stolen.'
Shit. Now I was looking to get out of there as fast as possible. Should I try and bluff it through? No point, I decided swiftly.
'Fine. Give me the coin and I'll be on my way. I've got a coach to catch.'
Lanky drew a swift pattern in some spilled wine. There was not a soul in the room beyond us four yet the bolts on the door slid shut behind me. A chill went right through me. Double shit.
'I'm sure you've got time for a little chat,' the boss said smoothly, making no move to get any money out. 'Why don't you tell us where you got this? You could tell us your real name too since we're here.'
'I got lucky in a game a few nights back. Some bloke in an inn wagered the tankard; I didn't know it was lifted.'
The skinny one poured me some wine but I ignored him. Catch me drinking with a wizard; not likely.
'Not good enough, I'm afraid.' The boss sipped his wine and wiped his beard. 'This tankard is part of a small but valuable collection belonging to a particularly unpleasant wool merchant in Hawtree. You see, we approached him but his price was too high.'
'Why did you choose this particular piece to steal?' Freckle-face could contain himself no longer and the boss scowled at the interruption. I looked at the windows but did not fancy my chances of getting out fast.
'Relax, we're not going to hurt you.' Lanky pushed the wine towards me again. That was all very well for him to say. I do not trust wizards; not at all. It's not that I believe all the ballads: the immunity to pain, the immense powers, the reading minds and so on. The few I've known have been handy with some spells but as vulnerable as anyone else to a knife in the ribs. As far as I'm concerned, wizards are dangerous because their concerns are exclusively their own. They will be looking for something, travelling somewhere, after someone to hear his news or just to find out who his father was, don't ask me why. Whatever they want, they'll walk over hot coals to do it and if you look handy, they'll lay you down and use you as a footbridge. I gave Lanky a hard stare back.
'We won't but the local Watch might have other ideas.' The boss lifted the tankard. 'He's an influential man. Catching the thief would do the Commander a lot of good.'
I was not going to reply; he had the air of a man making an opening bid and I would bet I had played in more high-stakes games than he had.
The silence lengthened. I could hear the din of the marketplace outside; traders shouting their wares, beasts neighing and carts clattering over the cobbles. Two drunks lurched past the window, giggling helplessly, their shadows falling across us all waiting, motionless. The tension grew so thick you could have stuck a spoon in it and spread it on bread. The boss was impassive, Lanky smiled and Freckles looked frankly miserable.
'Of course, we need not tell the Watch anything.' Lanky grinned and lifted the untouched goblet to me in a toast. The boss scowled at him but went on.
'You see, there are other pieces we would like to acquire whose owners are not keen to sell and I wonder if we could come to some arrangement. You clearly have talents we could use.'
Good, we were down to business. 'Why can't your tame conjuror just magic them out for you?'
'I need to know exactly where they are and to get a sight of them,' Lanky shrugged. 'Can't always be done.'
So, no problem with ethics here. That made things easier.
'What you're saying is work for you or you'll hand me over to the Watch and let them cut my hands off.' Freckles winced and I marked him down as the weak link in the chains they were trying to lock on me.
'Basically, yes.' The boss's stare was getting distinctly unfriendly.
'We'd make it worth your while,' Lanky assured me. 'You'd get a good percentage of the value.'
'Fat lot of use that'll be if I get caught.'
'I'll be able to get you out of any lock-up. Once I know you a little better, I'll be able to track you like a trail-hound.'
That was a thrilling prospect, a wizard on my tail whom I would not be able to shake off.
'What if some outraged noble sticks his sword into me to save the Watch the worry?' I challenged. 'Can you bring me back from Saedrin's lock-up too? I didn't think wizards did resurrections.'
'If you're good enough to find this,' the boss picked up my tankard again, 'you're good enough to take the time and care to not get caught.'
He laced his fingers and cracked his knuckles with a satisfied air which gave me one more reason to dislike him. 'In any case, I don't think you're in any position to argue the point, are you?'
Sadly, I had to agree. We could spend all day trading clever remarks, with Lanky playing friendly house-dog to the boss's nasty street-cur but I was not going to get out of here before they agreed to let me go, whatever wild ideas keeping me in here gave the innkeeper. I could give them a flat refusal but I did not like the idea of being handed over to the Watch. I could probably sob my way to a flogging or the pillory but what if the Commander decided to hang on to me until Turd-breath the would-be rapist got home? I kept my gambling face nailed on but I was cursing myself: that's where revenge gets you, you dozy bitch.
'All right,' I said slowly. I took the wine, drained the goblet and refilled it. That made me feel better. 'So what's your business? You're not just buying and selling with a wizard and a scholar in tow. What's so important that you have to hire a wall-crawler?'
'You need not worry about that. My name is Darni and my companions are Geris and Shivvalan.'
'Shiv, please,' Lanky smiled. 'Your name?'
'Terilla, I told you.' That was my aunt who had married a baker and grown as round as one of his loaves.
Shiv shook his head apologetically. 'You're lying again.'
That could get tiresome; I decided to think very carefully before volunteering any information about myself. Still, they had to call me something. Why not the real thing?
'I'm Livak.' I raised my goblet in an ironic toast and Shiv returned it.
Darni snorted. 'Right, we'll get you a room here. We're moving on tomorrow; in the meantime, keep yourself to yourself.'
I shook my head. 'Sorry, I'm staying at an inn back up the high road. I'll see you in the morning.'
Darni looked at me contemptuously. 'Don't ever make the mistake of thinking I'm stupid.'
'I've got luggage there and a bill to pay,' I snapped back.
'I'll go with her to collect it,' Shiv volunteered and Darni's angry colour subsided.
'While I'm out, you can decide on a proper deal for my services. I'll owe you for not ringing the Watch bell on me over the tankard but don't push it. I want half the value of everything I lift, for a start.'