"Kate Forsyth - Eileanan 05 - The Skull Of The World" - читать интересную книгу автора (Forsyth Kate)

She rolled over and hid her face in her arms. "In these mild waters? You said yourself it would be hard to
drown here."

"There are always dangers, as you yourself said. We could make them think we had been eaten by
carnivorous coral . . ."

"You know your father would never be satisfied unless he saw your body himself," Fand replied wearily.
"You know he needs as many fully trained warriors as possible for the assault against the tailless humans.
Besides, you are still his son. He would tell the priestesses to find us and they would look through their
far-seeing mirrors and then indeed all would be lost. You would only be beaten and humiliated. They
would kill me."

Nila's hand dropped, defeated. "I wish . . ." he began but Fand sat up, shaking back her long hair. "It is
no use, Nila," she said flatly. "You are a royal prince and I am nothing. Soon the King will remember my
existence and think to give me away to one of his cronies who does not care that I am a mere halfbreed.
He may even take me for himself. He has always had a taste for human flesh, you know that, and the
younger the better. And when that happens, I shall no longer kick and kick to keep my head above
water but just let myself drift down into Jor's cold embrace. And you will fight at your father's side and be
given other women as prizes and in time you will forget your old playmate and lover. Do you think I do
not know that is how it must be?"

Nila protested, catching her hands and trying to kiss her, but Fand held him off, her eyes wet with defiant
tears. "I do not want you to pretend we can ' ever be together forever and happy," she said. "I want what
is between us to be always true and real. No pretense. No lies. Did we not promise each other that, right
at the very beginning?"

"But I want you forever and happy," Nila said. "I'm only the seventeenth son, my father does not careтАФ"

"Do not be so naive," she interrupted coldly, scrambling to her feet and brushing the sand from her arms.
"He may not care for you but he is proud of his virility and of his sons' strength and skill. And remember
what happened to your grandfather. Your father was the thirteenth son and yet he inherited after all your
uncles were killed in the last disastrous attack on the land-hugging humans. Whole families were wiped
out then and the Fairgean spent decades fighting to survive at all. His memories of that are as fresh as if
the battle happened yesterday."

Nila was silent. He knew what Fand said was true. His fingers closed upon the black pearl and he said
passionately, "I wish they all would die! Then I would be king and I could make you my queen and then
we could be together forever and happy. I hate my father!"

"Be careful what you say," Fand said quietly. "You know the priestesses watch. Often I feel their eyes
upon me. Come, we have been here too long. I must get back to the pod."

Kneeling by her side, he seized her hand, pressing the black pearl into her palm. "Can you not wear it
secretly and know that I wish things could be different?"

Fand smiled down at him wistfully and swept her other hand along her naked body. "How could I hide it?
What would I say when they found it? It is death to me to wear the black pearl, you know that." She
lifted it so she could examine it, a perfect sphere the size of a storm petrel's egg and glimmering with
smoky color. It was as large as the black pearl the King wore in his crown.