"Tanya Huff - Be It Ever So Humble" - читать интересную книгу автора (Huff Tanya)

"But they've got Juan!"

"What?!" Magdalene spun around and stared down at the village, the distant scene snapping suddenly
into clarity at the touch of her will. Not the same riders, but the same type, their robes of tan and brown
billowing in the wind. A full two dozen men faced the well this time, a red pennant snapping about over
their heads as if trying to leap from the lance time. One horse stood a little forward and Juan had been
thrown across the pommel of its saddle, his good arm twisted cruelly back.

She could see the villagers gathering-the kayle run had stopped and the seas had been too high to put
out for a less certain catch. Carlos-the headman and Yolanda at his back-stepped out of the crowd and
spoke. Magdelene could see his lips move, although the wind whipped away the words. Juan began to
struggle and squirm.

The rider's grip shifted, and it didn't take a wizard's ears to hear the high-pitched scream that rose on
the wind.

"Magdelene!" The little girl tugged on the wizard's shift. "You gotta do something!"

Juan went limp.

Magdelene's fingers closed on the child's shoulder, and the next instant the two of them stood by the

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well. The child tore herself out of Magdelene's hold and dashed to her mother.

"Did you see, Mama? Did you see? We went poof!"

Alone now, between the villagers and the riders, Magdelene took a deep breath, clamped her teeth,
and forced the wobbling world to steady. The last time she'd used the transit spell, she'd puked her guts
out upon arrival. This time she couldn't give in to the nausea; retching at the warlord's feet might be
unpleasant, but it could hardly be considered intimidating. When she regained her ability to focus, most
of the riders still wore expressions of combined fear and disbelief.

Only the man who held Juan looked unaffected.

He smiled down at her. "You must be the wizard," he said.

She returned the smile with equal sincerity. "And you must be the warlord."

"I got your message. I'm here to give you my answer. And," his eyes narrowed, "I wouldn't suggest a
repeat of the last incident, not while I have the boy." Magdelene wasn't particularly worried. She could
send the warlord and his men back where they came from without disturbing a hair on Juan's head. The
problem was, they'd only come back. If she played to the Warlord's ego, she might be able to negotiate a
more permanent solution. "What do you want?"

"You." His smile broadened, the scar that split one side of his mouth twisting his face unevenly.
Magdelene's brows reached for her hairline. "I beg your pardon?"