"Katherine Kurtz - Camber 3 - Camber the Heretic" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kurtz Katherine)

king, is dead and gone. We must not talk in circles, Alister. I will die soon. You,
who are several years my senior, must surely have thought of death. It comes to
all of us, and we must all make preparations in our own time. A king must
think of it more carefully even than an ordinary man."
With a sigh, Camber bowed his head, his token Alister reluctance now
satisfied.
"As friend, I cannot refuse you, Cinhil," he said softly. "What you ask, I shall
perform to the best of my ability, no matter what the cost." He held out his
hands to Cinhil, the palms up, and Cinhil laid his own on Camber's.
"Thank you."
With a nod, tears welling in his eyes, Camber brought Cinhil's hands
together in a gesture of reassurance, bobbed to touch his forehead to the royal
hands in a gesture of humility, then turned away and sank to his knees before
the altar, face buried in his hands. Cinhil watched him, stunned a little at the
apparent depth of his friend's emotion, then returned his attention to Joram.
The younger man had not moved.
"I believe there areтАФarrangements to be made, Joram," the king said softly.
"Will you see to them?"
"I will, Sire. Did you have any particular time and place in mind? Rhys and
Evaine have stayed the night at Ebor with Gregory, but they should be back
well before noon tomorrow."
Cinhil nodded distractedly, his attention fixed once again on the kneeling
Camber. "That will be fine."
"Then, do you wish to plan for tomorrow night?" Joram asked.
Cinhil nodded, still not looking away from Camber.
"And where shall we plan to do it?" Joram insisted. "I do not advise using the
chapel where your ritual took place. It is still an active Michaeline
establishment. There is danger of interruption."
"Here, in my private chapel," Cinhil murmured. "It will suffice, will it not?" At
last he turned his gaze back on Joram, sincere question in his grey eyes.
"It will suit quite well, Sire," Joram replied, making a bow and beginning to
withdraw. "I shall make the necessary arrangements with Rhys and my sister.
May I also include Jebediah? We will need another guardian."
"Do so."
And as Joram withdrew, closing the door behind him, Cinhil eased himself
to his knees beside Camber and joined with him in prayer, never realizing that
the part of his friend with which he was interacting was only the surface of
another man whom he had thought long-dead тАФa man who, far from being
apprehensive at what his king had just commanded, was already planning how
this long-wished-for event might come to pass, and how best the awesome
powers of the Haldane line might be instilled in the Haldane heirs.
Camber remained with the king for nearly an hour more; and while they
prayed together, Joram set in motion the plan which he and his father had
long ago formulated to deal with what now appeared to be an impending
certainty. After dispatching a messenger to Rhys and Evaine, he summoned a
bleary-eyed Jebediah to his father's chambers to tell him of the king's decision;
for in addition to Jebediah's part in what would now ensue, the earl marshal
must be prepared to be dismissed by the ambitious and mostly human regency
council which would assume rule in the name of the underage Alroy, if Cinhil
did not survive the next night's work. The very thought of placing command of