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

"Alroy Bearand Brion Haldane, Crown Prince of Gwynedd, be consecrated to
the service of thy people," he said, the while squeezing Alroy's right thumb
close in the grip of his free hand.
In two quick motions, he jabbed the boy's thumb with the point, then
turned the blade on his own. The boy did not flinchтАФonly watched dreamily as
his bleeding thumb and then his father's were pressed briefly to the
parchment, to the ring. As Joram cast the parchment on Evaine's brazier,
Alister wiped both wounds with a strip of linen which he then laid across his
left arm, maniple-wise.
Cinhil watched the fresh smoke of the burning parchment spiral upward, to
curl lazily against the confines of the protective circle. Only when the
parchment was but a crisp of brittle ash on the charcoal did he move again, this
time to take a pinch of ash between thumb and forefinger and sprinkle it on
the surface of the water in Alister's cup.
"Give the king Thy judgments, O God, and Thy righteousness unto the king's
son," he said.
 He took the blood-stained ring from Joram and slipped it into the cup as
well, sensing their surprise that he had now literally made this a blood-rite, but
he could not let that deter him. Somehow he knew that it was necessary, and
what further he must do.
As they took their places once more, Joram to his left and Alister to his
right, he drew strength from his own resolve. Impassively he took the cup from
Alister and turned to face the altar, raised the cup slightly with both hands in
salutation to the Divine Presence.
"O Lord, Thou art holy, indeed: the fountain of all holiness. In trembling and
humility we come before Thee with our supplications, asking Thy blessing and
protection on what we must do this night."
He turned to face his son, lowering the cup to extend his right palm flat
above the rim.
"Send now Thy holy Archangel Raphael, O Lord, to breathe upon this water
and make it holy, that they who shall drink of it may justly command the
element of Air. Amen."
A moment more he held his hand motionless there and forged his will, his
heart pounding in the unbreathing silence of the warded circle. Trembling, he
let his right hand slip down to support the cup with its mate, felt the ring
beneath the water vibrating against the snow-white glaze.
A breeze stirred his robe, a lock of hair, wafted a curl of incense smoke past
his nostrils, began to circulate with increasing force within the confines of the
circle. He saw the wild look in his son's eyes as the breeze became a wind, a
vortex which snapped robes tight to bodies and whipped hair against faces
which did not flinch or turn aside.
Evaine's hood was swept from her head, her hair coming down in a cascade
of tinkling golden pins which showered the carpet at their feet. Yellow and
iron-grey hair stood out like living, writhing haloes on Joram and Alister, but
they did not moveтАФonly stood with hands crossed still on blue and purple-clad
breasts, serene, implacable, though the bishop did close his eyes briefly, Cinhil
noted.
Then, suddenly, the storm was past. Almost before anyone could react, the
wind had captured more of the incense smoke and coalesced in a tight spiral
centering over the cup which Cinhil still held. He was aware of all their eyes