"Glenda Larke - Heart of the Mirage" - читать интересную книгу автора (Larke Glenda)

dozed somewhere behind them: it was the siesta hour.
When I reached my destination, Dorus the Jeweller's, I paused until I was sure
I was unobserved. I tugged at the bellpull, but it was a while before the door
was unbarred and opened. The man in the doorway stared at me, his expression
blank as he failed to recognise me dressed as I was. Then his plump face
paled. 'Compeer... Holy Goddess тАФ!' He gestured me
inside, but not before giving a swift glance into the street in an agony of
terror. 'Compeer, if someone were to recognise you тАФ'
'No one saw me, Dorus. Do you have the information?'
'Yes, yes! Upstairs. But it's more than my life is worth to be seen talking to
you!' He indicated a chair in the darkest corner of his workroom. 'Stay here,
Lady Compeer, please. I'll get it.'
I ignored the chair and wandered about the shop while he was gone, looking at
some of the silver pieces he had been crafting. I wasn't particularly
interested in jewellery, although I had a lot, inherited from my adoptive
mother. I never used any of it. The only piece I habitually wore was my own
personal-seal ring. Still, I could appreciate the fine filigree done by Dorus.
He worked mainly in silver, and many of his pieces were set with polished
stones. I recognised the smoky topaz of northern Tyrans, red and black corals
from the Sea of Iss, golden amber from the Island of Inge тАФ and agates from
Kardiastan. I ran a finger over the cut surface of a large piece of pink and
white agate, and tried to remember why its geometric patterns seemed familiar.
A moment or two later, Dorus was back with a clay tablet. A pronounced tremor
in his hands prompted me to take it from him before he dropped it. 'The names
of everyone involved,' he whispered. He made an effort to control the shaking.
'They'll kill me if ever they find out.'
'They won't hear it from me.' I glanced at the list. 'You've done a good job.'
I extracted a coin from the purse hidden in the folds of my wrap.
T don't want your tainted money,' he said in revulsion. 'Some of them are my
friends!'
'They are traitors, plotting the overthrow of their monarch. They will get the
justice they deserve.'
'My тАФ my son?'
'He is well, as I am sure you know. I doubt this sojourn in the Cages will do
him any harm; I hope it will do him some good. If this list is as
comprehensive as it looks, he will be released by nightfall tomorrow. I keep
my promises, Dorus.' I started towards the door, but a quixotic impulse made
me turn back to say, 'Markis is a young fool who let his silly ideals get him
into trouble once, and may do so again. But he does love you. If you are wise,
you will tell him what you had to do to gain his freedom. He will keep your
secret, and his fear of putting you in a similar position again will keep him
out of trouble.' I had intended to keep in reserve the propensity of Dorus's
son to do foolish things, a lever I would be able to use against the jeweller
in the future, but what was the point when I wouldn't be here to exert
pressure on the handle? I flipped the gold coin in Dorus's direction. 'Use it
to buy him a new set of clothes. He'll need them after three weeks in the
Cages.'
I emerged into the deserted street, indifferent to the hatred that followed
me.
I was used to it.