"Sharon K. Penman - Here Be Dragons" - читать интересную книгу автора (Penman Sharon K)

like a slice of seedcake."
Llewelyn smiled wanly at that; his mother's invariable remedy
for any childhood hurt was to offer sweets. Morgan leaned forward,
spooned some broth into Llewelyn's mouth, and then turned the boy's
a" to the side, his eyes moving slowly over the bruises, contusions,
and swellings.
You re likely to have a scar over that eye," he observed dispassiony and, not
waiting for a response, fed Llewelyn another spoonful soup. Putting the bowl
aside, he turned toward the tray, handed Uewelyn a fresh compress.
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"Are you ready now to tell me about it?"
Llewelyn flushed, shot Morgan a look of mute entreaty. But Mo gan's grey eyes
were unwavering, expectant. Llewelyn could not lie, not to Morgan. He
swallowed, began to speak.
Shrewsbury. Stephen. The meadow. Walter de Hodnet, his fear and "Welshmen are
thieves . . ." He held none of it back, spared himself nothing. But he could
not meet Morgan's eyes, could not bear to see Morgan's dawning disgust. He
looked instead at Morgan's hands linked loosely in his lap; they were
beautifully shaped, fingers long and supple, a symmetry marred only by the
bitten, gnawed nails, chewed down to the very quick, an incongruous quirk in
one with such a disciplined nature. Llewelyn kept his gaze riveted on those
hands, saw them flex, tense, and then slowly unclench.
When Llewelyn had at last run out of words, one of the hands reached out,
touched his hair in what seemed strangely like a caress. But Morgan's caresses
were sparingly doled out and surely would not be given now, not after what
he'd just confessed. And yet the hand had not been withdrawn; it was brushing
the hair back from his forehead, lingering.
"Morgan . . ." Bewildered, utterly at a loss.
"I'm proud of you, lad."
" roud?" Llewelyn choked. "I shamed you, shamed us all. Did you not
understand? I did what he demanded, I dishonored my blood, groveled before
him."
"And would you rather he'd broken your arm, mayhap maimed you for life?"
"No, but. . ."
"Listen to me, Llewelyn. Courage is a commendable quality, and a true test of
manhood. You showed that today, and may rightly take pride in it. But for a
prince of our people, courage alone is not enough; it must be tempered with
common sense. You showed that too, today, lad, showed you were able to make a
realistic recognition of superior strength. There's no shame in that,
Llewelyn, none whatsoever. Be thankful, rather, that in a world full of fools,
Our Lord Saviour has blessed you with brains as well as boldness of spirit."
"I was so ashamed . . ." Llewelyn whispered. "Not for the apology/ but for the
other, for saying my countrymen are thieves and cutthroats.
"And does saying it make it so?" Morgan shook his head. "Do you know what the
English say of us, Llewelyn? They say a Welshman s word is worth spit in the
wind. And they are right, lad. An oath given W an enemy is made to be broken;
we understand that. We use what weap ons we have available to us, and when we
fight, we fight on our term / not theirs.
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"These are lessons you must learn, Llewelyn, and learn well The ill come when