"Jennifer Roberson - Karavans 01 - Karavans" - читать интересную книгу автора (Roberson Jennifer)

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I NEED MORE BONES,тАЭ Hezriah declared. тАЬ You must bring me another body.тАЭ
It was stifling inside the undyed, soiled oilcloth tent. HeтАЩ d have rolled up the sidewalls in hope of catching a
stray breeze except his job was not the kind people wanted to see on their way to market. His was the kind
of job no one needed to see, either, because it was the prosaic and thus tedious side of the augury business.
For all there was magic involvedтАФ at least, for the legitimate diviners who truly did converse with the godsтАФ
no one wanted to see how the ingredients required by the magic were assembled. Just the end result.
They want to see the flesh on the body, and breathing, not the bones underneath. Hezriah smiled, liking the
turn of phrase; most appropriate for his line of work. I should write that one down. тАЬ Well? Have you a body for
me?тАЭ
A bead of sweat rolled down the heat-flushed cheek into the wiry beard of the other person in the tent. His
hireling, Merriq. тАЬ Brought you one last week, didnтАЩ t I?тАЭ
Outside, someone shouted, hoarse-voiced; the bonedealer caught three words in ten. Something about a
moonsick man. Not his business; he had no time for such folk as lacked a proper mind. Deepwood bait, such
folk. Their bodies and brains were cursed, not fit for augury.
тАЬ That was a child, Merriq. Not enough bones there to fill but a partial order.тАЭ Something stung his cheek; he
slapped hard, gritting his teeth. The dead insect tumbled to the hard-packed dirt floor covered by a hemmed
sheet of black-dyed canvas, slightly sun-rusted. Dusty footprints marred the surface: his own, and MerriqтАЩ s
bigger, booted feet. тАЬ Cursed horseflies,тАЭ he muttered. тАЬ Should all be sent to Alisanos.тАЭ Though, come to
think of it, more probably they had come from the deepwood; all demons and devils did, be they in human
form or other. Hezriah scowled anew. тАЬ Have you anything due in from the anthills?тАЭ
тАЬ Day or two,тАЭ Merriq answered stolidly. тАЬ Still too much meat on the bones.тАЭ
тАЬ Well, that will do for Dardannus.тАЭ Hezriah nodded, briefly calculating how long the Kantic diviner would
tolerate the delay without reducing payment or looking elsewhere for a supplier. Practitioners of the Kantica
did not count patience among their virtues. тАЬ But I need another body as soon as possible.тАЭ
тАЬ Do you want me to kill someone?тАЭ
He grunted. тАЬ No, no. Let them die on their own; I have ethics, and I respect the lawтАФ unlike some I could
mention, named Eccul! But surely you can find someone crossing over the river in one of the alleys, canтАЩ t
you? Or someone murdered for not paying his debts?тАЭ The latter happened frequently among bad wagerers
and drunkards.
The hirelingтАЩ s massive shoulders hitched. тАЬ I can poke around.тАЭ
тАЬ Good. Do so. Or Eccul will have my clients.тАЭ Hezriah sighed, aware of a sense of oppression not entirely
due to the heat and close confines; there were plenty of other bonedealers who could take over when he
failed. Eccul was merely one of many, if more annoying than most. тАЬ Any Shoia in danger of dying?тАЭ
Merriq shrugged. тАЬ Not many in town to die. Not that they ever do.тАЭ
Hezriah scowled. тАЬ ThereтАЩ s Rhuan. Disgustingly arrogant young man. Surely someone will kill him soon.тАЭ He
brightened. тАЬ Or possibly Brodhi? I saw him earlier, come in from the road. He was heading for MikalтАЩ s tent.
Do you think someone might kill him there? Brodhi isnтАЩ t well liked. In fact, I donтАЩ t know of anyone who likes
him.тАЭ
тАЬ No one will kill Rhuan or Brodhi,тАЭ Merriq declared. тАЬ Shoia canтАЩ t die.тАЭ
тАЬ Oh, certainly they can die.тАЭ Ludicrous legends annoyed Hezriah. тАЬ You simply have to kill them seven
times.тАЭ
тАЬ In a row?тАЭ The hireling snapped his thick fingers: click-click-click. тАЬ Like this? Seven times?тАЭ
тАЬ How should I know? IтАЩ ve never seen a Shoia die even once.тАЭ The bonedealer slapped at another bite, this
one upon his neck. тАЬ Cursed horseflies!тАЭ He wouldnтАЩ t mind them so much if there were a divination
denomination that used dead horseflies for augury, because then there would be profit in his misery, but he
was aware of none. Perhaps I should invent one, like the charlatans do. тАЬ Go on, then. See what you can
bring me. Find ArbathтАФ probably drowning himself at MikalтАЩ s or spending himself in a whoreтАФ and take him
with you. Two of you will serve better than one. Just haul the body out to the anthills as soon as possible, so
the ants can do their work.тАЭ Thinking, he chewed at his lip as Merriq turned away, then tacked on the ritual