"Christopher Stasheff - Warlocks Heirs 02 - Quicksilver's Knight" - читать интересную книгу автора (Stasheff Christopher)

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Quicksilver's Knight
By Christopher Stasheff

ISBN: 0-441-00229-3




CHAPTER 1
Geoffrey had decided that it was very boring being the son of a nobleman-especially the second son, even if the first was away from home. It was
even more boring if the only thing you were really good at was war, and nobody was obliging you by attacking your king. He would have settled
gladly for even a nice pocket war, a tidy little rebellion in some distant corner of the kingdom of Gramarye, with a few good battles, some
privations to endure and trials of will and muscle, feasting and celebrating after the victory-Geoffrey had no doubt that, . with him on the King's
side, the rebellion would end in victory.


Unfortunately, the rest of the kingdom seemed to have no doubt about that, either-or perhaps it was just King Tuan's twenty-five-year record of
winning every battle he had fought, especially with the Gallowglass family on his side. If Geoffrey couldn't win single-handedly, his parents,
brother, and sister could certainly tip the scales in his favor.


So, all in all, it wasn't too surprizing if nobody wanted to start a war-and, to keep himself from going crazy with inaction, Geoffrey had volunteered
to be royal troubleshooter. When the King didn't come up with enough troubles to shoot, he took to the roads as a knight-errant. Again, though, his
bad luck held-all he had to do was ride into a county, and the bandits instantly faded away into some other district. The lords began a startling
program of reform, ceasing oppression and moving toward enlightened government; they stopped exploiting the peasants and began just and
humane rule.


Which left Geoffrey with nothing to do but indulge himself in his only other really strong interest-wenching. Which is why he was currently in the
hayloft with a particularly luscious and tempting morsel named Doll, caressing experimentally, to determine which stroke elicited the largest
number of gasps, and beginning to coax her out of her bodice. Of course, he was minimizing the possibility of her objecting by seeing to it that her
mouth was fully occupied with his own, and was distracting her with a particularly ardent kiss as he began to untie her lacings when a voice like the
mew of a seagull called, "Young warlock!"


The girl froze, and so did Geoffrey, cursing darkly within his mind. Then he lifted himself away, giving her a tender and reassuring smile-rather
necessary, since she was staring up at him with incipient panic as the voice called again, "Warlock Geoffrey! Come, sir, speak!"


"You are a warlock, then?" Doll whispered. "I am," Geoffrey sighed.


She relaxed, eyes half-closing, her smile returning, sultry and inviting. "Then work magic upon me, young sir." She wriggled to emphasize her
words.


Geoffrey caught his breath, and was about to accept the invitation when the voice demanded, "There are folk in need, Sir Geoffrey! Remember your