"Brian Thomsen - The Nobles 04 - The Mage in the Iron Mask" - читать интересную книгу автора (Thomsen Brian M)

The Tharchioness was not amused.
It was bad enough that she had to endure the damp and smoky gloominess of Mulmaster
for yet another one of her thrice-yearly connubial stays, but now to be surrounded by such
incompetence was def-initely not to her liking, and she had no intention of tolerating it.
She had purposely cut short her stay back in Eltabbar overseeing the rebuilding of her
beloved city after the devastating earthquake of a few months back because of the so-called
opportunity that had been presented to her ambassador by that traitor to the Thayan cause
and the sovereignty of Zulkir Szass Tam, Donal Loomis.
Her just recently executed ambassador with whom the traitor had made contact had been
overly optimistic, and had presented his plan as an anti-dote to the oppressive yoke of
matrimony that she had endured for diplomatic reasons with the slimy High Blade of the city
to the west.
Szass Tam had explained the necessity of her courtship and marriage to the foul
westerner as the first step toward an active Thayan presence in the Moonsea area. The
powerful lich lord would then be able to extend his influence farther southward to the
Dalelands, while exerting further pressures on the other tharches toward an ultimate goal of
the unifi-cation of all of Thay under his eternal rule. She had been more than willing to assist
him in this ultimate goal, even if it meant subjecting herself to the bondage of matrimony.
Unfortunately, both of them had underestimated the equally acquisitive ambitions of the
High Blade, who saw Mulmaster's Tower of the Wyvern as the jumping-off point for his own
expansion of power and authority both south and eastward, power which he had no intention
of sharing with his bride, or the real power behind her throne.
The now deceased ambassador had presented such a simple plan. A double for the
High Blade ex-isted. Why not abduct him, and persuade him that it would be more
advantageous for him to follow orders from them than to die an excruciatingly torturous
death at their hands? They would then secretly substitute their puppet for Selfaril; placing
him on the throne while the real High Blade was secretly spir-ited away to the east.
According to Ambassador Vitriole, the traitor who had presented this opportunity was
mortally in fear of his life, and as a result, could be trusted to follow their exact orders in
exchange for their lifting the sentence of death from his misshapen shoulders (which was
immediately agreed to with the full knowledge that a new plan would be carried out on the
spot once his usefulness had come to an end).
Donal might have been a traitorous, cowardly fool, the Tharchioness thought to herself,
but Vitriole was a fool as well for underestimating his traitorous ways. They deserved each
other's company in death. Had I had a competent ambassador in place, I wouldn't be in this
delicate position. But no, I had to come to Mulmaster early to face my beloved husband
when I displaced him as the ruling power of Mul-master. Now what am I going to do?
The First Princess of Thay gently applied a bit of perfume behind her ears, knowing that
the west-erner who was her husband would find it distracting. For a similar reason, she had
also chosen to wear her silken robe with the plunging neckline that flattered her ample
breasts and drew further attention to her eye-catching cleavage.
I must use everything at my disposal, she thought in agitated resignation, once again
cursing the in-competence of her minions that necessitated her sen-sual theatricality.
Her moments of silent reflection on her current predicament were interrupted by the
cautious ar-rival of her new ambassador to Mulmaster.
"First Princess," the new and fearful ambassador said tentatively, "you requested my
presence?"
"No," the Tharchioness replied acidly, "I said that I wanted you at my disposal, here and
now. You do know what happened to your predecessor, don't you?"