"E. C. Tubb - Dumarest 05 - The Jester at Scar" - читать интересную книгу автора (Tubb E. C)

beneath their brows; thick, brown hair had been cropped close
to her rounded skull. Her hands were slim and delicate, but her
figure was concealed by the motley collection of clothing she
wore for warmth and protection. Beyond her a few embers
glowed in an open fireplace built of stone. Dumarest crossed to
it, dropped to his knees beside a box and fed scraps of fuel from
the box to the embers. Flames rose, flickered and illuminated the
woman's home.

It wasn't much. The bed where he'd slept was in one corner of
the single room which was about ten feet by twelve. A curtain,
now drawn back, split the single room in half during times of
rest. The woman's couch rested in the far corner beyond the
curtain. A table, benches and chests, all of rough construction,
completed the furnishings. The walls were of stones bedded in
dirt; uprights supported the sagging roof. Against the dirt and
stone, fragments of brightly colored plastic-sheeting merged
with salvaged wrappings from discarded containers.

Smoke wafted from the burning fuel and made him cough.

"Quiet!" warned the woman. She turned to Dumarest.
"They're coming back," she said. "I can hear them."

He rose, listened and heard the squelch of approaching
footsteps.

They halted, and something hard slammed against the barred
door.

"Open!" The voice was flat and harsh. "We are travelers in
need of shelter; open before we drown."

Lamplight glittered from her eyes. "Earl?"

"A moment." Dumarest stepped quietly forward and stood
beside the door. It would open inward and away from where he
stood, giving him a clear field if action should it be necessary.
His hand dipped to his boot and rose bearing nine inches of
razor-sharp steel. "Don't argue with them," he said softly. "Just
open the door and step back a little. Don't look towards me. Hold
the lamp above your head."

She glanced at the knife held sword-fashion in his hand. "And
you?"

"That depends." His face was expressionless. "If they are
genuine travelers seeking accommodation, send them on their
way; or take them in if you prefer their company to mine. If they
are besotted fools looking for something to entertain them, they