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mid-sentence.
Amazed at his power, Dain stared up at the man sitting so straight in his
saddle. Lord
Odfrey was in his middle years, with no gray showing yet in his straight brown
hair, but plenty of it in his thick mustache. The rest of his face was
cleanshaven, with a hint of bristle to be seen on his lean jaws this late in
the afternoon. His nose was long and straight, except for a slight bump where
it seemed to have once been broken. His mouth was uncompromising. He wore no
mail, and his long doublet and leggings were dark green wool, the cloth woven
tight and hard. His boots reached to his knees, and were made of good leather,
much scuffed and worn. His mud-splattered spurs were plain brass. Only the
crest embroidered on the left breast of his striped fur cloak proclaimed his
rank. Even his rings were not fancy; just a plain signet and a dull cabochon
set in gold that was his marriage ring. His horse, heavy-boned and strong,
stood in the cold water patiently, unlike Gavril s flashy mount, which shied
and pawed and pranced constantly.
Lord Odfrey turned his frowning gaze on Dain and studied him for a long
moment.
Beneath the fierce, unsmiling facade of this man, Dain sensed kindness and a
true heart.
Some flicker of mercy or compassion lit in the depths of the man s eyes. It
surprised
Dain, but he immediately tried to take advantage of it.
 I have offended the prince, he said, although no one had given him leave to
speak.
 But not enough to be killed for it.
 Silence! Gavril shouted before he glanced back at Lord Odfrey.  Take care,
my lord chevard, he warned nervously.  Do not let his gaze enspell you.
Lord Odfrey frowned.
 He is clearly pagan, Gavril said.  Look at his eyes, how colorless and
strange they are. Look at his pale blood. He is a monster. He deserves no
fairness 
 The lad is eldin, Odfrey said impatiently.  Or partly so, perhaps, if his
black hair is anything to go by. That hardly makes him a monster. As for
fairness, honor is not a quality to be shed or worn depending on the
circumstances. If this wretch stole from you and you had your servants catch
him and beat him for it, that would be justice.
 He did steal! Gavril said hotly.  My horse, he would have taken 
 Your horse? Lord Odfrey echoed in quiet amazement.  It s war-trained, or so
you have boasted. " 
Again Gavril s cheeks turned pink.  It is, he said, clearly taking offense.
 Trained by my father s own 
 Then this lad could not steal it, Odfrey said.  Impossible.
 But 
 Did he steal anything else?
 He meant to! My saddle and accouterments. My coat of arms on the saddlecloth
is embroidered of real gold. He 
 Yet he actually took none of these things?
 Intent is the same as action, Gavril said in a sullen voice.  Even worse, he
insulted the Circle and would not 
 If you coursed him for sport, let your hounds bay for his blood, and whipped
him to a bloody pulp because he did not recognize your Circle, it would seem
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you ask too much of this young pagan.
 He s a thief! Gavril said furiously.  When I sought to punish him, he defied
me.
Worse, he insulted me, calling me a liar, and then he tried to harm my
person.
Dain glared at Gavril, who was twisting the truth to support his charge. He
was a vicious, deceitful worm. Dain despised him for his lies even more than
for his cruelty.
Lord Odfrey s stony expression did not change. Solemn and unruffled, he showed
little emotion.
 He tried to kill me, Gavril repeated.  You have my word for it, and I am the
king s 
  son. Yes, I know, your highness. You have reminded everyone in my hold of
that fact at least twice a day since you arrived.
 Then you might trouble to remember the fact, instead of mocking and insulting
me,
Gavril said haughtily.
 Cool your wrath, boy. It s most unseemly in one of your station.
Gavril stared at him, openmouthed and sputtering.
Lord Odfrey met his look of wild astonishment and dawning rage with a grim
lack of deference.  If you expect me to believe a tale such as this, you are
much mistaken. You sit on a war-trained horse, armed with dagger, whip, and
javelins. Do you really expect me to believe an unarmed, half-starved,
wounded, and frozen wretch like this eld boy could bring the slightest harm to
your royal person? I think not.
Gavril s blue eyes grew very dark and still.  Do you also call me a liar, my
lord?
 I call you a spoiled lowland brat, Odfrey replied.  You flight around my
lands with courtier airs and too much conceit in yourself. The king sent you
to me for training, and by the blood of Tomias I do not see that task as one
of providing you with more flattery
and spoiling. You ve been here a month, and by now you should know my rules.
Did I
not expressly forbid you and the others to enter the Nold forest? There is a
war in that land, a war that is no concern of ours except in avoiding its
dangers. Your safety cannot be guaranteed in such a place.
 I will hunt where I please, Gavril replied.  We were coursing a stag. Would
you have us let it go free because of a mere boundary?
 A stag, Lord Odfrey said. His dark eyes narrowed.  What became of it?
 We brought it down, Gavril boasted.  Kaltienne took the first shot with his
bow and wounded it. My dogs are superb coursers, and we caught up with it as
soon as it fell. My arrow finished it. We wear its blood, as you can see.
 Who is packing out the meat?
Gavril blinked as though puzzled.  The meat is of no importance.
It was Lord Odfrey s turn to redden. His mouth opened, but although a small
muscle leaped in his jaw he did not speak. After a moment he snapped his jaws
shut and wheeled his horse around so fast he nearly knocked Dain over.
 Huntsman! he shouted with enough volume that his voice echoed across the
marsh.
 Take those men and go back for the meat.
 But, m lord, it s to be dark soon, the man protested.
 You know I will not abide waste, Odfrey said.
 But the dark, m lord. In Nold, m lord.
Lord Odfrey growled to himself.  Sir Alard, he said to one of the knights.
 Did you leave the arrows in the beast?
The man had been slouching in his saddle when Lord Odfrey spoke to him, then
quickly sat erect.  I m sorry, m lord, he said slowly.  In the race after I
didn t think of it it seemed less important than 
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 Mandrian arrows left bold as day in a carcass not even skinned and butchered.
What insult will be taken? What clan owns the land where you brought down the
stag?
All of them, Gavril especially, looked blank. Dain compre-
hended the reason for Lord Odfrey s disquiet. It was an insult to trespass
when hunting game, and a bigger insult to hunt game for sport, not food. It
spoke of an arrogant disregard for ownership of land and property. If any
dwarf found the stag on land claimed by a clan, great offense would be taken.
Dwarves could and did start wars with far less provocation. Would they attack
a Mandrian hold for such a reason? Unlikely, especially with the war against
the Bnen now raging. But Lord Odfrey understood dwarf ways, and that was
unusual for a Mandrian noble. Dain s respect for the man went up a notch. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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