[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
. And you have the notes to prove that? The innkeeper grabbed a bundle of pieces of parchment outof his pouch and laid them on the table in front of Anaxantis, whopicked one out of the crumpled heap. That s his handwriting, all right. He sat down and took a piece of parchment.Hastily he wrote, Tomar, pay this man what he is owed out of my personal account.Discreetly.Tell nobody, the concerned party included.A. He sprinkled fine sand out of a box on the parchment, let it absorbthe excess of ink, and blew on it. Bonds of Fear 199 Page, he shouted.Sterff came running. Sterff, accompany this man to master Tomar s offices and givehim this. He handed the page the parchment. You ll be paid immediately, he said. Thank you, my lord.My little girl also thanks you. That s all right.No need to tell anybody of this.If the situationshould repeat itself, just come to me.Discreetly. Of course, my lord. A fine young man, the lord governor, the innkeeper of The CrankyGoat thought, following Sterff. In fact I should pay master Lethoras.Every time he gives a round of drinks, others start to follow his example.They give him drinks, just for him to sing one of his ribald songs.Thegirls like him.Very much so.The evenings he is there, people stay farlonger than usual.But I need the money, and, after all, he signed for it. Lethoras knocked and without waiting entered. You asked for me? he said, sitting down on the first availablechair.Anaxantis looked up from his documents. Yes.You know that tomorrow I m leaving for the Renuvian Plainsand that I am going by Mirkadesh.Guess what? You re going too. Oh good, I ll go pack immediately. Yes, pack four hundred infantrymen and a hundred cavalrymen from the Amirathan Militia.They re coming with us as far asMirkadesh, where they probably will be staying.You re leading 200 Andrew Ashlingthem. Have them ready to march by tomorrow? Anaxantis, how longwere you planning this? About a week, I think. And you tell me now? I thought it would be a good exercise. Anaxantis smiled. Shouldn t we be able to march on the spur of the moment? Or doyou suggest we write the Mukthars a note when they attack: Please,give us a few days to prepare as for the moment we will be unable toresist you, and hope for the best? Lethoras grinned. No, you re right. I ll give you further instructions on the way and again once Ihave been able to see with my own eyes what s what.I have a feelingthere is something very strange going on in that place. You ll want me to stay there then? In any case, you re not coming with me to the Plains.I want to beable to travel fast.Reconnoiter a section, give the map makers sometime to make sketches that they can work out later, and move on.Ican t be slowed down by infantry. I see.We are an occupying force, I gather? Will a mere fivehundred men be enough for the whole county? The population is concentrated in a few villages, and they saidthey are not able to defend themselves.So yes, that should be enough.To make certain, have a contingent of double that size on the ready.Ifyou should run into major trouble, which I highly doubt, they can bethere in less than two days.Give clear instructions that the cavalryunits are to proceed as fast as they can to come to your aid whenever Bonds of Fear 201you ask for them.They re not to wait for the infantry.Take trainedcourier pigeons with you. Seems like a plan.This begins to feel more and more likepreparation for war. It s a beginning, anyway, Anaxantis sighed. There are still a lotof pieces missing from the chess board, though. Mother, I need your help.Now. You ll find them. Lethoras yawned. You always do.We have thefullest confidence in you. That s nice to know, Anaxantis said doubtfully. If there is nothing else, I would like to get started.I have mywork cut out for me. No, that was it.Unless you have something you wanted to tellme? Anaxantis looked at him expectantly.Lethoras seemed to bethinking. No.Not really.I m off then. 202 Andrew AshlingRullio of Brenx descended the long slope that led to the town ofNira.The presence of the fort, and the fact that the high king wasin residence, lent the provincial backwater whatever importanceit had.Rullio hoped it was big enough to have a silversmith.WhenPortonas s men had caught him he had been on a nightly mission,and he had left his money in his tent.Luckily he had been wearinghis silver necklace.He hoped he could sell it and that whatever hegot for it would be enough to see him home.But first he longed for adecent meal and a bath to wash off almost a year of grime.The slope gave out on a road that led to the town s main gate
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]