"Anne Bishop - Black Jewels 00 - The Invisible Ring" - читать интересную книгу автора (Bishop Anne)

him a little. There had been no reason for her to go down to those slave
pens and even less reason to buy him. She'd already bought a young pleasure
slave. She didn't need another, especially one who had turned savage. Or had
she bought him with the intention of giving him to a Shalador Queen in
exchange for help reaching the Tamanara Mountains? Krelis smiled grimly.
If getting help from Shalador had been her plan, she was already too late.
Much too late.

Chapter Nine

An hour after sunrise, Jared gave a final pat to the bay gelding and roan
mare that were already saddled and tethered to the back of the wagon, and
approached the door. They'd broken last night's camp and were ready to move
on, but courtesy and a healthy sense of self-preservation told him he should
get the Gray Lady's permission first-especially since he'd never consulted
her yesterday afternoon when he had decided they'd all had enough of
slogging through rain and mud and had given the order to make camp. He
raised his hand, but it froze before he could knock on the door. No matter
what Jewels he wore, no man would willingly step into that cramped space
while two witches were arguing in sharp, low voices that would have been
raised to full volume if they hadn't been trying to keep it private. Jared
stepped back, unsure what to do-and wished, again, that he hadn't begun the
sham yesterday of being the dominant male. His Jewels might outrank everyone
else's except the Gray Lady's, but what difference did that make? He was a
slave. He was hollow inside. He didn't want to have authority over the other
males. He didn't want the responsibilities that came with that authority.
But he'd let a moment's temper make that choice for him, and now he was
stuck with it. But that didn't mean he couldn't back away now and just wait
until she gave the order to move on. Before he could retreat, Tomas opened
the door, looking flushed and angry. No longer muffled, Thera's voice had a
dangerous edge.
"You can't walk. That knee healed better than I thought it would overnight,
but it's not going to take that kind of exercise, and you know it."
"Then I can ride one of the saddle horses, or sit on the driving seat. That
will give others the opportunity to be inside-"
"It isn't raining now," Thera interrupted. "If you're so concerned, let's
stay in this camp for a day and give everyone a rest. The animals certainly
could use it."
Jared winced. Thera sure knew how to twist a verbal knife. By the end of
that first morning on the road, they'd all recognized the Gray Lady's love
for animals. If she could have figured out a way to tuck the horses into the
wagon to give them a rest, he was sure she would have done it.
"No." Was that physical or emotional pain in the Gray Lady's voice? "We have
to keep going. I can-"
Tomas had been looking at Jared. Now he twisted around. "You can just sit
and get better like you're supposed to," he shouted. "What if you slip in
the mud and hurt yourself bad?"
"If I'm riding a horse-" The Gray Lady had to be gritting her teeth to make
the words sound like that. But Tomas wasn't going to be warned or silenced
by mere words. "You've been walking in the rain for two days now, and you're