"Dave Duncan - Tales of King's Blades 5 - The Jaguar Knights" - читать интересную книгу автора (Duncan Dave)

physical and mental, and worry about the King’s motives. Blades noto-riously went mad when their ward
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died by violence, but Wolf could re-call no precedent for a ward being kidnapped while his Blade still
lived. And why had Athelgar assigned this extraordinary commission to him, of all people? Lynx and he
knew things about Celeste that might still embarrass the King if they came out. Now Celeste had
vanished, Lynx was at death’s door, and the King had senthimto investigate the bizarre affair? It made no
sense.

The brief winter day was ending in a blood-red smear when the travelers crossed the Gran at Abshurst.
With no one else crazy enough to be on the roads, the post house offered a wide choice of well-rested
mounts. By law, a Blade could take his pick of the King’s horses and Hogwood knew enough to select
the second-best.The only reason Wolf had not taken that one was the mean look in its eye.

He would not dare go farther until the moon rose, so he led the way to the dining room, whose stench of
bad beer and tallow candles would make a goat gasp. A few locals were drinking in front of the fire, but
quickly relinquished that favored space to sword-bearing gentry.Waiters tossed down the usual dirty
platters and piled them with winter fare:

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salted fish, beans, and pickled pigs’ feet. They added fresh loaves, hard cheese, and mugs of small ale.

Hogwood was now revealed as a skinny youth of about Wolf’s height, looking no more than fourteen.
The mystery thickened—why had the Dark Chamber sent a boy to investigate an act of war or
rebel-lion? Did the assignment seem so hopeless or dangerous that no senior snoop would touch it? The
King had been very sparing with informa-tion.Was this a suicide mission?

“Well, Inquisitor,”Wolf said.“Tell me about yourself.You look very young to be ...you ...you’re a girl!”

“So my friends tell me.” She smirked.

So much for bragging about the sharp eyes of a Blade! She was tall, but that did not excuse Wolf’s folly.
He would not knowingly have spo-ken to a woman so aggressively, and could not mend his manners
now without seeming ridiculous.

Male or female, she was absurdly young to be assigned a case of such importance. Nubile, though. Wolf
fancied his women well bolstered, with a soft double chin to make them seem more feminine, but
Hog-wood as a girl was even more of a beanpole than Hogwood the boy. Her hair was as black as her
robes, worn in a pageboy cut popular then among youths around court, somehow making her face seem
small and boyishly bony, despite full lips and lashes like cortege plumes. In fire-light, with winter roses