"Raymond E. Feist - Kingdom of the Isles 2 - The King's Buccaneer" - читать интересную книгу автора (Feist Raymond E)

sounded like Prince Arutha's, a sure sign that Nicholas wasn't joking. The
Squire shrugged. "Well, we have an hour to supper. What shall we do?"

"Spend the time working on our story, I should think."

Harry said, "What story?"

"To give to Papa to explain why my boat is now floating across half the
harbor."

Harry looked at Nicholas with a confident smile and said, "I'll think of
something."

16

Raymond E. Feist

"You DIDN'T SEE it?" said the Prince of Krondor as he regarded his youngest
son and the Squire from Ludland. "How could you miss the biggest warship in
the Krondorian fleet when it was less than a hundred feet away!" Arutha,
Prince of Krondor, brother to the King of the Isles, and second most powerful
man in the Kingdom, regarded the two boys with a narrow, disapproving gaze
they had both come to know well. A gaunt man, Arutha was a quiet, forceful
leader who rarely showed his emotions, but to those close to him, old friends
and family, the subtle changes in his mood were easy enough to read. And right
now he wasn't amused.

Nicholas turned to his partner in crime. Whispering, he said, "Good story,
Harry," in dry tones. "You obviously spent a lot of time thinking about it."

Arutha turned to his wife, his disapproval giving way to resignation. Princess
Anita fixed her son with a scolding look that was mitigated by amusement. She
was upset with the boys for acting foolishly, but Harry's blatantly artless
pose of innocence was entertaining. Though she was past forty years of age,
there was still a girlish quality about her laughter^ which she fought hard to
keep reined in. Her red hair was streaked with grey, and her freckled face was
lined from years of service to her nation, but her eyes were clear and bright
as she regarded her youngest child with affection.

The evening's meal was a casual one, with few court functionaries in
attendance. Arutha preferred to keep his court informal when possible, quietly
enduring pomp only when necessary. The long table in the family's apartment in
the palace could comfortably hold a half-dozen more people than dined tonight.
While the great hall of Krondor housed most of the Western Realm's battle
trophies and banners of state, the family's dining hall was devoid of such
reminders of wars, being decorated with portraits of past rulers and
landscapes of unusual beauty.

Arutha sat at the head of the table, with Anita at his right hand. Geoffrey,
the Duke of Krondor and Arutha's chief administrator, sat in his usual chair