"Gray, Julia - Guardian 01 - The Dark Moon" - читать интересную книгу автора (Gray Julia)

'But he's been dead for hundreds of years!'
'That doesn't mean his work's not important. There's so much in those journals. I can't let it all be destroyed.'
'You are crazy,' Elam said, but the heat had gone from his voice now.
'I was meant to find those journals, Elam. I'm sure of it.'
'Don't get all mystical on me,' his friend complained. 'Just how do you propose getting up there?'
'At night.'
'Oh, great! We get to break the curfew as well.'
'We can slip away up to the loft before the turnkey makes his rounds,' Terrel explained. 'There are so many people here now the soldiers won't miss two. I just heard one of them say their security's hopeless. We'll wait a bit and then sneak out after dark. I did it before, remember?'
'That was before the charming Aylor and his men arrived,' Elam pointed out. 'They don't have the same relaxed attitude to people breaking the rules.' The boys had already seen two inmates beaten almost senseless for minor transgressions.
'It'd be worth it if we get the journals out safely,' Terrel claimed.
'That's easy for you to say. You weren't chained up in the dungeons for two years.'
'They won't do that. Even those rooms will be in use as sleeping quarters soon. The worst we'll get is a thrashing.'
'Oh, that's all right then,' Elam remarked sarcastically.
'Besides, we're not going to get caught,' Terrel went on. 'Once the curfew's past, the soldiers will be relaxed. No one will be expecting us to get out - and they certainly won't expect us to go up the hill.'
'That's true,' Elam conceded, 'but I still can't believe you think it's worth it.'
'I'm going to do this,' Terrel replied calmly. 'On my own if necessary. I just thought you might like another adventure.'
Eventually Elam returned his friend's grin.
'All right,' he said. 'When do we go?'
'Tonight.'
'How did I know you were going to say that?'
'So now what?' Elam asked as he and Terrel lifted the iron-bound chest that contained Muzeni's journals. 'What are we going to do with them?'
Terrel had given this some thought - but beyond the obvious fact that the books had to be rescued from the observatory, he had not come up with many ideas. There must be lots of possible hiding places in the overgrown cemetery, but choosing one of them in the dark wasn't going to be easy.
'Let's get them outside first,' he said.
'Why not put them in one of the tombs?' Elam suggested, as they edged towards the door. 'Half of them are falling down anyway - and no one's going to investigate their contents too closely.'
'I thought of that,' Terrel replied. 'I'm just not sure we'll find one with enough space for the chest.'
'We could take the journals out.'
'No. They'd rot away in a few days. The chest is the only thing that's preserved them for so long.'
They had managed to manoeuvre the heavy trunk out of the half-open door by now, and set it down next to the forlorn pile of bones. In the varied moonlight the necropolis was a place of whispering shadows and half-seen movement. It made both boys nervous, although neither was prepared to admit it.
They had waited beneath the roof timbers of the haven for several hours, taking it in turns to snatch what sleep they could, before leaving the house some time after midnight. By then all had been quiet - and if any sentries were still on duty, they hadn't noticed two small figures creeping away from the south wing. Elam had adjusted to being outside at night more quickly than Terrel had done on his earlier escapade, and they had reached the top of the hill without incident. They had planned to spend as little time there as possible, then return to their hiding place inside the house while the night was still at its darkest, but now their indecision was threatening to delay them.
'All right. Let's split up and investigate,' Elam suggested. 'If you find anywhere suitable, come back here and call.' He hooted in a passable imitation of a tawny owl. In the distance a real owl hooted back, and the two friends laughed nervously. 'You see, even she agrees,' Elam said.
They set off in opposite directions, picking their way through the long grass.
It was Terrel who found the ideal hiding place. The sepulchre was surrounded by brambles except on its lowest side, so that it could not be seen from above, and one end of the stone construction had crumbled to dust, leaving a gaping black hole. Terrel investigated gingerly, and then, as he emerged into the starlight again, a large shape flew past, gliding in perfect silence until a wavering cry made him jump. Then he smiled. It seemed that the owl approved of his choice.
Actually getting the chest inside proved straightforward enough, but it was still hard work and took much longer than the boys had hoped. When it was finally done, they were both smeared with dust and their arms were covered with scratches. However, as their clothes were already filthy from the work they had been doing for the last few days, this did not concern them too much. They left quickly, hoping their efforts had not left too obvious a trail.
'Don't worry,' Elam commented as they made their way down towards the gap in the fence. 'By the time the soldiers have found their way up here and looked around a bit, there'll be grass flattened all over the place.'
'I still don't like the thought of them invading Muzeni's home,' Terrel replied.
'We did,' Elam pointed out.
'That's different. We were meant to find it.'
Elam refrained from comment, concentrating on making his way through the dense undergrowth. Once they were outside the fence, he turned right without thinking, intending to retrace their circuitous route back to the house, but Terrel caught his arm.
'I'm going this way,' he said, nodding in the opposite direction.
'Why?'
'I want to see Alyssa.'
'It's dark! You won't be able to see anything.'
'No, but if she's awake, I can talk to her,' Terrel said optimistically. 'Now we're out here anyway, I'm going. I don't know when I'll get another chance.'
'If we go that way we'll be in the open for much longer,' Elam pointed out.
'That's a risk I'm prepared to take.'
'AH right.' Elam gave in, realizing that this was not an argument he was going to win. 'I'll come with you.'
'You don't have to,' Terrel said.
Elam just looked at him. A few moments later, they set off together.
As they rounded the northwest rim of the hill and saw the great bulk of Havenmoon looming before them, it was impossible not to imagine eyes peering out at them from all those blank and shuttered windows. Crouching down, they watched for a while, but saw no movement anywhere. Clouds were covering the moons now, and the only light on the scene came from the smouldering embers of the two great bonfires to either side of the house. The dull red glow gave the huge house an almost demonic presence.
The two boys glanced at each other and nodded, then ran down the slope and across the open space beyond until they reached the deeper shadows beneath the north facade. The remains of the fire were out of sight now, around the corners to either side. Crouched down and breathing hard, they listened for any sound of an alarm being raised, but the silence was almost complete.