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

Crouching down behind the wall, they listened to the voices, which were growing louder again. A swaying yellow light came from the yard, making it obvious that someone had carried a lamp outside, and Terrel risked peeking over the top of the wall. He saw Jehar striding towards the barn, with Ferrand and Ty close behind him.
'I told you to wait, boy!' the farmer roared.
'I'm not a boy,' Jehar replied angrily, rounding on his father. 'I'm going to finish this.'
He turned back and Terrel saw, to his horror, that Jehar was carrying an axe.
'Don't you think-' Ty began.
'Shut up,' Jehar snapped and marched towards the barn again, only to be pulled back when Ferrand grabbed his arm.
Jehar shoved his father away, and the older man fell to the ground heavily.
'If you're too blind to see what's happening under your own nose, just keep out of my way!'
Terrel was horrified at the venom in Jehar's words. He had almost begun to think of himself as part of this family, but now it seemed he was responsible for tearing it apart.
Jehar had only gone a few paces when a high-pitched scream stopped him in his tracks. All three men looked round as Mia came running from the cottage that adjoined the main farmhouse.
'Sara's gone!' she wailed. 'She's not in her bed.'
'He's got her,' Jehar exclaimed, glancing at Ty. 'Are you convinced now?'
As Ferrand struggled to his feet, the two younger men began to run towards the barn, both calling Sarafia's name. The girl herself reached up and pulled Terrel down beside her.
'Stop gawking,' she hissed- 'They'll see you.'
'You should-' he began, but she silenced him with a wave of her hand.
'Once they realize we're not there, they'll start looking further afield,' she said, sounding remarkably calm. 'If we can get to the woods, they'll never find us. Come on.'
Without giving him a chance to respond, she set off down the trail, bent low to the ground. After a moment's hesitation, Terrel followed, doing his best to keep up with her. As he ran, he heard the men calling her name again.
When they reached the woods, Sarafia led him into the deeper shadows until they found a dendron tree, whose low, overhanging branches formed a sort of living cave. From there they could watch the lane while remaining invisible themselves. Neither spoke for a while, as they got their breath back and assured themselves that they had not been followed.
Eventually, Sarafia let out a long sigh and sat down on the bare earth. Too dazed to even think of doing anything else, Terrel sat down beside her. She turned to him then, and he saw that her eyes were bright with excitement as well as fear.
'Who were you talking to?' she asked.
There was a long pause before Terrel answered, his hesitation betraying him even as he tried to think of what to tell her. A dozen different explanations flashed through his mind, ranging from outright denial to fanciful invention, but each seemed more unlikely than the last - and the truth was the most absurd of all. In the end he chose the one that seemed the most mundane; and hoped that Sarafia would not question him too closely.
'A girl,' he said at last.
'Oh.'
He heard the disappointment in her voice, and could not fathom the reason for it.
'She's called Alyssa?'
'Yes. Look, your parents must be worried. Shouldn't you-'
'I don't know anyone around here called that,' she said, refusing to be sidetracked.
'She's not from around here.'
'She's from where you used to live?'
'Yes, but-'
'So she's been with you all the time?'
'No.'
'Where is she now? How did she get away?'
'Look, Sara, I can't explain. Just-'
'Why not?' she demanded. 'I thought we were friends.'
Terrel could see moonlit tears brimming in her eyes now, and felt terrible about deceiving her.
'We are,' he claimed.
'I don't understand this,' Sarafia declared, sounding almost angry now. 'Jehar said no one could have got up there without him seeing - and it was an owl he heard. He was outside until he heard you call out her name, and you sounded surprised.'
'I was surprised,' Terrel said truthfully.
'And then you said "But you're an owl!", ' she went on. 'What did that mean?'
'I didn't . . . Jehar must have been mistaken.'
'No. He was very sure about what he heard. He kept repeating it over and over. There wasn't a girl with you at all, was there?'
'Yes, there was,' Terrel said desperately.
'Why are you lying to me?' She was crying openly now. 'I helped you escape. I hate you.'
This was more than Terrel could bear. It seemed not only pointless but cruel to try to maintain the deception - and Sarafia was right. He owed her the truth.
'Alyssa was there,' he said quietly, 'but she was in the shape of an owl.'
The relief he felt at this admission was qualified by Sarafia's reaction. There were no tears now, and she stared at him with a wide-eyed expression that he could not decipher.
'So you are an enchanter!' she breathed. 'No,' he replied earnestly, shaking his head. 'I didn't do anything. She's the one-'
'An enchantress?' the girl gasped in wonder. 'Has she put you under a spell?'
'No,' he said, trying not to smile. Not the sort of spell you mean anyway, he added silently.