"Julia Gray - Guardian 04 - The Red Glacier" - читать интересную книгу автора (Gray Julia)

shoulder of his coat. Underneath was a small circular patch of red cloth.
'So the red and black are allies?' Terrel queried. 'In the war?'
Kjolur looked startled.
'Surely you know that much,' he said.
Terrel shook his head.
'Tell me.'
Over the next half an hour, Terrel learnt more about Myvatan than he had in
all his previous conversations put together. And almost all of it was
unpleasant.
'Akranes is in the Red Quarter, of course,' the islander
concluded. 'I wouldn't be on board if we weren't heading for one of our ports.
You'll find a welcome there if you can't persuade Ostan to take you to Whale
Ness.'
'Which quarter is that in?' Terrel asked.
'Theoretically it's in the Black, which would be good for you, but ownership
of the headland is disputed, which is why it's a forbidden zone. You still
want to risk landing there?'
After what he'd been told, Terrel's doubts were growing. But then he
remembered the words from the Tindaya Code and knew he had no choice.
'Yes,' he said. 'If Ostan will give me a chance.'
Kjolur looked thoughtful.
'Do you think you could persuade him for me?' Terrel ventured.
'I don't think my word counts for much with the captain,' the merchant said
apologetically.
'More than mine, at a guess,' Terrel muttered.
'I wish you well, though,' Kjolur added. 'Every man must follow his own path,
no matter where it leads.'
Increasing cloud cover and a lack of strong moonlight made that night darker
than usual, but Terrel was fascinated to see patches of almost luminous colour
— white with traces of pale green — floating upon the waves around the ship.
He eventually realized that they were chunks of ice, and the discovery made
him shiver in spite of his warm clothing.
As he went below decks to try to get some sleep, he wondered whether Kjolur
might really prove to be an ally in his quest. The merchant was difficult to
read. Terrel still didn't know whether the islander had believed his own
answers, nor did he know whether everything he had been told was true. Had
Kjolur's version of events been the whole story?
Terrel continued brooding once he was settled in his gently swaying hammock.
Just before he fell asleep, it occurred to him that although he had been told
quite a lot about Myvatan, and had in turn revealed a good deal about himself,
he had learnt almost nothing about the merchant -or his trade. Had they both
been hiding things from each other?
Chapter Four
Terrel was woken by Kahl the next morning. 'The skipper wants to see you.'
'What about?' Terrel mumbled. 'He didn't tell me. You'd better go and find
out.'
'Do you still want to go to Whale Ness?'
'Yes.'
'Then we'll go. I think you're mad, but it's your life.'
'Thank you.'