"Holly Lisle - Secret Texts 2 - Vengeance Of Dragons" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lisle Holly)

* * *

“That went well, I think,” VeshreGalweigh said. She was head of the Goft Wolves, a wizard
oftremendous talent and deceptive ferocity who disguised thatferocity behind a jovial manner and
a pleasantly plump facade.

Shaid pulled his attention from the enchanting view of thecountryside that slid beneath the
airible, and leaned back on thecushioned seat. “Probably less well than it seemed;nevertheless,
I’m pleased.”

“You should be ecstatic.” Veshre snorted. “Theyagreed to supply their troops to assist us in our
attack on one oftheir ships, to give us undisputed claim to the Mirror ofSouls, and to destroy that
bitch, Kait. And they also agreed tokill off the only people who stand between you and Galweigh
House.Meanwhile, you already have the Dokteeraks lined up to wipe out thesurviving Sabirs
after they clear out Galweigh House but beforethey can claim it. That was the most brilliant bit of
negotiatingI’ve ever seen.”

Shaid sighed. “Perowin, the greatest of the Ancients’diplomats, once said, ‘Diplomacy is the art
of getting yourenemy to cut his own throat for you, convincing him to do itoutside where he
won’t leave a mess, and making him believehe’s getting the best end of the bargain while he
doesit.’ I aspire to make that very bargain someday, but in themeantime . . .” He thought for a
moment, thengrinned broadly, and finally began to laugh. “In the meantime,by the gods, I came
pretty close, didn’t I?”

* * *

In the courtyard beside the Palm Hall, three blackfawns strolled between the fountain and the
waterfall, grazing onhibiscus flowers. On a rotunda well away from the falls, a band ofRophetian
musicians played dool dlarmas — traditionalRophetian dancing airs — for the entertainment of
the Family.Crispin Sabir sat on the windowsill in the room above the hall andwatched the deer
and the dancers and listened to the cheerfulmusic, which suited his mood.

His brother Anwyn, rummaging around the shelves along the innerwall of the room, said, “The
last bastard that was in herefinished off the paurel and didn’t replace thebottle.”

Crispin laughed. “I think that bastard was you. You’rethe only one in the Family who’ll drink the
vile stuff, andyou get so drunk when you do that you don’t remember havingdone it.”
Anwyn squatted on his hocks, balancing delicately on his clovenhooves, and rubbed absently at
the horns that curled from hisforehead. After a moment he said, “You might be right, come
tothink of it. I brought a girl in here only a week ago. I might havedrunk it then.”

After years of Scarring induced by the constant practice of darsharen — the sacrifice-magic of
the Wolves —nothing human remained of Anwyn’s body. Besides the horns andthe hooves,
spikes protruded from his spine and joints, scalescovered what had once been smooth skin, and
talons curved from hisfingertips. Crispin’s body had taken as much of the rewhah, the rebound
magic, as Anwyn’s had, but becauseCrispin was Karnee, his body had absorbed it and fought off
thechanges the same way it reverted to human form after a Shift.Anwyn, without the benefits of
the Curse, had been trapped in anincreasingly hideous form.

Crispin raised an eyebrow. Girls were never with Anwyn bychoice. “A girl?”