"Zelazny, Roger - Amber 05 - Courts Of Chaos" - читать интересную книгу автора (Zelazny Roger)

"True. So give me a hand."
He rose, came to my side. Benedict and Gйrard also approached.
"This is not really necessary," Dara protested.
I ignored her and concentrated on the delicate features of my red-haired sister. Moments later, we had contact.
"Fiona," I asked, seeing from the background that she was still in residence at the heart of things, "is Dad there?"
"Yes," she said, smiling tightly. "He is inside with Dworkin."
"Listen, urgency prevails. I do not know whether or not you know Dara, but she is here--"
"I know who she is, but I have never met her."
"Well, she claims she has an attack order for Benedict, from Dad. She has his signet to back it up, but he did not speak of this earlier. Do you know anything about it?"
"No," she said. "All we did was exchange greetings when he and Dworkin were out here earlier to look at the Pattern. I had some suspicions then, though, and this confirms them."
"Suspicions? What do you mean?"
"I think Dad is going to try to repair the Pattern. He has the Jewel with him, and I overheard some of the things he said to Dworkin. If he makes the attempt, they will be aware of it in the Courts of Chaos the moment that he begins. They will try to stop him. He would want to strike first to keep them occupied. Only..."
"What?"
"It is going to kill him, Corwin. I know that much about it. Whether he succeeds or fails, he will be destroyed in the process."
"I find it hard to believe."
"That a king would give up his life for the realm?"
"That Dad would."
"Then either he has changed or you never really knew him. But I do believe he is going to try it."
"Then why send his latest order by someone he knows we do not really trust?"
"To show that he wants you to trust her, I would guess, once he has confirmed it."
"It seems a roundabout way of doing things, but I agree that we should not act without that confirmation. Can you get it for us?"
"I will try. I will get back to you as soon as I have spoken with him."
She broke the contact.
I turned toward Dara, who had heard only our side of the conversation.
"Do you know what Dad is going to do right now?" I asked her.
"Something involving the black road," she said. "He had indicated that much. What, though, or how, he did not say."
I turned away. I squared my cards and encased them. I did not like this turning of events. This entire day had started badly, and things had been going downhill ever since. It was only a little past lunchtime, too. I shook my head. When I had spoken with him, Dworkin had described the results of any attempt to repair the Pattern, and they had sounded pretty horrendous to me. Supposing Dad tried it, failed, and got himself killed in the attempt? Where would we be then? Right where we were now, only without a leader, on the eve of battle--and with the succession problem stirring again. That whole ghastly business would be in the back of our minds as we rode to the wars, and we would all begin our private arrangements to fight one another once more as soon as the current enemy was dealt with. There had to be another way of handling things. Better Dad alive and on the throne than a revival of the succession intrigues.
"What are we waiting for?" Dara asked. "Confirmation?"
"Yes," I replied.
Random began to pace. Benedict seated himself and tested the dressing on his arm. Gйrard leaned against the mantelpiece. I stood and thought. An idea came to me just then. I pushed it away immediately, but it returned. I did not like it, but that had nothing to do with practicalities. I would have to move quickly, though, before I had a chance to talk myself around to another viewpoint. No. I would stick with this one. Damn it!
There came a stirring of contact. I waited. Moments later, I regarded Fiona again. She stood in a familiar place that it took me several seconds to recognize: Dworkin's sitting room, on the other side of the heavy door at the back of the cave. Dad and Dworkin were both with her. Dad had dropped his Ganelon disguise and was his old self once again. I saw that he wore the Jewel.
"Corwin," Fiona said, "it is true. Dad did send the attack order with Dara, and he expected this call for confirmation. I--"
"Fiona, bring me through."
"What?"
"You heard me. Now!"
I extended my right hand. She reached forward and we touched.
"Corwin!" Random shouted. "What's happening!"
Benedict was on his feet, Gйrard already moving toward me.
"You will hear about it shortly," I said, and I stepped forward.
I squeezed her hand before I released it and I smiled.
"Thanks, Fi. Hello, Dad. Hi, Dworkin. How's everything?"
I glanced once at the heavy door, saw that it stood open. Then I passed around Fiona and moved toward them. Dad's head was lowered, his eyes narrowed. I knew that look.
"What is this, Corwin? You are here without leave," he said. "I have confirmed that damned order, now I expect it to be carried out."
"It will be," I said, nodding. "I did not come here to argue about that."
"What, then?"
I moved nearer, calculating my words as well as the distance. I was glad that he had remained seated.
"For a time we rode as comrades," I said. "Damned if I did not come to like you then. I never had before, you know. Never had guts enough to say that before either, but you know it is true. I like to think that that is how things could have been, if we had not been what we are to each other." For the barest moment, his gaze seemed to soften as I positioned myself. Then, "At any rate," I went on, "I am going to believe in you that way rather than this way, because there is something I would never have done for you otherwise."
"What?" he asked.
"This."
I seized the Jewel with an upward sweeping motion and snapped the chain up over his head. I pivoted on my heel then and raced across the room and through the door. I drew it shut behind me and snapped it to. I could see no way to bar it from the outside, so I ran on, retracing the route through the cave from that night I had followed Dworkin along it. Behind me, I heard the expected bellow.