Adams, Robert -- Horseclans - 01 by The Coming Of The Horseclans

Author:The Coming Of The Horseclans
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2012-07-19T18:40:58+00:00

Chapter 15

Hear, oh Wind, the cry of a clan, bereaved;

of how Linsee mourns the loss of one held dear… .

—Clan Linsee Death Chant

Aldora was panting up another of the rolling hills when Ishe fell. In the second that she lay on the ground, it communicated a swelling vibration to her flesh. Then Mole-‘ bounded up and commenced to lick at her dusty face.

“What threatens, black-baked Cat-sister? Why did you mindcall?”

“Did I?” asked Aldora. “I must have done so unconsciously then.”

“Indeed you did, Cat-sister.” Mole-Fur affirmed. “And if that was an unconscious call, Sun and Wind preserve my poor mind from one of your conscious calls!”

Then Aldora recalled the reason and waved an arm in the direction from which she had come. “Oh please, Mole-Fur, it’s Beti … three men are after us and she’s trying to stop them all alone, with only a bow.”

Taking a layout of the topography of the area in which Beti was making her stand from Aldora’s memory, the young cat raced to the rescue.

Djo-Sahl, having finally dislodged the stubborn pebble, had just remounted when he saw—at about a half-mile’s range—Milo and his body of warriors.

“Gawdayum!” he ejaculated as he hurriedly untied the mule’s leadrope. “I thought they let us go too easy! Now they comin’ for us!”

Discarding his lance, he spurred off at a tangent to his original course, heading due-west. The Triple Threat were not really friends and he saw no need to warn them of the approaching nomads.

“The hell we’ll kill ‘er!” was Pawl’s reply to Deeuee’s stupid suggestion. “You jes’ go down there an’ get the silver off of ol’ Hahnz. He ain’t gonna be needin’ it no more. I’ll tie ‘er up and get ‘er on ‘er horse. The both of ‘em should bring right fair prices, down Karaleenos way.”

By the time his dim-witted brother regained to the top of the hill—having relieved their former comrade’s body of the purse, a couple of silver arms-rings, and a handsome Ehleenoee dirk—Pawl had Beti tied securely over Morning-Mist’s back and had remounted bis own horse.

As Deeuee mounted he called, “Which way’d the other one go?”

His brother shrugged. “I dunno, and it’d take too long to hunt ‘er. Let’s go.”

“Hey,” yelped Deeuee, “how ‘bout ol’ Djo-Sahl? We oughta wait for him …”

Pawl shook his head and hooked a thumb at their unconscious captive. “You wanta have to take thirds on ‘er all the way down to Karaleenos, and then split her price three ways? B’sides, he’s prob’ly took off with the mule and stuff anyhow.”

Deeuee was known to be quite a trencherman. Now, he looked as if he was about to cry. “But that means he’s got all of the food. We’ll starve!”

Pawl laughed harshly and slapped the two purses hung under his hauberk. “Damfool boy, I don’t know why Pa didn’ drown you, anyhow! You got no more brains ‘n a houn’-dog. We gonna be trav’lin through farming country, ‘tween our silver and our swords, we won’t have no trouble fillin’ our bellies.”

They

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