Aleksandr Voinov by A Taste for Poison

Author:A Taste for Poison [Poison, A Taste for]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: dpgroup
Published: 2014-06-28T01:49:42+00:00

Amrash turned her head. “Welcome aboard my ship. I

hope we’re not too much of an imposition.”

The older official cleared her throat. “By the grace of the

gods, we’re happy to welcome you, though we need to know

who you are and to what end you’ve come.”

“I’m Ambassador Amrash of the Jaishani. I’ve sailed

here from Dalman.” Amrash lifted an eyebrow. “And the end

for which I’m here is delicate.” She bent forward. “Delicate

enough that it is also urgent. I must speak to the Elder as soon as possible.”

The officials nodded and exchanged glances again. “We

will send a messenger to the sanctum to alert him to your

presence, Ambassador.”

“No. You will go yourself. I do not want everybody and

sundry to know.” Amrash uncrossed her legs and leaned

further forward. “Eyes are watching me, and they don’t belong

to friends of the Elder. If my mission gets compromised,

there’s little I can do to help this fine city and its master.” 184

The official nodded and cleared his throat. “Immediately,

my lady. It is just that I won’t be pure enough to stand before the Elder.”

“Then find somebody who is, and don’t let them out

of your sight. This is a matter of life and death. Or war and

peace.”

“At once, my lady. We shall do what we can.” Nervously,

the officials rose again, clearly unsure of what to do and how to bid their good-byes, but Amrash merely remained seated

and smiled vaguely.

“Thank you. You can go now. We will be waiting here.”

The officials left again, now visibly shaken by the

encounter. Only when the gangplank was pulled up again did

Amrash stand and motion for Kendras and Dev to stand too.

“See, Kendras. A little gold goes a long way.”

“They might not have the authority to demand to see the

Elder.” Kendras stretched out his legs.

“I’ve shown them enough that whoever they’ll speak to

will consider it important to at least try.”

“But won’t it . . . create problems with Adrastes?”

“Maybe.” Amrash shook her head. “Although the king

hasn’t made any claims on my loyalty yet—that is, beyond my

legion. I do not have to tell him of every step I’m taking. I did not tell him of the letter you sent me.”

“Why does he think you left?”

“To get out of that soul-chilling cold in the palace.”

Amrash frowned. “I don’t know how you stand it.”

“I’m used to it. So’s Dev.”

“It’s making me heartsick.” Amrash gathered up the white

furs and draped them over her shoulders. “Summon me only

when they return to tell us we can meet the Elder.”

185

Long before any such answer, though, Kendras spotted

more people taking an interest in the ship. At the end of the

quay, where a small number of food stalls catered to arrivals, stowaways, and the occasional guard, two figures appeared

and didn’t leave. They didn’t eat from the stalls, and they

didn’t seem to speak to anybody, and nobody addressed or

challenged them. In fact, they commanded a lot of open

space around them, as everybody who passed gave them a

wide berth.

When one of them came closer, Kendras saw what he’d

already expected. Black feathers woven into his dark hair

became visible when he turned his head.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.