Shadow Chaser by Alexey Pehov

Author:Alexey Pehov [Pehov, Alexey]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9780765324047
Publisher: Tor Books
Published: 2011-04-12T04:00:00+00:00

9

AND THE KEY WILL DECIDE WHO TO HELP

“Don’t even think about it, you’re not coming with me,” I hissed at Kli-Kli.

“That’s what you think! But I’m coming anyway!” the jester retorted.

“I told you, stay here!”

“Harold, you can leave me here, but I’ll still follow you, no matter what you do! And what’s more, you’ve got my favorite medallion hanging round your neck now. If you don’t let me come, then I’ll take it back.”

I gritted my teeth and gazed at the wall surrounding Balistan Pargaid’s estate. Not for the first time in the last five minutes.

Night. Silence. The moon and the stars were hidden behind the clouds. Only the light from the large lanterns hanging beside the gate made it possible to see anything. Ideal conditions for my kind of work. The darker it was, the easier it would be to get the job done. Although when Kli-Kli’s around, it’s best to forget about words like “easy.”

Almost a full day had gone by since we attended the count’s reception, and now here I was, lying on my stomach beside the wall of his estate. This was the perfect time to steal into the mansion house and take back what belonged to us. To be quite honest, I’d wanted to take the risk and break into the count’s home on the night of the reception, but Miralissa had insisted that we mustn’t act in the heat of the moment. Even the fact that Lafresa had shown up didn’t persuade her. When I told her about it, the elfess simply laughed and said that breaking the bonds was not that simple and the Master’s envoy would have to wait for an auspicious conjunction of the stars.

While I was making genteel conversation with the nobility, the others hadn’t wasted any time. Miralissa checked the house for magical surprises and discovered that all the windows on the second floor were protected by defensive spells. Egrassa got hold of a detailed plan of the house from somewhere (how he managed that, I have no idea!), and the Wild Hearts, who had smuggled a couple of bottles of fine wine from Master Quidd’s cellar into the estate, got talking with five of the guards and found out the actual routes followed by the patrols, as well as their schedule. So now I was all set. All I had to do was get in, take the Key, and get out before it was missed.

Really, what could be simpler than that?

And then, when everything was ready, and I was all set to get started, Ell, Egrassa, Markauz, Eel, and Arnkh announced that they were going with me. Of course, I was indignant at the very idea and fervently opposed it. The last thing I wanted was an entire crowd tagging along!

“And what if they spot you? Who’s going to cover you, Harold?”

“They won’t spot me,” I insisted stubbornly, but it was no use. The five of them set off with me, while the others started hastily packing all our things, so that when we got back we could leave the city immediately.

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