THE ALTON GIFT by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Author:Marion Zimmer Bradley [Bradley, Marion Zimmer]
Language: por
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

BOOK III

25

Look! There's Thendara at last!" Il ona, who had ridden a little ahead of the others,

stood up in her stirrups for a better view. Her mount, one of the sturdy, shaggy-

maned mountain horses from Nevarsin, shook its head, sending the bridle rings

jingling in the crisp air. "I can see Comyn Castle and the Terran Headquarters!"

235

They had taken advantage of the lengthening days to press on, climbing the pass,

and now looked down the long slopes to the valley where the old city sat like a faded

jewel. Spires and towers of pale stone, set with the translucent blue panels so loved

by Darkovans, glimmered in the sun. Over the centuries since the spaceport was first

built, the Federation edifices had lost their hard lines and pristine whiteness,

softening in the accumulation of seasons. At the same time, a sprinkling of newer

Darkovan mansions had been modeled on the stark architecture of the Terran Zone,

so that the differences between the two cultures blurred. Even so, the ancient stone

Castle remained defiantly untouched by the passage of time.

While they were on the road, Illona's exuberance, as if she were on some wondrous

adventure, had infected Domenic. They had made love with the fevered, fragile

urgency of a candle burning to its very end. Every glance, every touch, every

moment together became infinitely precious, because it might be their last.

He regretted, too, the end of the special joy of traveling through mountains, ragged

hills, and sloping pastures, where the ever-changing textures of rock and soil, water

and sky, sang through his laran.

Now, as they neared the end of their journey together, Domenic dreaded their arrival.

Illona would leave him to take her place with the other Keepers for the historic first

meeting of their Council, and he… he would return to his own life, the politics of the

Comyn, and the Regency.

And Alanna.

Domenic's heart plummeted. Never again would he be free to laugh simply because

Illona did, or to look at her with his heart in his eyes. Aldones only knew how he was

going to hide his true feelings from his mother. He couldn't very well go through his

days with a telepathic damper strapped to his belt. He would simply have to rely

upon the politeness of a telepathic society and his own meticulously honorable

behavior.

Alanna would guess. Oh, gods, what could he tell her? That he had given his heart

to another woman? Yet how could he lie? How could he hurt her in that way?

She was his promised bride. They had been friends since she had first arrived at

Castle. He had loved her as a playfellow, a cousin, and yes, for a time, as a

desirable young woman.

Was there any hope, any way through this tangle? Would Alanna agree to return to

Arilinn in the hope of someday being able to enjoy normal sexual intimacy? No, that

236

was only half the problem. Would he ever be able to think of her in that way, after

what he had shared with Illona?

He could not dishonor his pledge to Alanna, and he did care for her. He would not

willingly cause her pain.

It was said that

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