[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
his damn lucky so you pointed him at me. What did you expect? That I'd keep
him out of your way until you had your seventy royals? Or was that just a
number you threw at Mother? Did your aromacist friend make you the same
sheep-shite promise you gave the Nighter: Give me what I want and I'll make
you my partner? By Lord
Ils's thousandth eye, what else have you been doing besides making us the
guarantor for every bet in
Sanctuary?"
"I'd have split the royals with you, Bez& with you and the frackin' froggin'
Nighter!" Perrez studied his torn, stained sleeve before cursing softly and
swiping his face with the cloth. He ignored the jibe about his oddsmaking
activities. "It was a fair deal, Bez, a good price. That 'lucky' wasn't any
ordinary piece of glass. It's an attractor
. The fish-folk made them: hollow bulbs filled with their magic. If you want
something bad enough it'll bring it to you, or lead you there. Worth their
frackin' froggin' weight in gold when the fish-folk made them and ten times
that now. Nareel "
"Your buyer? The aromacist? The man who strung you up?" Perrez hesitated, then
nodded. "Nareel will get a thousand for it up in Ilsig& once we'd gotten the
crabs out of it. Shalpa! Those Nighters were using a fish-eye attractor as
bait in their crab traps! Now, there's a waste, Bez, a true crime. Once we got
it focused on gold-"
"What '
we
,' Perrez? I should think it would be clear even to you that this Nareel has
plans that don't
involve you."
Perrez wanted to disagree; Bezul could see the arguments forming, then fading
on his brother's face. It was painful to watch, but Bezul did, in icy silence,
until Perrez broke.
"I should have come to you," he admitted. "As soon as I realized what the
Nighter had baiting his traps, I
should have come to you and let you handle everything: getting it away from
the Nighter and finding a buyer, too. But it was going so well& I was going to
come to you with the seventy royals, Bez, I
swear
Page 130
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
I
was. I'd lay them down on the counter and you'd be proud of me. Shalpa, Bez I
don't want to be
Nareel's partner. I want to be yours. I want you to trust me with the changing
house. You've done so well, and what do I have to show for myself?" From his
knees, Perrez reached up to take his elder brother's hand. "Help me, Bez. I
know where Nareel's gone, I think. If you confront him, he'll honor his
bargain. I'm begging you, Bez. Our honor's at stake, here. You can't let
Nareel get away with what he's done."
It was a good speech and it might have melted Bezul's heart, if he hadn't
heard similar speeches too many times before. He withdrew his hand. "Nareel's
robbed a thief. Where's the honor on either side in that?
That glass never belonged to you. No, it's over. The aromacist's made a fool
of you, and there it ends.
Stand up. We're going home. Be grateful you still have one& and pray you've
figured the odds right.
What little I hear, it's not going the way anyone expected."
With a whimpering groan, Perrez rose unsteadily. His brother could not tell
how much was genuine pain, how much just another part of the act.
"What about Dace?" Perrez asked. "If the attractor wasn't mine, then it
belongs to the Nighter, not
Nareel. We can't walk away, Bez. We've still got to get it back."
Bezul scarcely believed what he was hearing. "Don't you " he cut himself
short. The aromacist's workroom was no place to continue an argument with
Perrez, who would neither listen nor change. "I
gave Dace one of Father's glass bulbs to replace his 'red lucky.' "
He returned to the garden. Perrez followed.
"You can't do that, Bez. You can't replace a fish-eye attractor with a bulb of
ordinary glass. It's not going to catch crabs. I mean, a few nights, and he's
going to know it's not their frackin' froggin' lucky."
"Maybe; maybe not."
"No maybes. The attractor's got pull
, froggin' fish-eye sorcery. There's nothing in Father's chest to compare with
it, nothing in the whole shop. Dace'll be back& with his relatives. I've seen
'em. The gimp's one of the normal
Nighters, Bez. You've got to think they've been screwing rats and trolls "
Bezul opened the gate. He had the impression of a face and a yell, then he was
reeling as something surged past him. The fence kept Bezul upright. Perrez was
not so fortunate. He was on his back, bellowing panic and pain, beneath not
the mysterious aromacist, but Dace, who attacked him with wild fury. Bezul
seized the youth's shoulder, hoping to pull him off Perrez, but he
underestimated Dace's determination, not to mention his skills and his
strength. The Nighter broke free with an elbow jab between Bezul's ribs.
With greater caution and an eye for self-defense, Bezul tried again and
succeeded.
"He can't say that!" Dace growled while struggling to get his fists on Perrez
again. "He lied. He stole the lucky."
Realizing that he couldn't break free, Dace twisted about and attacked Bezul.
Bezul successfully defended his groin and his gut, but lost his grip when Dace
stomped his instep. Still, he caught the Nighter before he laid into Perrez.
"Enough!" Bezul gave Dace a shove into the fence that nearly toppled it and
quieted the youth. "Yes, he stole it and lost it, because he's a frogging [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl szkicerysunki.xlx.pl
his damn lucky so you pointed him at me. What did you expect? That I'd keep
him out of your way until you had your seventy royals? Or was that just a
number you threw at Mother? Did your aromacist friend make you the same
sheep-shite promise you gave the Nighter: Give me what I want and I'll make
you my partner? By Lord
Ils's thousandth eye, what else have you been doing besides making us the
guarantor for every bet in
Sanctuary?"
"I'd have split the royals with you, Bez& with you and the frackin' froggin'
Nighter!" Perrez studied his torn, stained sleeve before cursing softly and
swiping his face with the cloth. He ignored the jibe about his oddsmaking
activities. "It was a fair deal, Bez, a good price. That 'lucky' wasn't any
ordinary piece of glass. It's an attractor
. The fish-folk made them: hollow bulbs filled with their magic. If you want
something bad enough it'll bring it to you, or lead you there. Worth their
frackin' froggin' weight in gold when the fish-folk made them and ten times
that now. Nareel "
"Your buyer? The aromacist? The man who strung you up?" Perrez hesitated, then
nodded. "Nareel will get a thousand for it up in Ilsig& once we'd gotten the
crabs out of it. Shalpa! Those Nighters were using a fish-eye attractor as
bait in their crab traps! Now, there's a waste, Bez, a true crime. Once we got
it focused on gold-"
"What '
we
,' Perrez? I should think it would be clear even to you that this Nareel has
plans that don't
involve you."
Perrez wanted to disagree; Bezul could see the arguments forming, then fading
on his brother's face. It was painful to watch, but Bezul did, in icy silence,
until Perrez broke.
"I should have come to you," he admitted. "As soon as I realized what the
Nighter had baiting his traps, I
should have come to you and let you handle everything: getting it away from
the Nighter and finding a buyer, too. But it was going so well& I was going to
come to you with the seventy royals, Bez, I
swear
Page 130
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
I
was. I'd lay them down on the counter and you'd be proud of me. Shalpa, Bez I
don't want to be
Nareel's partner. I want to be yours. I want you to trust me with the changing
house. You've done so well, and what do I have to show for myself?" From his
knees, Perrez reached up to take his elder brother's hand. "Help me, Bez. I
know where Nareel's gone, I think. If you confront him, he'll honor his
bargain. I'm begging you, Bez. Our honor's at stake, here. You can't let
Nareel get away with what he's done."
It was a good speech and it might have melted Bezul's heart, if he hadn't
heard similar speeches too many times before. He withdrew his hand. "Nareel's
robbed a thief. Where's the honor on either side in that?
That glass never belonged to you. No, it's over. The aromacist's made a fool
of you, and there it ends.
Stand up. We're going home. Be grateful you still have one& and pray you've
figured the odds right.
What little I hear, it's not going the way anyone expected."
With a whimpering groan, Perrez rose unsteadily. His brother could not tell
how much was genuine pain, how much just another part of the act.
"What about Dace?" Perrez asked. "If the attractor wasn't mine, then it
belongs to the Nighter, not
Nareel. We can't walk away, Bez. We've still got to get it back."
Bezul scarcely believed what he was hearing. "Don't you " he cut himself
short. The aromacist's workroom was no place to continue an argument with
Perrez, who would neither listen nor change. "I
gave Dace one of Father's glass bulbs to replace his 'red lucky.' "
He returned to the garden. Perrez followed.
"You can't do that, Bez. You can't replace a fish-eye attractor with a bulb of
ordinary glass. It's not going to catch crabs. I mean, a few nights, and he's
going to know it's not their frackin' froggin' lucky."
"Maybe; maybe not."
"No maybes. The attractor's got pull
, froggin' fish-eye sorcery. There's nothing in Father's chest to compare with
it, nothing in the whole shop. Dace'll be back& with his relatives. I've seen
'em. The gimp's one of the normal
Nighters, Bez. You've got to think they've been screwing rats and trolls "
Bezul opened the gate. He had the impression of a face and a yell, then he was
reeling as something surged past him. The fence kept Bezul upright. Perrez was
not so fortunate. He was on his back, bellowing panic and pain, beneath not
the mysterious aromacist, but Dace, who attacked him with wild fury. Bezul
seized the youth's shoulder, hoping to pull him off Perrez, but he
underestimated Dace's determination, not to mention his skills and his
strength. The Nighter broke free with an elbow jab between Bezul's ribs.
With greater caution and an eye for self-defense, Bezul tried again and
succeeded.
"He can't say that!" Dace growled while struggling to get his fists on Perrez
again. "He lied. He stole the lucky."
Realizing that he couldn't break free, Dace twisted about and attacked Bezul.
Bezul successfully defended his groin and his gut, but lost his grip when Dace
stomped his instep. Still, he caught the Nighter before he laid into Perrez.
"Enough!" Bezul gave Dace a shove into the fence that nearly toppled it and
quieted the youth. "Yes, he stole it and lost it, because he's a frogging [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]