[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
bacon grease) it was the opulence of his praise for Sashana.
"No doubt she's wonderful," he mumbled as he chewed. "Just not that
wonderful!"
Thus it came as a surprise when, on the fourth morning after the play
had opened. Lady Sashana arrived at the theater with her bodyguard
servants and declared her intention to kill the Emperor's cousin, and the
price be damned.
"My poor child!" Feltheryn exclaimed, pulling a chair out from the
table so that she could sit down and noting that her face was bruised.
"What on earth has happened?"
Lady Sashana clenched her fists on the table before her and tried to
speak, but her breath was coming hard and the emotions that stormed
across her face were too varied and confused for articulation. Feltheryn
looked to the bodyguards and noted that they also bore bruises; and cuts
and abrasions as well. Worse, each cast his eyes to the floor as Feltheryn
looked at him, and the red bum of shame colored all their features.
"He " Sashana began, but she choked on the words.
Glisselrand came into the kitchen, saw Sashana, and immediately put a
cup of hot tisane before her. Myrtis entered behind Glisselrand and froze,
her face going professionally blank.
Sashana drank some of the tisane, coughed, then tried again.
"Last night after the performance I received a note from Vomistritus.
It said that he was having a small supper party and requested my atten-
dance. After all the nice things he said about the production, and about
my performance, I decided to go."
"At that hour of the night?" asked Glisselrand. "In Sanctuary?"
Sashana smiled ruefully.
"I am not a fool; at least not a complete fool! I took along my body-
guards, with the very good excuse that it would be unsafe for me to travel
the streets that late without them. Vomistritus met me at the door him-
self and seemed more than pleased to admit my men. He ordered his
servants to provide them with wine and meat, then led me to the upper
chamber where the party was."
She took another sip from her cup.
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
"At once I divined my state, for the room was set for supper for only
two. I turned to go, but the door had been locked from the outside. I
demanded that he open the door, but he laughed. I used the best voice
that you taught me and called for my men, but there was no response.
THE INCOMPETENT AUDIENCE 453
Then Vomistritus went to the table and sat down to eat, uncovering
dishes and behaving as if the battle were won. Then, then that overbred
imitation of a downwind pud had the colossal gall to quote your speech at
me. Master Feltheryn, the one from the second act of The Falling Star!"
"Men call me venal, yet they do not know, the depths of my depravity
and desire ..." Feltheryn began.
"Yes, that one!" Sashana cut him off. "Can you imagine it? And he
delivered it badly! Well, of course I took my cue and went to the table,
but Vomistritus is not that much an imbecile. There were no knives. The
whole repast was finger-food, and none of it very good-looking, either."
"He might at least have had a decent meal prepared," said Glisselrand.
"How would a critic know the difference?" Rounsnouf asked.
"I told him I would as soon couple with the corpse of a poxed leper,"
Sashana said coldly. Then a burst of bitter laughter escaped her lips. "I
should have known coarse language would inflame him! He rose from the
table and came after me, exactly as in the play. But he had not counted
on my regular wariness, nor on the dagger I keep in my stocking, under
the skirts of my gown. I slashed for his throat, and by t?ie gods, my cut
should have killed him!"
Her green eyes flashed like demon fire.
"What happened?" asked Feltheryn, by habit and nature as good an
audience as he was an actor.
"I cut, but his damned fat saved him! He yowled, blood spurted, but
my dagger didn't reach the vein. At that his men rushed in and seized
me. I think one of them is missing a finger, at least, but there were too
many and they got me down. Then things got worse.
"He wrapped a linen round his throat and his eyes bulged all the more,
and his servants brought in my bodyguards, all stripped and bound. My
men were held and forced to watch as he . . ."
Once more Sashana's voice broke, and rage and desperation and hor-
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
ror all warred for supremacy on her face. One of her servants wept.
"He ... He quoted more of the play," she said at last. "How I do
love to break the tigress of her fight ..."
There was a cold, horrible, quiet moment. Then:
"He raped you," Myrtis said quietly.
It was the cue Sashana needed.
"Yes, the bastard raped me!" she cried, and in a swift moment she was
on her feet, her dagger in her hand and somehow the delicate cup from
which she had been drinking smashed against the opposite wall. "And I
will kill him!"
Myrtis alone of the company was able to move, able to act against the
icy tide of horror and anger which engulfed them all. She moved to
454 STEALERS' SKY
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]