[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.I remember the night you were born—"Icelin lunged at him.Shenan caught her by the throat and pushed her back, but Icelin's gesture had the desired effect.Cerest stopped speaking and stood back a safe distance.He regarded her with wounded curiosity."Why do you behave this way?" he asked."I've not hurt you, and I don't intend to.""You killed Brant," Icelin said.Her throat burned."All your lies, no matter how prettily spoken, won't change that.""I'm not lying," Cerest said."Brant cared for you.He was agood man.I know that." When Icelin only stared at him, he went on, "But I think you'll discover Brant had his share of secrets, especially where you were concerned.I'm confident he acted to protect you, but in doing so, he shortened his own life.""Master." Greyas stepped forward again, dragging a smaller figure.Icelin pulled her gaze away from Cerest's face to see who it was.Her heart dropped.Fannie stood in front of Greyas, looking like a doll in the man's muscular arms.While Icelin watched, Greyas placed a hand on either side of Fannie's head.Fannie quailed, but he did not exert any pressure on her skull.He didn't have to.Fannie stood utterly still, held in place by the mere threat of what he could do to her with those large hands.She was gagged, as Icelin had been.Her eyes were huge above the scrap of dirty cloth.She looked beseechingly at Icelin."We took her at the same time we took you," Cerest said.He motioned for Greyas to bring Fannie into the light.He pushed her, stumbling and barefoot, into the small circle of illumination."Shenan," Cerest said, and the female elf stepped forward, taking Greyas's place at Fannie's back.She patted the woman on the shoulder, whispering comforting noises that made Icelin's skin crawl."What do you remember of your childhood, Icelin?" Cerest repeated the question slowly, glancing meaningfully between Fannie and Icelin."I am an orphan," Icelin said.She met Fannie's eyes, trying to silently reassure her."My parents were killed when I was barely two summers old.Brant, my great-uncle, raised me.""Your great-uncle," Cerest said."What about your grandfather, Icelin?""My grandfather is dead.I have no other living family," Icelin said."Why are you asking me these questions? If you want to revenge yourself on me, let this woman go and have yourpleasure! What more can I possibly give you than my life?"Cerest's brow furrowed in confusion."Revenge?" he said, sounding almost amused."My dear girl, far from it.I have no quarrel with you.What gave you that notion?""I—" Icelin turned away.Her mind raced.He wasn't after her.She'd been wrong this whole time.He hadn't been in the fire____Relief and fear vied for control of Icelin's emotions.She hadn't injured the elf.But if it wasn't revenge he sought, why had he killed Brant? Why had he hunted her so diligendy?"Shenan," Cerest said quietly.Fannie's muffled scream snapped Icelin back to the present.She looked up in horror to see the female elf holding Fannie's head back by the hair.She placed a gleaming dagger blade against Fannie's arched neck.Blood welled where the blade pressed flesh.The dagger was so sharp, one slip and Shenan would slice open the prostitute's throat."Answer my question, please," Cerest said.He sounded like a father coaxing a child."I think it important I hear this tale, so that we understand each other."Icelin swallowed.She looked at Cerest, letting him see the undisguised hatred."I studied magic under the tutelage of Nelzun Decampter, a skilled wizard," she said."My great-uncle paid out most of his savings to apprentice me to the man because Decampter specialized in handling wielders of unstable magic.Such was mine.I studied under Nelzun for three years and acquired a reasonable level of skill in the Art.""A reasonable level—did Nelzun believe you had the potential for greater power?" Cerest asked.Icelin's jaw clenched at the eager light in his eyes."Yes.He wanted me to travel with him, to test my skills out in the wodd.But I had no desire to leave my home.That mistake cost Nelzun his life.""What happened?" Cerest said."First tell her to move the dagger," Icelin said, looking at Shenan but addressing Cerest.Cerest nodded to the elf woman.Shenan appeared disappointed as she removed the blade from Fannie's throat."Nelzun took me into the city to test my powers.He wanted me to be able to defend myself in the rougher districts.None of the spells I was to cast that day were dangerous, and Waterdeep is more stable than many cities when it comes to magic going awry." Icelin knew she shouldn't care what the elf thought of her, but the need to explain, to justify what couldn't be justified, clawed at her."We were in Dock Ward.A fight broke out at a tavern as we were passing by, and the brawl spilled into the street." Icelin could see it clearly in her mind: the shattered door, the man being thrown into the street.Another pair of men followed, brandishing weapons.She'd thought.It didn't matter what they'd intended.She never had the chance to find out."I ran toward the fight.I left Nelzun.When I saw the man about to be attacked, I cast the only spell I knew that would hurt.I'd never called the fire before, but Nelzun had showed me how it was done."" To summon fire to yourfingertips is one of the easiest attack spells to master, because you cannot burn yourself, as real flame would."Her teacher's words, Icelin thought.But he'd never given a care to what might happen to him if things went wrong."The spell ran wild?" Cerest asked.He touched his face, rubbing the scars thoughtfully."The fire spread?""I can still remember how high the flames soared," Icelin said.She was dimly aware of wetness on her face.She reached up with her bound hands and felt the tears.It didn't matter.They had already seen how weak she was."There was a boardinghouse— old wood, and a dry season—next door to the tavern.The fire took the roof first, caving in the ceiling on the people inside.Five people on the topmost floor were killed instandy, including a Watchman who'd been investigating a woman's disappearance.The people below escaped—miraculously, I thought." She took a shuddering breath."Until the spell ended, and I realized Nelzun wasn't with me.""What happened to him?" Cerest asked.But Icelin wasn't listening.She recited the tale automatically, numbing her mind to the most painful part of all [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]