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. Well, there were times when you had to, weren t there? Andeverybody was glad that it was you who made the decisions. That s nice of you to say so, dear. The queen laughed. I wonder Bonds of Fear 543if he would have let me though.Did you see how.how very muchin command he was? How his men executed his orders without theleast delay? How they followed him with their eyes.And that tall,handsome guy, how protective he looked? Yes, and were those really Mukthars, those young guys? I suppose so.Damn, I d give a small fortune to know how hemade their acquaintance.Anyway, how magnificent he looked, soself assured, so.so regal. And so healthy, dear, you forgot healthy.He looked positivelystrong.Must be something in the northern air. Not being poisoned on a daily basis would help too, don t youthink? the queen said.They both laughed out loud. I think I was most proud of him when he bashed in the face ofthat swine, Emelasuntha said. He didn t hesitate or flinch.He wasprepared to do himself what he had ordered that man to do.He gavethe example.Just as a leader should.Oh, well, I got to see him atleast.That s something, I suppose. Yes, it is, isn t it? the baroness concurred.They both fell silent for a long time. You seem deep in thought, dear, the baroness said eventually.Emelasuntha looked up as if waking from a slumber. Oh, yes, I was writing. Writing? Yes, in my head.As soon as I get the chance I will commit themto parchment. Them? 544 Andrew Ashling The letters.One to Anaxantis and one to the Grand Keeper of theRoyal Crypt in Torantall. You can t send a letter to him.It s far too dangerous. No, no.I m just going to write it now.Not send it.Now thateverything is still fresh in my head.Now that it is still alive.He ll getit whenever the circumstances permit. You re going to tell him we saw him? No, I don t think so.But I will tell him what Jerruth did for him.Ipromised.I promised Jerruth. The baroness didn t respond.What was there to say? And the letter to the Grand Keeper? she asked after severalminutes. To order a sarcophagus.White marble.To be put next to mine,on the left side.Anaxantis won t mind. Again several minutes passed. What will you have engraved it with? Something simple, I think. Jerruth, prince of the House ofMekthona. What do you think? He would have liked that very much, dear.Very much. Shepaused for a while, willing her tears back. We don t have his body. We know he is dead, otherwise Anaxantis s men would havefound him.They didn t.That can only mean that monster killedhim and had him buried somewhere there.We ll find him.As soonas possible I ll send a group back to Elmshill with carts and thenecessary equipment.We ll find him.We ll find all our men.I wantthem all back and honorably buried.I ll have those hills leveled oneby one, if that is what it comes down to. Bonds of Fear 545 I wonder, Sobrathi mused, was he really a descendant ofAnaxormas II? Who knows? He could very well have been.Anaxormas hadquite the reputation.But it doesn t matter.What makes a prince afterall? Descent or how someone rises to the occasion when fate callsupon him? Sobrathi thought for a while. Yes, she said after the lump in her throat had stopped hurting, yes, he was a real prince. Xirull had waited until Anaxantis and his men had left.He wasjust getting ready to leave his hiding place, when he heard voices,women voices. Emelasuntha.Of course.Strange.If she s here, why didn t she goto meet her son? He waited until he was certain the queen and her party had alsoleft the scene.Then, very carefully, looking in all directions, he madehis way back to his men. No, I haven t found the captain, he answered to their questions. He was nowhere to be seen.There was nobody there. He had thought it all through.It was obvious that the House ofDamydas, far from mounting the throne, would be in deep trouble.Better to sever all ties.The Black Shields had lost a captain.Not that Damydas hadbeen the only one, but maybe his Glorious Majesty would need areplacement.Xirull, of course, was, and had always been, a loyal andstaunch supporter of the royal House of Tanahkos.What the baronhad planned and schemed, he didn t know.The captain had always 546 Andrew Ashlingkept his cards close to his chest and, no, he had not chosen to confidein his sergeant.The last he had seen of him was when he rode off toElmshill.He had later gone to his assistance, but when he got at theplace, there was nobody there.Simple.What had happened? Onlythe Gods knew.Certainly not Xirull.He had a long journey back to Ormidon to perfect his story, butthe broad lines were set. Bonds of Fear 547Though he felt a lot more at ease, Anaxantis had chosen to rideuntil well after midnight before he gave the order to stop and makecamp
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