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.'None who wear the silver maskcould be disloyal to Tharna!''Yet it is so,' sniveled Ost.'Who is the traitress?' demanded Lara.'I do not know her name,' said Ost.Thorn laughed.'But,' said Ost, hopefully, 'I once spoke with her and I might recognise hervoice if I were but allowed to live.'file:///F|/rah/John%20Norman/Chronicles%20of%20Counter-Earth%201%20-%20Outlaw%20of%20Gor.txt (50 of 144) [1/20/03 3:23:17 AM]file:///F|/rah/John%20Norman/Chronicles%20of%20Counter-Earth%201%20-%20Outlaw%20of%20Gor.txtThorn laughed again.'It is a trick to buy his life.''What think you, Dorna the Proud?' asked Lara of she who was Second inTharna.But instead of answering, Dorna the Proud seemed strangely silent.Sheextended her silver-gloved hand, palm facing her body and chopped brutallydown with it, as though it might have been a blade.'Mercy, Great Dorna!' screamed Ost.Dorna repeated the gesture, slowly, cruelly.But the hands of Lara were extended, palms up, and she lifted them slightly;it was a gracious gesture that spoke of mercy.'Thank you, Beloved Tatrix,' whimpered Ost, his eyes bursting with tears,'Thank you!''Tell me, Serpent,' said Lara, 'did the warrior steal the coins from you?''No, no,' blubbered Ost.'Did you give them to him?' she demanded.'I did,' he said.'I did.''And did he accept them?' she asked.'He did,' said Ost.'You pressed the coins upon me and ran,' I said.'I had no choice.''He accepted the coins,' muttered Ost, looking at me malevolently, determinedapparently that I would share whatever fate lay in store for him.'I had no choice,' I said calmly.Ost shot a venomous look in my direction.'If I were a conspirator,' I said, 'if I were in league with this man, whywould he have charged me with the theft of the coins, why would he have had mearrested?'Ost blanched.His tiny, rodentlike mind scurried from thought to thought, buthis mouth only moved uncontrollably, silently.Thorn spoke.'Ost knew himself to be suspected of plotting against thethrone.'Ost looked puzzled.'Thus,' said Thorn, 'to make it seem he had not given the money to thiswarrior, or assassin as the case may be, he pretended it had been stolen fromhim.In that way he might at one time appear free from guilt and destroy theman who knew of his complicity.''That is true,' exclaimed Ost gratefully, eager to take his cue from sopowerful a figure as Thorn.'How is it that Ost gave you the coins, Warrior?' asked the Tatrix.'Ost gave them to me,' I said, '.as a gift.'file:///F|/rah/John%20Norman/Chronicles%20of%20Counter-Earth%201%20-%20Outlaw%20of%20Gor.txt (51 of 144) [1/20/03 3:23:17 AM]Page 44ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlfile:///F|/rah/John%20Norman/Chronicles%20of%20Counter-Earth%201%20-%20Outlaw%20of%20Gor.txtThorn threw back his head and laughed.'Ost never gave anything away in his life,' roared Thorn, wiping his mouth,struggling to regain his composure.There was even a slight sound of amusement from the silver- masked figures whosat upon the steps to the throne.Ost himself snickered.But the mask of the Tatrix glittered upon Ost, and his snicker died in histhin throat.The Tatrix arose from her throne, and pointed her finger at thewretched conspirator.Her voice was cold as she spoke to the guardsman who hadbrought him to the chamber.'To the mines with him,' she said.'No, Beloved Tatrix, no!' cried Ost.Terror, like a trapped cat, seemed toscratch behind his eyes, and he began to shake in his yoke like a diseasedanimal.Scornfully the guardsman lifted him to his feet and dragged himstumbling and whimpering from the room.I gathered the sentence to the mineswas equivalent to a sentence of death.'You are cruel,' I said to the Tatrix.'A Tatrix must be cruel,' said Dorna.'That,' I said, 'I would hear from the mouth of the Tatrix herself.'Dorna stiffened at the rebuff.After a time the Tatrix, who had resumed her throne, spoke.Her voice wasquiet.'Sometimes, Stranger,' she said, 'it is hard to be First in Tharna.'I had not expected that answer.I wondered what sort of woman was the Tatrix of Tharna, what lay concealedbehind that mask of gold.For a moment I felt sorry for the golden creaturebefore whose throne I knelt.'As for you,' said Lara, her mask glittering down upon me, 'you admit that youdid not steal the coins from Ost, and in this admission you admit that he gavethem to you.''He thrust them in my hand,' I said, 'and ran.' I looked at the Tatrix.'Icame to Tharna to obtain a tarn.I had no money.With Ost's coins I could havepurchased one and continued my journey.Should I have thrown them away?''These coins,' said Lara, holding the tiny sack in her hand, gloved in gold,'were to buy my death.''So few coins?' I asked skeptically [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]