Into a Dark Realm. Raymond E. Feist

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СКАЧАТЬ the air as he vanished over the edge. The three young men hurried to the edge and looked over. Dangling from the derrick rope just above a loose cargo net was the little trader, hurling invective upward as he glanced down at the rocks below the jetty. The tide was out, so only a few inches of water protected the dangling man from serious injury below. All the shallow-draught barges used to ferry grain to the ships in the harbour were anchored out in deeper water. ‘Pull me up!’ he shouted.

      Jommy said, ‘Why should we, Aziz? You led us a nasty chase through the entire city of Durbin in this bleedin’ heat—’ he wiped perspiration off his forehead and flipped it with his hand at the man to demonstrate just how out of sorts he was, ‘—and all we wished for was a short, quiet chat.’

      ‘I know you murderous cut-throats,’ said the trader. ‘Your chats get men killed.’

      Tad said, ‘Murderous cut-throats? I think he has us confused with someone else.’

      Zane drew his belt knife. ‘You’re confusing us with a different bunch of murderous cut-throats is my brother’s opinion. I’m not so sure.’ Looking at his companions, he asked, ‘If I cut this rope what do you think of his chances?’

      Tad leaned over, as if studying the matter, then declared, ‘It’s no more than twenty feet to the rocks. I say it’s better than even money he only breaks a leg or an arm or two.’

      Jommy said, ‘Depends on how he falls. Now, I’ve seen a bloke pitch backwards off a ladder once, only the bottom rung, mind you, and he smacked his head against the ground and broke his skull. Took him a bit of time to die, then, but he was dead, in the end, and dead is dead.’

      ‘I could cut it and we could see,’ suggested Zane.

      ‘No!’ shouted the trader.

      ‘Well, the evening tide’s coming in,’ said Tad to Aziz. ‘If you hang there for another couple of hours, you should be able to just let go and swim over to those steps over there.’ He pointed across the harbour.

      ‘If the sharks don’t get him,’ said Jommy to Zane.

      ‘I can’t swim!’ shouted the trader.

      ‘Not a lot of opportunities to learn in the desert, I expect,’ observed Zane.

      ‘Then you’re into it up to your neck, aren’t you, mate?’ asked Jommy. ‘What say you we trade a bit? You answer a question, and if I like the answer, we pull you up.’

      ‘If you don’t like the answer?’

      ‘He cuts the rope,’ said Jommy, pointing to Zane. ‘And we’ll see if the fall kills you, or just ruins your life – whatever’s left of it before the tide comes in and drowns you, of course.’

      ‘Barbarian!’

      Jommy grinned. ‘Been called that more than a few times since I got to Kesh.’

      ‘What do you wish to know?’ asked the desertman.

      ‘One thing only,’ said Jommy, losing his grin. ‘Where’s Jomo Ketlami?’

      ‘I don’t know!’ shouted the man as he tried to gain purchase for his feet in the dangling cargo net.

      ‘We know he’s somewhere in the city!’ shouted Jommy. ‘We know he hasn’t got out of the city. And we know that you have been doing business with him for years. Here’s the deal: you tell us where he is, we pull you up. Then we go find him, get what we want to know from him, and kill him. You’ve got no worries.

      ‘Or you don’t tell us and we leave you hanging. You might climb up to the top of this derrick, and get down from there somehow, but even if you do, we’ll just start spreading the word you sold out Ketlami. So we’ll just keep an eye on you, wait until he kills you, and we’ll have him, anyway.’ Jommy’s grin returned. ‘Your choice, mate.’

      ‘I can’t!’ cried the terrified trader.

      ‘Five imperial silvers he doesn’t die when he hits the rocks,’ said Tad.

      ‘I don’t know,’ Zane replied. ‘Seems like that’s a bit better than even money.’

      ‘What say you to my five against your four?’

      Zane nodded enthusiastically. ‘Done!’

      ‘Wait!’

      Jommy said, ‘Yes?’

      ‘Don’t cut the rope, please. I have children to care for!’

      ‘Liar,’ said Zane. ‘It’s well known you tell the girls at the bordellos you’re without a wife.’

      ‘I didn’t say I had a wife,’ admitted the little man. ‘But I do care for the handful of bastards I’ve sired.’

      ‘You are the soul of generosity, mate,’ observed Jommy.

      ‘There are men who do far less for their get,’ replied the dangling trader. ‘I have even taken the eldest into my house to learn a craft!’

      ‘Which?’ asked Zane. ‘Trading, spying, lying, or cheating at cards?’

      ‘You know,’ asked Tad, ‘that as we stand here jibber-jabbing, the tide’s coming in?’

      ‘So?’ Jommy looked at his friend with a narrowing gaze.

      ‘Well, if we don’t cut the rope soon, then the chances are he’ll just drown, and that means the bet’s off.’

      ‘Can’t have that,’ said Zane. He flourished the large hunting knife he was holding, twirled it like an expert, and began sawing at the heavy rope that ran up through the block and tackle below the topmost pulley of the derrick.

      ‘No!’ shouted the panic-stricken little man. ‘I’ll talk!’

      ‘So, talk,’ returned Jommy.

      ‘Not until you pull me up!’

      Zane glanced at his companions. ‘A reasonable request?’

      ‘Well, I don’t think he’s going to be able to best all three of us,’ said Tad. ‘After all, he’s an unarmed, skinny little fellow and we’re, what did he call us?’

      ‘Murderous cut-throats,’ supplied Zane.

      ‘Pull him up, then,’ said Jommy.

      Tad and Zed both gripped the heavy crank used to raise the netting, and turned it. Being well oiled, it moved freely and the little man quickly rose the dozen feet necessary to bring his head above the edge of the dock.

      Jommy had his sword out and pointed to a spot on the dock. ‘Put him there, lads.’

      Tad and Zane ceased cranking, set the lock to keep the net from falling back, and then grabbed the long wooden arm used to swing cargo around. When they had the trader safely above the docks he let go of the net, dropping a few feet to the stones.

      Before Aziz could think to flee again, Jommy СКАЧАТЬ