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THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 34
The maid Liramel had sent to fetch her brother an hour ago hadn't returned. It was already getting dark outside the window, and long bluish shadows lay on the white carpet, stretching all the way to the fireplace. June came into its own smoothly, but early spring has long fluffed the grass and covered the apple orchard with fragrant clover. Now the cats were almost invisible: during the day they dispersed in search of shade, and at night only a sharp-sighted owl could see them. It had been a month and a half since their return from Lausens, and exactly a month since Liramel had last seen Karl. He was dissatisfied with her decision to send Yakir to Varut and began defiantly avoiding any meetings and explanations. At first she also endured her temper, but then she became melancholy and even sank to the point that she sent Linnie to watch her brother, and for the last three days she herself climbed the secret staircase to his chambers and knocked until her hands went numb. But Karl
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 35
Frightening the guards, Liramel slammed the door and, almost running to the corridor, looked around. Only a few torches burned along the walls, the rest had already been extinguished, so there was little light. “Lock the chambers,” she said without turning around in response to the questions of the guards and turned to the left. In the semi-darkness, despite the presence of numerous guards, she was always uncomfortable: Liramel was afraid of twilight even more than pitch darkness. Christian's rooms were located at the far end of the White Corridor. The high gilded doors were slightly smaller than those that led into the royal chambers. Asking the officer who saluted her if her brother had been away, Liramel unlocked the heavy doors without knocking and, entering, immediately lowered the inner bolt behind her. It was against the rules, but they didn't bother her much now. Christian didn't sleep. In general, he rarely went to bed before midnight, and sometimes the light in his
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 36
Tarham felt that he was missing something important, but he could not catch the right thought, as if someone had thoroughly worked with his mind. However, none of the Initiates had such power. Nevertheless, as soon as it seemed that a little more - and Karl's actions would become clear, the built-up chain collapsed. The move with Liramel was quite predictable. As expected, Lirdan's son wanted to send his sister away and find out who was behind the assassination, and at the same time advance his plan with Lord Varuta. He acted consistently, but Tarham did not understand his interest in the northern borders. Why Karl needed to control the Secret Intelligence Service and what he was trying to do behind the back of the Order, also could not be figured out. Even the younger brother failed, missing one of the messengers: the son of Lirdan removed the witness before he could reach him, Groaning, he got up and sat heavily on the edge of the bed. My legs ached so much that I wanted to cut t
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 37
Smiling indulgently, the priest crossed the room with unexpected speed and ease and sat down. He looked pleased and solemn, like a cat that has taken a mouse by surprise. “I didn’t want to keep you long. There was a hidden grin in his thick tenor voice. “I just stopped by to wish you a good journey on behalf of myself and the other members of the Council. Elikar said to especially thank you for the fact that you decided to invite his wife as an escort: the duchess had long wanted to visit Rovmen. Sitting at the opposite end of the sofa, Liramel folded her hands in her lap and parted her lips into a smile. Apparently, Christian decided to show diligence, since the Council already knew about her plans.“I consider it an honor to hear words of parting from you,” she answered, carefully avoiding his gaze. The old man nodded approvingly.“I've already talked to the regents,” he added, as if reluctantly. – Karl assured that all security measures would be taken, but it is not desirab
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 38
The rains had painted the sky a dank gray and turned the roads into a mess. For the fourth day, a thunderstorm raged over Lausens.Throwing on a cloak, Ali-Nari pulled her hair under her hood and went out onto the balcony. The wind blew cold spray from the railing in her face, so she had to stop just outside the door. From everything it was clear that it would not be possible to continue the journey before next week: even empty trade wagons were stuck at the entrances to the fortress tightly. Only horsemen managed to get to the tract, and even then with difficulty.The mood that reigned in their small company was so bad that Ali already regretted that she had gone. Liramel did not want to see anyone and spent all the time in her room. Angry and irritable at the beginning of the journey, she soon plunged into a state of complete indifference. Not once in recent days did a smile appear on her face, although Aunt Falinor did her best to cheer up her niece.From Paraman, Ali heard in gene
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 39
Sending the guards away, Karl locked the secret door and lowered the tapestry with a sigh. It was getting light. Motes of dust danced lazily in the dim half-fan of light falling from the open window. Furrowing his brow in displeasure, Karl took a couple of steps and ran his finger along the windowsill. Dust outlined a gray rim on the pillow. While Lyramel was away and Linnie helped her mother in the kitchens, the servants neglected to clean thoroughly.Looking up at the overcast sky, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the damp morning air. The wind touched his hot forehead and blew the beads of sweat from his temples. The night was difficult, but the coming day promised a long-awaited peace. The mechanism began to move independently, and for the time being, nothing more depended on Karl. All that remained was to wait.The treasury was dark. Lighting the candle, he raised it above his head and looked around. He needed a weapon, and from what he had seen in the last year, ther
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 40
Carefully placing a female wax figurine on the windowsill, the tall, fair-haired man ran his bony fingers over it once more and whispered something. His eyes rolled unnaturally, and the skin on his white, sunken cheeks turned blue and stretched, outlining his cheekbones and the network of blood vessels at his temples. He stood motionless for a minute, then opened his eyes and looked around as if searching for something. Surprise and a strange, incredulous joy reflected on his face. Looking up at the dark ceiling, he uttered a couple of sharp words, more like a croak, and laughed out loud. Opening her eyes, Lyramel immediately threw off her cloak, which was soaking through, and shivered in the chill. She fell asleep at dawn, never waiting for Tory to take over from her post. Even the downpour that rinsed the forest from the first to the last leaf, and he did not manage to wake her from a viscous strange nightmare. "It's all tiredness and cold," she thought, getting up and walking
THE PATH OF RENUNCIATION 41
The white dove cooed on the windowsill so loudly that Yakir heard it from the bedroom. Jumping up, he pulled on a wrinkled red shirt and glanced out the window. The gray morning foreshadowed the same chilly day as the day before, which meant that dressage in the fields was out of the question. A disturbed, damp shutter creaked for a long time, and there was a smell of freshly cut grass and fumes—garbage was being burned outside the fence for the second day. Carefully taking the bird, Yakir removed a thin silver tube from his cold paw and, returning the dove to the windowsill, whispered affectionately:- Well, dear, thank you - did not disappoint. Fly home! The small handwriting, so ornate that even skilled scribes could envy, was well known. From whom the news came, it became clear immediately. Pigeons, sent only by Ali-Nari, were knocking at Yakir's bedroom window. As children, they often wrote to each other - this was their entertainment in an endless routine of gossip and secr