Days of Blood and Fire - Katharine Kerr [55]
“Curse it, Jill!” He let the bridle fall into his lap. “How do you expect me to feel when you turn all morbid like that?”
“Is it truly morbid?”
“Well, I suppose not, because you’re right enough that we’re a good bit older than the people we know would think, but—” He hesitated. “It’s not my own death I mind. You know that. It would be losing you.”
“My thanks. Huh—so I’m morbid, am I? I’m not the one who’s half in love with my own death, like some as I could mention.”
He shrugged and ignored her. In a moment she laughed, just softly and in defeat.
“Tell me somewhat,” she said. “When did you meet Dallandra?”
Worse and worse. He rose, sweeping up the bridle.
“A long time ago, the year I took Yraen on as an apprentice. It was over that silly matter of the bone whistle.”
“The what?”
“Oh, come now, surely you’ve heard that tale.”
“I haven’t. Will you sit down and tell it to me? What you and Dalla may have done together is no business of mine.”
He felt his face burning, but he sat.
“How did you know? Did she tell you?”
“Not at all, but I felt her mind skip the same way yours just did. What bone whistle?”
Rhodry picked up the rag again and started in on the buckles on the cheek piece.
“Come to think of it, you should hear this,” he said. “Uh, you’re sure you’re not jealous?”
“It’s been how many years since we rode together? A long, long time, for certain. Of course I’m not jealous. Why? Is your vanity hurt because I’m not?”
He growled under his breath.
“Ah, it is.” She sounded amused. “But what about—”
“The whistle, truly. It was a thing Evandar left with me by accident one Samaen day, you see, and sent Dalla to fetch back. It was made of bone, and it looked like a human or elven finger, but it was far too long for that. It had a cursed sour sound to it, I tell you. And all these peculiar creatures came prowling round to steal it. A thing that looked like a man but with a badger’s head tried to murder me for it, so I killed our snouted friend and gave Evandar the wretched whistle back when he came for it himself.” He paused, frowning at the buckle. “Well, there’s a bit more twists to the tale than that, but I don’t truly remember them well.”
“Ye gods!” Jill’s voice hissed in surprise. “And you never told me?”
“And when have I had the chance? I don’t see you for years and years, and all at once, you pop up. Not much more than a fortnight ago, was it? And what do you do then? You send me haring off round the countryside, battling raiders and capturing mysterious bards and suchlike.”
“Well, true spoken, but, Rhoddo, please, after this, tell me straightaway if anything happens that smells of dweomer. I don’t care how small or strange it is. Tell me.”
“I will then, and gladly. I’ll pass the message along to Yraen, too.”
“Do that, and my thanks.” Jill thought for a moment. “How big was this whistle?”
“Oh, let me think.” He laid the bridle down and held up his hands about a foot apart. “About so long. Or maybe a little shorter. Much too long to be the finger bone it looked, at any rate. And someone had cut a couple of holes in it, to make a few sour notes.”
“Indeed? Huh, I wonder. It looked like a finger bone, did it? It could be. It just could be.”
“Could be what?”
“I’ll tell you when I know. I’ve got to be sure first.”
“You’re as full of riddles these days as Evandar.”
“I begin to have more sympathy for him, truly.” She smiled, but only briefly. “Do you remember when you first rode into Cengarn, and we had a talk out in the barracks here? I told you that Alshandra had sworn to kill Carra’s child?”
“I do remember it, indeed. I’ve been wondering if that’s why the raiders—”
“You’re right, I think, but shush a moment.”
Rhodry glanced round, then made a show of reaching behind him for another rag. Sure enough, Lord Matyc was standing some yards away, perhaps out of earshot, perhaps not, Rhodry scrambled to his feet and made the lordship a bow.
“Good morrow, my lord. Do you need me for some’ what?”
“I don’t, silver dagger. Just passing by.”
Matyc was forced to turn and stroll away. Rhodry sat down again,