Pawn in Frankincense - Dorothy Dunnett [36]
In the deep, vermilion folds of Lymond’s cloak fragments of tile glittered, and a powder of gold dusted one thin kidskin shoe. Throughout, he had not moved. ‘The King of France presents his apologies for the inconvenient properties of his poor gift and will feel himself honoured to replace the casket,’ said Lymond. And, looking down at his cloak, ‘I fear I present myself before Your Highness with an appearance of unseemly neglect. If you will permit me’—and drawing off his cloak, he dropped it, red and gold, among the unhinged jewels of the trophy—“I should let it lie here, with the rubbish.’
‘Fortune,’ said Salah Rais, ‘abounds with evil accidents. It would ill become a man of the true Faith to be less generous. One will replace the cloak with a better. Thou wilt dine with me. Then I shall give myself the honour of accompanying thee to the harbour.’
A new cloak had indeed been brought: Jerott wondered by what means its degree of relative magnificence had been signified. It fell weightily from Lymond’s shoulders: white tissue and ermine, the edge sewn with gold wire and emeralds. The sharp green clashed, nastily, with the red velvet doublet beneath. Dropping his hands from the clasp, Lymond said, ‘It pains me, but this is a pleasure I must defer until tomorrow. If the Viceroy will descend to the harbour at noon and accept the paltry hospitality of the Dauphiné, I shall be proud to break bread with him. Then, on his departure, the cases of arms may suitably be disembarked with his party. We are anxious to leave with the afternoon light.’
The Viceroy of Algiers, standing, made no obvious signal; but behind him, like a breath on the small hairs of his neck, Jerott felt the cold of drawn steel. ‘I regret,’ said that unbroken, suave Arabic. ‘Tomorrow is Friday, and among my people, no work may be done on that day. We must then beg to accept thy delightful bounty today.’
His breath held, Jerott looked at Lymond. Francis Crawford said gently, ‘But today I have set aside, from the most weighty necessity, for paying homage to your two respected associates. I must call on His Excellency the Agha of Janissaries, and on my lord Dragut Rais.’
It was then, for the first time, that Jerott realized that Salah Rais understood French. With one upraised palm he stopped his interpreter with the first words of this speech in his mouth, and said himself, smoothly, in Arabic, ‘Both these gentlemen, it is regretted, are absent from home. How desolate they will be. How afflicted, particularly my lord Dragut, who was extolling only last month the generosity of thyself to my people.’
Standing rigid with all his sweating companions at Lymond’s still back, Jerott was aware of a crashing headache and a mounting desire to cut loose and do something silly. They were supposed to be thoroughly briefed before they left on this expedition. Lymond had said nothing, damn him, about offering cases of guns to the heathen. Nor was it clear why Salah Rais, who a moment before had clearly held the whip hand, was suddenly apparently bargaining. And without a translator. Unless …
Unless, thought Jerott, suddenly, Salah Rais was in fact saying: I want those carbines. I want them now, and I don’t want the Agha to find out until it’s all over. And if you don’t tell the Agha I’ll offer you …
‘It so happens,’ said Salah Rais, ‘that I may be able to do thee some service. Thou hast offered a fortune, all Africa knows it, for the return of a certain woman and a certain one-year-old child. Many will come to thee with false tales in hopes of the money.