Page 201 of Of Empires and Dust
“Well, it was last seen fleeing your tent with a pair of smallclothes in its beak.”
Dann flashed a look at Nala, who still stood by the tent flap. The young attendant lifted her gaze from the ground to meet Dann’s. Her cheeks went bright red, and she snapped her head back to staring at the tent floor.
“What do you want, Tarmon?”
“One of the farmers gave us twenty cows, hung and dried on their way to market in Midhaven, after we drove the Lorians off their land. It’s beef stew tonight. I was coming to see if you’d join us. Your stunt with the horses is making the rounds.”
“Mmh.” Dann grunted. “Once she’s done turning me into a human pin cushion.”
“Lyrei?” Tarmon raised an eyebrow.
Despite the promise of fresh beef, Lyrei took every slow second she could to finish the sewing on Dann’s leg, seeming to savour each pierce of the needle. As soon as she was finished, she wrapped it in a bandage, Dann threw on some clothes, and they made to leave.
Dann stopped at the tent flap, resting a hand on Nala’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry, my lord.”
“For what?”
“I wasn’t watching the cart when we were setting up camp. The bird, I should have stopped it.”
Dann let out a laugh. “Go find Ingvat. She won’t be drinking. She’ll likely be at the guard post with Surin or Narthil on the northern edge of the camp. Tell her I’ve asked for her to procureyou a bow, quiver, arrows, belts, some good boots, and a warm coat.”
“Yes, my lord… but, why, my lord?”
“Less of the ‘my lord’, Nala.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Dann pressed his hand to his face and squeezed his thumb and forefinger into the creases of his eyes, shaking his head. “We’ll work on that. You want to know why, Nala? Because we’re going to hunt that fucking bird.”
As Tarmon emergedfrom the tent, three young squires and four soldiers led a column of enormous black horses past a clutch of tents on the right. Those animals would be a welcome addition to the army. The elves had a strange aversion to horses, but Tarmon had no such qualms. A strong cavalry charge could turn the tide of any battle.
“Whoever rescued those beautiful creatures should be worshipped until his dying day,” Dann said as he emerged from the tent with Lyrei and Nala. He gave Tarmon a grin wide enough for a cart to pass through, then folded his arms and raised his eyebrows. “Well?”
“What?” Tarmon narrowed his eyes.
“We both know you didn’t make a trip out to my tent just to make sure I wouldn’t miss the beef. You would have sent Mikal – or just eaten my share yourself. What is it really?”
Tarmon suppressed a laugh and started walking. Dann had a higher capacity for idiocy than most anyone he knew, but the lad was far from stupid. “Queen Tessara asked us to join her for supper tonight. Vaeril asked me to get you, and I figured I’d better do it myself before you set off after that damn bird again.”
For a second, Dann looked as though he was going to argue, but a shrug followed. “Probably a good choice.”
“What else has it stolen from you now?”
“I don’t wanna talk about it.” Dann looked off into the night, muttering to himself. The only words Tarmon caught were “Damn fucking bird.”
“I’m going to need you to be on your best behaviour when we eat with the queen.”
“Me? I’m always on my best behaviour.”
“Dann…”
“What?”
Dann looked left to Lyrei, who walked at his side, her head tilted and eyebrows raised.
“What?”
