The Two of Swords: Part 12 Read Online Free Page B

for you if it meant getting his throat cut?”
    “He wouldn’t do that,” Musen said quickly. “He’s not crazy or spiteful or anything. He’d kill you for a reason, but not just because you pissed him off.”
    Glabria looked doubtful. “I don’t think I want to take that chance,” he said. “Anyway, you’re a head taller than me, and everyone round here knows me, so I couldn’t do it.” He thought for a moment. “Of course, it’s the hiring fair. You hire a carter, big tall chap your size and build.” He grinned. “So maybe he decides to rip you off, take the cart and keep on going. Like you care. Yes, that’s what I’d do.”
    “Will you hire someone for me?” Musen asked eagerly. “Only, if he catches this carter and asks him, who hired you?”
    Glabria shrugged. “Sure, I can do that. Then, if your man comes looking for me, I can send him the wrong way, buy you a bit more time. You need to figure where you actually want to go, mind. Just wandering about aimlessly won’t do you any good.”
    “Blemya,” Musen said.
    “What? Where the hell’s that?”
    “South, across the sea. Oh, he’ll follow me there, if he knows that’s where I’ve gone. But maybe by then I’ll have thought of a way of making it safe, somewhere I can hide it away where he won’t find it. That’s all that matters, after all.”
    Glabria seemed bothered by something. “If it’s Lodge property,” he said, “why don’t you take it to the authorities? I bet you they can look after it far better than you can.”
    “I can’t do that,” Musen said quickly. “It’s complicated, I can’t tell you why, but I can’t. It’s up to me, and I’ve got to take care of it. You don’t think I want this, do you? I’ve lost everything because of this—” He stopped, as if a door had just closed. “We’ll do what you said. It sounds like a good idea.”
    Outside, someone was calling Glabria’s name. “Stay there,” he said. “I know who it is, just a customer. I won’t be long.”
    Shortly afterwards, Musen heard a hammer ringing on an anvil, and cheerful voices. He leaned back in the chair and suddenly realised how exhausted he was, and how many bits of him hurt, and how filthy his clothes were. He looked down at his hands and noticed grains of flaked dried blood lodged in the webs between his fingers, and had no idea if that blood was his own or somebody else’s.
    Glabria woke him with a slight nudge against his foot.
    “I took a look in your cart,” he said. “That’s a lot of stuff you’ve got in there. Worth quite a bit of money. Are you sure you—?”
    Musen shook his head. “I couldn’t give a damn. No good to me if he kills me.”
    “No, I suppose not. Look, while you’ve been asleep, I’ve been busy. I found you a carter.”
    “That’s marvellous. Thank you.”
    Glabria sat down on the stool and unstoppered the bottle. “I spun him this load of rubbish about supplies for a gang of men up on the moors mending a wall. I suppose he believed it, not that it matters, I don’t think for a moment he’s going to be heading the way I told him. My guess is, he’ll run up the north road and take the east fork, over to Sleucis or somewhere like that, sell the rig and the gear and move on quick. If he gets that far.” Glabria shrugged. “He’s not from around here, so he doesn’t know me, I told him a made-up name, and I washed my face and took the apron off, so he may not even have figured me for a smith. I don’t think he was listening too carefully. Anyway, I told him to come round first thing, at sunrise, so he should be here any minute.” Glabria paused. “You sure you want to go through with this?”
    “What? Yes, of course I do.”
    “Fine. Listen, I’ve put two loaves and a skin of water in a bag. I reckon, if you’re smart, you’ll hike down the south road till you come to the river, then look out for one of the big charcoal barges. They’ll give you a lift as far as you like for