Nation - Пратчетт Терри Дэвид Джон - Страница 48

“There’s no time to explain!” hissed Daphne.

“You’re talking a good deal too much, missie,” said Foxlip. And just behind Daphne, Polegrave sniggered. She felt the barrel of a pistol pressed into the small of her back.

“Saw a feller shot inna spine once, miss,” the man whispered. “It stuck there, indeed it did. Funny thing was, he started dancin’, right there, legs goin’ like mad and him screaming. Didn’t fall over for ten minutes. Amazin’ thing, nature.”

“Stow that!” said Foxlip, watching the clearing nervously. The islanders had mostly slid away into the bushes, but those who remained did not look too happy. “What did that silly ol’ devil want to get hisself shot for? Now they’re all worked up!”

“Pretty raggedly lot, though,” said Polegrave. “We could hang on ’til the others come — ”

“I told you to shut up!”

They don’t know what to do now, Daphne thought. They are stupid and scared. The trouble is, they are stupid and scared with guns. And there’s others coming. Imo made us smart, Mau said. Am I smarter than a stupid man with a gun? Yes, I think I am.

“Gentlemen,” she said, “why don’t we deal with this like civilized people?”

“Are you having a little laugh, your majesty?” said Foxlip.

“Get me to Port Mercia, and my father will give you gold and a pardon. Who’s going to give you a better offer this day? Look at this from a mathematical point of view. You’ve got guns, yes, but how long can you stay awake? There’s a lot more” — she forced the word out — “darkies than you. Even if one man stays awake, he’s only got two shots before his throat is cut. Of course, they might not start with the throat since they are, as you point out, savages and not as civilized as you. You must have a boat here. You don’t dare stay.”

“But you’re our hostage,” said Polegrave.

“You might be mine. I just have to scream. You shouldn’t have shot the priest.”

“That old man was a priest?” said Polegrave, looking panicky. “It’s bad luck to kill a priest!”

“Not heathen ones,” said Foxlip, “and the bad luck was all his, eh?”

“But they got these spells; they can shrink your head —!”

“When did they shrink yours?” said Foxlip. “Don’t be such a damn fool! As for you, princess, you’re coming with us.”

Princess, she thought. That was just like the mutineers. They called her baby names all the time. She hated it. It made her flesh crawl. It was probably meant to.

“No, Mr. Foxlip, I’m not a princess,” she said carefully, “but you’re coming with me all the same. Keep close.”

“And have you lead us into a trap?”

“It’s near sunset. Do you want to be up here in the dark?” She held out a hand and added, “And the rain, too.” A squall had blown in, and the first drops began to fall. “The people here can see in the dark,” she went on. “And they can move as silently as the wind. Their knives are so sharp that they can cut a man’s — ”

“Why’s it happening like this?” Polegrave demanded of Foxlip. “I thought you were smart! You said we’d get the best pickings. You told me — ”

“And now I’m telling you to shut up.” Foxlip turned to Daphne. “All right, my lady, I’m not falling for that malarkey. We’ll take you off this rock at first light. Might even get you as far as dear old dad. But there’d better be gold at the end of it, or else. No tricks, right?”

“Yeah, we got four loaded pistols, missie,” said Polegrave, waving one at her, “and they’ll stop anything, you hear?”

“They won’t stop the fifth man, Mr. Polegrave.”

She rejoiced in the change in his expression as she turned to Foxlip. “Tricks? From me? No. I want to get home. I don’t know any tricks.”

“Swear on your mother’s life,” said Foxlip.

“What?”

“You always were a stuck-up kid on the Judy. Swear it, like I said. Then I might even believe yer.”

Does he know about my mother? Daphne wondered, calm thoughts floating in a sea of fury. I think poor Captain Roberts did, and I told Cookie, but not even Cookie would gossip about that sort of thing to the likes of Foxlip. But no one is entitled to ask for an oath like that!

Foxlip growled. Daphne had been silent too long for his liking.

“Cat got your tongue?” he said.

“No. But it is an important swear. I had to think about it. I promise I won’t try to run away, I won’t tell you any lies, and I won’t try to deceive you. Is that what you want?”

“And you swear that on your mother’s life?” Foxlip insisted.

“Yes, I do.”

“That’s very handsome of you,” said Foxlip. “Don’t you think so, Mr. Polegrave?”

But Polegrave was watching the dripping forest on either side of the path. “There’s things in there,” he moaned. “There’s stuff creepin’ about!”

“Lions and tigers and elephants, I shouldn’t wonder,” said Foxlip cheerfully. He raised his voice. “But there’s a hair trigger on this pistol, so if I even think I hear a sound out of place, missie will be put to considerable embarrassment. One footfall and she’s ready for the boneyard!”

As soon as Daphne and the two trousermen had rounded a bend in the track and were out of sight, Mau stepped forward.

“We could rush them. The rain’s on our side,” Pilu whispered.

“You heard the big one. I can’t risk her being killed. She saved my life. Twice.”

“I thought you saved her life.”

“Yes, but the first time I saved her life, I saved mine, too. Do you understand? If she hadn’t been here, I’d have held the biggest rock I could find and gone into the dark current. One person is nothing. Two people are a nation.”

Pilu’s forehead wrinkled in puzzlement. “What are three people?”

“A bigger nation. Let’s catch up to them… carefully.”

And she saved me from Locaha a second time, he thought as they set off again, silent as ghosts in the rain. He’d woken up, his mind full of silver fishes, and the old woman had told him. He’d been running to the white city under the sea, and then Daphne had been there, pulling him up faster than Locaha could swim. Even the old woman had been impressed.

The ghost girl had a plan, and she couldn’t tell him what it was. All they could do, with their sticks and spears, was follow her —

No, they didn’t have to follow her. He knew where she was going. He stared at her, pale in the dusk, as she led the men down the sloping path to the Place.

Who would be in here now? Daphne wondered. She’d seen Mrs. Gurgle up at the cave, because everyone who could walk had been up there. There were some sick people in the far huts, though. She would have to be careful.

She lit some dry grass from the fire outside the hut and cautiously transferred the flame to one of the Judy’s lamps. She did it very carefully, thinking about each movement, because she did not want to think about what she would be doing next. She had to keep herself in two parts. Even so, her hand shook, but a girl had a right to tremble a bit when two men were pointing guns at her.

“Do sit down,” she said. “The mats are not as bad as the ground, at least.”

“Much obliged,” said Polegrave, looking around the hut.

It almost broke her heart. Once upon a time some woman had taught the man his manners, but to thank her he’d grown up to be a weasel, thief, and murderer. And now, when he was worried and ill at ease, an actual bit of politeness drifted up from the depths, like a pure clear bubble from a swamp. It wasn’t going to make things any easier.

Foxlip just grunted, and sat down with his back to the inner wall, which was solid rock.

“This is a trap, right?” he said.

“No. You asked me to swear on my mother’s life,” said Daphne coldly, and thought: And that was a sin. Even if you have no god at all, that was a sin. Some things are a sin all by themselves. And I’m going to murder you, and that is a mortal sin, too. But it won’t look like murder.