Broken World Book Four - The Staff of Law by T C Southwell Page B

again?”
    “ No.” Chanter turned. “The laws cannot be restored.”
    “ That’s a point of dispute, I’m afraid,” Kieran said. “Talsy
maintains that the laws can be restored, Chanter denies it. I
suppose it’s safe to say maybe the laws can be restored. We’re not
sure.”
    Ronos nodded.
“We’ll help you any way we can.”
    “ All we need right now is a safe place to rest for a while;
we’ll journey on once Talsy’s better.”
    “ That you have with us, never fear. Stay as long as you wish.
The black army will not bother you within my walls. They have left,
returned to Larina, I would guess, either permanently or to fetch
reinforcements. But Larina would be a fool to move against me. She
has no hope of winning such a war, even with her crossbreed
warriors.”
    “ Thank you. We’re most grateful for your aid.”
    Ronos waved it
away. “The longer you stay amongst us, the better pleased I’ll be.
To have a Mujar in our city again is a great honour.”
    That night,
Ronos provided a sumptuous feast for his guests, but the Aggapae
remained in the stables with their horses and Talsy slept. Chanter
consumed prodigious amounts of food and wine, unaffected by the
alcohol. Kieran became pleasantly drunk, something he had not
indulged in for some time. The Mujar’s reticence forced the Prince
to do most of the talking, but Chanter was the guest of honour and
centre of attention. By the time Kieran reeled from the banquet
hall with Chanter’s help, the birds awakened in the first glow of
the false dawn.
     
     
    Talsy woke to
find Chanter sitting cross-legged on the end of her bed, gazing
into space with the vacant-eyed preoccupation that only Mujar could
indulge in for hours on end. She sat up with a smile and glanced
around the empty room.
    “ Is it safe for you to be here?”
    He smiled.
“Yes. These people wish me no harm.”
    “ Was I that ill?”
    “ Yes.”
    She yawned and
lay back. “Where’s Kieran?”
    “ Asleep in his room.”
    “ They believed you, then.”
    “ Mujar don’t lie.”
    A knock on the
door drew Taly’s attention. Merina hesitated in the doorway, gazing
at Chanter.
    “ Come in,” Talsy invited. “I take it you’ve met
Chanter.”
    The Princess
nodded, shooting the Mujar a shy smile. “Are you feeling
better?”
    “ Much. It seems I’ve missed all the fun.”
    “ I’m afraid so.” Merina approached, stopping beside the bed.
“When Kieran asked me to leave you alone, I was suspicious. But
when Chanter came, it was the most wonderful thing that has ever
happened in our city. You are blessed to have such a wonderful
friend.”
    Talsy grinned
at the Mujar. “Well, this makes a change, doesn’t it?” She looked
at Merina. “We’re used to a very different attitude towards
Mujar.”
    “ Thank goodness we found out about Kieran, too,” Merina said.
“He’s everything Tyrander pretended to be, but was not. He’s told
us the whole story, and my father has sworn to help you
all.”
    “ And you’ve got a promise to keep.” Talsy giggled.
    Merina
blushed. “I should have believed you. I noticed some things about
Kieran that were different, but I was so bitter that I refused to
admit I might be wrong.”
    “ Blame Chanter, he’s the meddling Mujar who brought us
together,” Talsy said. Chanter raised his brows, and she added, “I
know what you did. I doubt King Ronos has ever had his horse run
away with him before.”
    “ I only wished to put you amongst people who could protect you
from the Torrak Jahar,” he replied. “I didn’t know of Tyrander’s
crimes against Princess Merina. It seemed a better idea than
Kieran’s.”
    “ It was. He didn’t understand what would happen if you had done
as he asked.”
    “ I thought as much.”
    Merina gazed
at Chanter while they talked, and, when a short silence fell, she
rose and headed for the door, saying, “I’ll order breakfast for you
and Chanter.”
    Talsy
swallowed bile at the mention of food and looked