Orlind Read Free Page B

to
Llandry that Pensould was at least as angry with himself as he was
with her. Possibly more so. That realisation made her feel a little
better.
    ‘ Thank
you for waking me,’ she said humbly. ‘I didn’t mean to
die.’
    Pensould sighed.
‘Little ignorant.’
    ‘ Stop
being angry with me,’ she begged. ‘I can’t bear it.’ Tears pricked
at her eyes, to her intense shame, and her lip wobbled. Her
muscles, left unused for so long, were weak and shaking and her
mind was a disoriented whirl. And all the cares she’d had before
came flooding back to her. She remembered the attack on Waeverleyne
by Isand and two other draykoni. That attack had left her mother
injured and unable to wake; Llandry had exhausted her own body
trying to restore her health. And she knew that Isand’s attack on
Glinnery was only the first of many.
    Pensould
softened. He embraced her again, but without the bone-crushing
force he had used before.
    ‘ Now,
my lazy Minchu,’ he murmured. ‘You live, and so do I. All is well
after all.’
    She took a few
deep breaths, enjoying the soothing warmth of Pensould’s embrace.
Then the questions poured out.
    ‘ How
long have I been sleeping?’ she asked. ‘And what of Mamma? Why
isn’t Papa here? Where is this room? And Siggy! Where is
he?’
    ‘ You
are in the Library,’ he replied. ‘Limbane brought you here. Your
father is building machines in Waeverleyne. He has left a voice-box
with us, so you may speak with him if you wish, though he is very
busy at the moment. Your mother is with your grandfather. I do not
know how long you have been sleeping. I lost track of the days
while you remained in Waeverleyne; since you have been here, of
course, it is impossible to tell. And as for the furred gentleman
you call Sigwide, he was taken to the kitchens by Master
Limbane.’
    That last made
Llandry frown. Her grey-furred orting was stubbornly loyal, and
though he was fond of food she wouldn’t have expected that he would
consent to leave her. Not even if she was unconscious.
    ‘ All
right,’ she said cautiously. ‘Is... has Mamma woken?’
    Pensould shook
his head. ‘Not that I have heard. But I struggle to get your
father’s attention at present. Perhaps something has
changed.’
    This was also
poor news. What was keeping Papa so busy? Nothing good, she feared.
And Mamma still lay asleep?
    ‘ You’re quite right,’ she told Pensould. ‘It is high time I got
up. Help me, please.’ She hung on his arm to steady herself as she
climbed out of bed, alarmed by the trembling of her weakened
body.
    ‘ How did you wake me?’ she asked as Pensould steadied her on her
feet.
    He grinned a
little. ‘I employed the same offensive techniques that our friend
Ana used upon me some time ago. She would not leave me in peace,
evil woman, but pulled and pestered until I gave way. I did not
imagine I would have cause to be grateful to her for that ,
but it is the only method that proved effective, for you were
intent on staying asleep, little indolent.’
    ‘ Do
you think it would work on Mamma?’
    ‘ I
don’t know,’ he said seriously. ‘What ails your mother may not be
the same thing at all. She is not full draykoni as you are; there
is more of the human in her. But!’ He held up a hand as she began
to speak. ‘I fully concur that this approach must be tried on your
noble mother at our earliest opportunity.’
    Llandry nodded,
satisfied. ‘You’ve been practicing your languages,’ was all she
said in reply. ‘You sound almost as cultured as Lady
Eva.’
    Pensould beamed.
‘I’ve had much conversation with her,’ he said. ‘She has spent a
lot of time here, watching over you. Also with Tren, who has been
in much the same state as you, albeit conscious.’
    Llandry blinked.
‘Tren? Why? What happened to him?’
    ‘ But
of course, you won’t have heard.’ Pensould busied himself with
wrapping her in a warm dressing gown and finding slippers for her
feet as he spoke. Llandry listened