Part 4 (1/2)
and he doubted that she would ht before her men
Raihna's frown trembled, then vanished Her full lips trele fluid series of movements, she sheathed her sword, slid froround to the Ci at the same time
”I've no twin brother that I know of, and no sorcerer has ever done e of me Trust me, Raihna I am here”
”Oh, Mitra!”
For a moment it seemed to Conan that Raihna would swoon He raised a hand, ready to save her fronity It would cost her some obedience from her men, that he did not doubt Without the battle haze in his eyes, he saw them for a stout band ould not readily take orders from a woman No, better said: would not take orders from most women
But Raihna was not most women It hardly surprised Conan to see her with her own band of caravan guards in less than two years after she had left Turan as a siuard in another's band
What did surprise hiain here, in this dreary wilderness that called itself the Border Kingdom Yet that was most probably another tale best saved until later
Raihna now seeained coed at a stray lock of Conan's black hair
”Gods, it is no bad thing to see you again Better still, when you have put me-us-so much in your debt I swear that I will find sori of her authority, he lowered his voice ”Best pay it by rallying youron” He told of his own battle in the trees in a feords, leaving out altogether his first notions about joining the bandits
”You have the right of it, Conan If these wretches have friends, that one you put to flightAnd we are hardly in a fit state to row a hand's breadth in height, and Conan would have sworn that her eyes glowed When she turned their gaze on her men and snapped out a half-score of com them
Conan resolved to worry less about Raihna's authority a her men and more about his oelcome He would have her favor, but many in the southern lands did not know Cimmerians Some of those, like fools everywhere, feared what they did not know
Seeing that Raihna had matters well in hand, Conan strode off uphill
He returned with the leader's body and the discarded weapons of the bandits he had slain
”Best not to leave anything lying about that so can pick up,”
he said of the weapons Raihna nodded, then looked a silent question about the body
”He has sorels,” Conan said ”There's also a public gallows a bit farther on, at the foot of a hill with a ruined castle atop it Hang this fellow up and it ain”
Raihna nodded ”You were always a longheaded hed ”You reen lad!”
”No,” she said, and both her voice and her eyes held memories that made Conan's blood leap ”No lad”
Then she was the war captain again, calling to her men to contrive a pack animal or a litter for the bandit's body
Conan stood apart, s The promise had been made and returned Now they needed only darkness
Chapter 3