Friends (2013) - Adams, Robert

The Prince turned to the crowd.

“It was a stroke of cleverness to send an assassin against me. But useless, as you can see. I grant you that she is beautiful, charming even; but an assassin all the same. This is how Gonzalo deals with treachery!”

At his signal, one of the men thrust his hand between the girl’s legs and lifted her up, as others pulled the rope. Then his hand was gone and the noose slowly tightened on the girl’s neck. The briefest flash of hopelessness flickered across her face, and then it was only the struggle for air, and the choked gasping, and she fought against the indignity of her spasms and twitching, until the veins bulged from her temples and a faint violet hue colored her face and then the rest of her. Darker and darker she became, and finally sightless; the kicks and spasms became impersonal, and then, blue from head to foot, she moved only with the wind, all movement stilled. Her face relaxed into the countenance of anger, and with a final indignity, her bowels and bladder relaxed as well.

Even the Prince would later admit that it was a good death.

“She shall hang until nightfall, then whoever so wishes may take her corpse.” Then Prince Gonzalo applied his heels to the horse’s flanks. The beast did not move. He kicked it again, and then again even harder, and finally the huge animal began to turn as the Prince pulled the reins. He felt the eyes of the villagers on him, hating him, sneering at him, condescending. It was not to be bome. He halted and turned in the saddle to the throng.

“I demand again: Where are the horses?”

No one moved.

“Where have you hidden the horses?” The faces were unflinching, sullen, immobile and defiant.

“So your fabled mounts are that valuable, eh? Sebastian!”

“Yes, your highness?” Capitan Sebastian della Verruca came up to the Prince.

“Select one of these mutinous dogs and bring him to me.”

“Si, your highness.”

The capitan, with a dozen soldiers, walked into the crowd. His eyes flicked here and there, measuring every man.

Garva stood impassive but for his clenched fists. His dark, low brows were an insolent challenge, and although Capitan Sebastian saw him, he figured that the man’s resistance could cause a loss of face. He memorized the big peasant’s features for the future and moved on.

Krai was sweating. He was afraid of pain, afraid of his own lack of nerve. If they took him for torture, there was nothing he could say to appease them, since there were no magic horses despite the Prince’s insistence. He began to quake as fhe capitan drew nearer.

Sebastian saw the terrified boy and smiled to himself. He had flushed out a useful tool from these recalcitrant peones. This was too good to waste on the Prince’s rage. He stared with a grim half-smile, and watched the blood drain from the boy’s face, and then marched straight toward him, smiling at his trembling, seeing the cramp in the boy’s bowels reflected in his staring eyes.

At the last minute, the capitan reached to his side and collared Lui Morgan ’s-son and yanked him into the circle of soldiers. They pinioned his arms and marched him to the Prince.

Gonzalo delicately placed the point of his sword over Lui’s heart. Quietly he asked again: “Where are the horses?”

Lui shook his head. “There are no more. You’ve stolen them all.”

Gonzalo frowned and jerked his arm straight. The blade slid between Lui’s ribs, and as the blood gushed along the blade and down his chest, he sighed and collapsed.

The Prince shouted to the villagers, “That did not have to be. But if you persist in thwarting me, more of you will die. You will give me the secret of your horses, or not one of you shall live to see the next full moon!” He barked to his men, “Bring the body!” And with a savage kick to his mount’s hide, he rode down from the hill toward the stockade. The men did as ordered, and followed, leaving a few guards, the fresh blood in the dirt, and the swaying body of Suzor Daughter-of-Shrake.

It was many minutes before the first of the women began to weep, and the sound of her sobbing broke the horrible spell which had overtaken them. Truly they were dead. So many had died, but somehow, this was the worst of all. Many turned to go, but more than a few stayed to guard the dead girl’s flesh.

Krai remained immobile, staring at the body, not even noticing the graybeard that came up behind him. There was nothing startling in the quiet voice of Glaze. The old man had raised Comet, the sire of the three-year-old stallion Krai had ridden to victory at the Harvest Festival race. If the conquerors had known, they would have tortured the old man for the information he would give them, and then impaled him on the spot. He leaned up to Krai’s ear.

“You’re attracting attention,” he said. There was no answer. “Don’t think that you’re the only one who wants to do something about this. If you want to get in on it, turn around and come away with me now.” Krai turned to him, and Glaze could see the tears on the boy’s face. “I know, son. Support me as if I were crippled. We’ll take the time for tears today. More than that, Daughter-of-Shrake wouldn’t approve.” The old man and the boy left the dead girl and took the road back to Phlox.

By midmorning, Suzor Daughter-of-Shrake waited in her eternity above the gaze of eight villagers, and the gallows hill was guarded by only a single squad of the conquistadores. Slowly and sadly, the folk of Phlox and Peony had trudged back to the timeworn tasks of daily life. Prince Gonzalo stood at the battlements of the wood-and-adobe fortress, looking past a small forest of sharpened stakes firmly planted in the ground, and surveyed this paltry comer of his demesnes.

“They’re holding out on me,” he said quietly.

Don Arturo, his second-in-command, shook his head.

“They’ve no place to hide horses, much less anything to feed them with. We’ve got what they had.”

“Then where are these mythical beasts to be found, these horses that can be trained overnight, and follow a rider’s every whim?”

“I’m sure I don’t know, sire.”

I’m sure you don't, either , thought the Prince. The wealth those horses could bring! I could become master of all four Mexicos! “We may have to put more of them to the Question.” “I’d advise against that for the present. We’re very outnumbered here. Push them too far and there will be open revolt.”

“Bah! They’re terrified sheep.”

“The assassin was very well liked.”

Gonzalo smirked. “Not surprising.” He turned to the stables, which were bulging with his own and the confiscated animals. A score of peasants were at work expanding the facility, but only his men were allowed near this equine treasure. “How many do we have now?”

“Enough to provide a mount for every man. Enough for the largest cavalry this side of the Big River!”

If only all the men could ride as well as they fight! Gonzalo turned foi* the stairs. “Then let’s not delay the training any longer. Get the maps! The men can start searching every hidden canyon while they master moving in columns. Those horses must be somewhere!”