Heir of Iron

Chapter 4

"Ho! Up!" Taleg crashed through the curtain of the men's ablution chamber, with a weak, struggling Navran slung over his shoulder.

"Put me down, you rancid snow giant," Navran slurred. His fists beat against Taleg's back. He let loose a string of curses so vile that Mandhi reddened at the other end of the courtyard. She clenched her teeth and stormed down the passage after them.

"Where did you find him this time?" Mandhi asked.

"Oh, more of the same," Taleg said. "Gambling on the wharves by the Maudhu river, getting drunker and losing more by the minute." He shrugged Navran off his shoulder and dropped him gently on his feet.

"Star-damned goat piss," Navran said. "I was going to win. Did I tell you to come get me?" He staggered back a step, then lurched forward swinging wildly with jaw and fists clenched. Taleg caught his punch in his hand and grabbed Navran around the wrist to keep him from falling on his face. Navran kicked and swore.

"The big advantage of when he's drunk," Taleg said grinning, "is that he's much more talkative, and his punches are easier to block."

Mandhi curled her lip in disgust. "Did you find his money purse?" Taleg nodded and tossed the bag of coins to her.

"That's my money, you slut," Navran said. Taleg kicked him in the stomach. He howled and grabbed his gut, sobbing violently.

"That was a tap," Taleg said. "I'm in a good mood, or else you'd be hurting worse than that for insulting Mandhi."

"Yes, of course you watch out for your slut---"

Taleg bent and put his hand over Navran's mouth. Navran began to struggle, but Taleg pinned him to the ground with his other hand. "How much is left?"

Mandhi grunted. "Some. Less than last time." In the past month he hadn't quite reduced Veshta's house to penury with his drinking and gambling, but if he kept it up...

"Yes, well, he's getting harder to find," Taleg said. "It's funny, though: he doesn't lie. As long as the game is jaha and he's sober, he beats everyone. But eventually the other men at the wharf get tired of losing and insist that they play sacchu, and then he gets drunk, and then it's all over."

Navran squirmed away from Taleg's grip and shouted, "The dice hate me! I hate sacchu! Let me go."

"Are you going to quit squirming like a worm and be a man, now?"

Navran stopped his flailing. Taleg took his hands off of him, and Navran struggled to sit up, swaying and shuddering. He looked from Taleg to Mandhi with a look of hatred.

"Stick to the games of skill," Taleg said. "The dice do hate you, but you're hard to beat at capturing the towers on the jaha board."

The voice of Veshta's page startled Mandhi. "Is he well?" Habdana asked

"Bring him some rice and some mild beer to take the edge off," Mandhi said. "And he'll be fine."

"I'll tell Kidri," Habdana said. "But Cauratha wants to speak to you and Taleg."

Taleg wiped his hands of Navran's saliva and vomit. He glanced at Mandhi with a bemused smile. "Let me wash up. Tell your father I'll be right up."

Mandhi nodded and ascended the marble stairs to her father's room. She found him hunched over the desk, fingering two separate ink-scribbled palm leaves, his lips moving silently as he read them. "Come in, Mandhi," he said. "Is Taleg not here?"

"He will cleanse himself after bringing Navran in, then come up." She knelt next to her father at the desk.

Cauratha sighed and set down the palm leaves. He rubbed his ashy brows and rested his head against the desk. "What has my son done this time?"