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backward and yipped again.
Abdel shouldered his way through the vegetation to her and asked, "What is it?"
Jaheira didn't answer him at first. She just proceeded to remove her leather armor.
"What are you doing?" Abdel asked again, dumbfounded.
Jaheira managed to say "Spider," and sort of hop-stepped in place as she got her bustier off. Her undershirt was
loose, and she started to shake it. She made a rather convincing Calishite dancing girl. Abdel smiled in spite of his
worry, still not sure what was going on.
"Are you all right back there?" Xan called from somewhere in the thick vegetation.
"I think Jaheira's run afoul of a " Abdel started, then was interrupted by a pained yelp from Jaheira.
"Oh gods," she cried, "it bit me it's biting me!"
A tear burst from her eye, and Abdel stopped smiling. She was trying to pull her blouse off, and he helped her. The
fabric tore away with an echoing sound, and Abdel swatted the spider from between Jaheira's exposed breasts before
either of them realized what he was doing. The spider jumped nimbly onto Abdel's right hand, and the sellsword
slapped it with his left, leaving only a crinkling of legs in a brown spot.
"It went right " Jaheira started to say. Abdel looked up at her, naked from the waist up, and his mouth came open.
He'd never seen anything so
She clapped her hands across her chest and turned away. Even through her shoulder length hair Abdel could see
her neck blush bright red.
"I'm sorry," he said.
"It's "
"What's going on back there?" Xan asked. Abdel heard the elf approaching. Even Xan couldn't be quiet in this
trailless mass of weed and tree.
"It's all right," Jaheira called, and the footfalls stopped.
Abdel realized he was still holding Jaheira's torn blouse. He held it out to her bashfully. She paused, turning her head
slightly toward him, but he couldn't see her eyes.
"Keep up please," Xan remarked testily, and though Abdel still couldn't see the elf, he heard Xan turn and walk
away, in the direction the ghoul was leading them.
Jaheira waited a few seconds, also listening to Xan's receding footfalls, then she turned and reached for the blouse.
Her hands came away from her body, and her eyes met Abdel's. They stood there for what seemed like a lifetime, their
fingers intertwined with each other's in the smooth silk of the torn blouse. Jaheira let go first, reluctantly, and Abdel,
maybe more reluctantly, turned and walked on, leaving her to dress alone.
"Xan," he called, "watch for spiders."
"Yes," Korak said, his voice loud, too close to Abdel. "Spiders, for certain."
Abdel turned, and the ghoul was there. The horrid reek didn't seem as bad. He never would have believed he'd be
able to get used to it, but maybe he had. The ghoul turned in the direction of Jaheira, and the thing's hideous tongue
came out to lick at a puss-dripping boil on its sunken cheek. Abdel took two steps forward and grabbed the ghoul by
the tattered shirt.
"You're here as a guide, ghoul," Abdel said, his voice heavy and threatening, "so guide from the front, or spiders will
be the least of your problems."
Korak grunted and scurried off into the thick vegetation ahead. Abdel felt something tickle the back of his neck and
brushed away a bug of some kind. "Torm," he breathed, looking up into a daylight sky darkened by a thick canopy of
trees. He could see the sparkle of spider webs above him.
He glanced back at Jaheira, who was already following the rest of the party as she finished fastening her bustier. He
didn't say anything but felt a sudden burning desire to rip the dead guts out of the ghoul Korak. How much had the
thing seen? Those dead eyes didn't deserve to see what Abdel had seen, and Abdel was surprised by the next
thought: no man did. He'd killed her husband only two days before, but already Abdel was feeling like he and
Jaheira
He pushed those guilty thoughts from his mind and took his frustrations out on the twisted brambles that blocked
his way.
They walked for another hour or more through nearly impassable undergrowth, and Xan finally emerged from the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]