Gwathron broke wind.
”Seven gates shut on you!” Nadhorion exclaimed. ”Stinks worse than the tanner’s vats!”
It was time of late watches in the early hours before dawn. Nadhorion and Gwathron had been watching the house since midnight.
”I don’t like this city”, Gwathron complained. ”It’s too cold and windy. It always blows from the sea. How can people stand living here?”
”Beats me. This is the most messed-up assignment I’ve ever been on. What’s the point of it? What does Bangion want with this guy? You tell me!”
”You know what I would like to have right now?”
”Tell me.”
”A hot mutton pie.”
”Mutton pie?”
”Aye. You can’t get a proper mutton pie around here. All the street vendors here sell only grilled river fish or eels wrapped in flatbread. That’s gross! Who eats eels? I was dreaming about a hot mutton pie right now. Maybe that’s why I farted.”
”You’re unbelievable. Dreaming about mutton pies in Pelargir!”
Nadhorion had not seen Delioron until he felt the touch of cold steel on his throat. Delioron was behind him. His hand, holding the dagger, lied casually on Nadhorion’s shoulder.
”Who are you fools?” he asked.
”We’re on the same side, buddy”, said Gwathron.
”Do you know who I am?”
”Aye. We have been looking for you.”
”You found me.”
”We’re Captain Bangion’s men”, Gwathron said. ”From Minas Tirith.”
”Is that so?”
”It is”, Gwathron said.
”So why are you shadowing me?”
”We’re…” Nadhorion began.
The blade of the dagger broke the skin on Nadhorion’s neck. Blood seeped from the scratch, staining the front of his tunic red.
”You tell me about it before I cut your friend’s head off”, Delioron said to Gwathron.
”We were eavesdropping this woman…” Gwathron began.
”What woman?”
”Your woman, man. We were watching her…”
”Eavesdropping.”
”Aye.”
”Then what happened?”
”A few days ago we heard noises behind the wall. Not from your woman’s apartment, the other wall, the wall against the mountainside. We examined the wall and found that it was hollow, man, that there was a secret passageway carved in the rock behind the wall and that someone was there.” Gwathron was talking too fast.
”Then what happened?”
”We wanted to break the wall to see what’s behind it, but then Lieutenant Cothon ordered us to come here instead. He told us you might be here. We were told…”
”What?”
”To keep an eye on you.”
”I will cut your friend’s throat and his blood will splash all over you”, Delioron said slowly.
”Smoke and ashes, man!” Gwathron exclaimed. ”We were given an address and told to go see a man there.”
”What man?”
”I don’t know, I swear. A black man, a man of Harad, but he spoke Westron fluently. A free merchant of Pelargir, if you can believe it. We assumed he was one of Captain Bangion’s men in this city. He told us to come here and keep an eye on this house and then report in the morning about everything we saw. That’s all we know, I swear!”
Delioron was silent for a while as his brain processed the information and its significance, but his face remained expressionless. When he spoke again, his voice was as monotonous as ever:
”What about Radawen?”
”We were just keeping an eye on her. You know, in case she was still in danger. We were protecting her!”
”How cute. How did you get here?”
”By horses.”
”Did you leave them in the city stables?”
”Aye.”
”What does your horse look like?”
”A tall gray gelding. What…”
”Give me your stable token.”
”What do you…”
”Give it to me!”
Gwathron took the wooden chit from his pocket and gave it to Delioron. Delioron removed the dagger from Nadhorion’s throat and put the chit in his own pocket.
”Walk along the street. Over there”, he ordered.
They walked down the street and turned right from the corner, Delioron walking behind Gwathron and Nadhorion.
”Nice night for a walk”, he said.
”You are a dead man, you bastard!” Nadhorion said, bristling with anger and humiliation. ”Not today, but you are a dead man walking!”
”So are we all”, Delioron said. He stopped and picked up a rock from the side of the street. There was still plenty of time before dawn. He took an aim and threw the stone towards a stained glass window. The glass shattered. Small pieces of glass rained down on the pavement. Delioron picked up another rock and tossed it at another window. Windows started opening, sleepy heads popping out to see what the ruckus was all about.
”What did he do that for?” Nadhorion asked Gwathron.
A man leaned out of the window Delioron’s first rock had shattered.
”You bastards! You broke my window, you scoundrels!”
Nadhorion glanced over his shoulder, but Delioron was not there anymore. He had disappeared in the shadows.
”Guards!” shouted a thin woman’s voice. ”Somebody arrest these ruffians!”
Nadhorion and Gwathron started running down the street. Turning south from the next corner they ran straight into a patrol of four city guards, swords drawn and ready.
”Don’t move!” shouted one of them.
Nadhorion and Gwathron stopped running and raised their hands up.
Delioron rode out of the east gate of Pelargir on Gwathron’s gray gelding as the dawn broke on the eastern sky.
