Adventure Magazine Cover — page 52: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

50 - Adventure = curtains that divided inner-room from hall. _ Caswallon eyed him swiftly, searchingly, then smiled and strode to meet him. “Brother Tros!” he said, embracing in the British fashion, one cheek then the other, each man’s right hand patting the other’s back. Caswaillon was as swift of resolution and - as emotional as a boy beneath that rather noncommittal surface. His mustache hid lyps that gave the lie to the high cheek- bones; he was gentler than he seemed, al- theugh a mighty man in battle and stronger than his two strongest men-at-arms. He thrust the pawing dogs away, pretend- ing aager, and took Ifur’s hand, she watch- ing Tros as ii she could read thoughts be- tore he formed them. ‘Three children came and clume to Fflur, but she hardly noticed them, although they laughed at her be- cause her hair was all blown from the chariot - ride and she was mud-bespattered from Caswallon’s trick of driving through and over anything he met. “What is this about the Gaulish woman?” Caswallon asked, when he had waited for Tros to speak and Tros said nothing. “She was Ceesar’s slave,” Tros answered. “She was not entitled to be anybody’s guest. Cesar insulted you, me, all of us, every Briton of the Trinobantes, when he sent a Slave to intrigue among us as an equal!” “So!” said Caswallon, and tugged his mustache. He glanced at Fflur, but she looked away and gave him no counsel. “A slave, eh? Do you know that?” Tros laughed. “T will sell her to you, if you wish! Sheis mine, since Cesar sent her to beguile me! i will write you a bill of sale for her and sign it with Cesar’s name and seal. To make it full and binding I will wear his cloak that 1 took with his seal.and treasure- chest! Do you want her?” He was watching Fflur sidewise, consider- ing the drama that her eyes revealed. Sud- ' denly he caught her full gaze and she nod- ded; they understood each other. “Ti you are my friend, Tros,” said Fflur in her quiet voice, “you will keep that wo- man from Caswallon!”’ “What is to be done with her?” asked Tros. But instead of answering, Caswallon let go Fflur’s hand and strode a dozen paces up the hall and back again. “Tros!”’ he said at last. ‘She was swift, she was swifter than death! She came by night in a chariot, with a tale of shipwreck and the friendship of the men of Hythe. She said nothing of Skell. By morning she had won half Lunden! She came to visit me with more than thirty young bloods fawning on her! She showed me Cesar’s letter, and she spoke of you. “Tn an hour, nay, in less than an hour, she had offered to betray both you and Cesar. She gave me that letter, and I burned it. It was Latin, and besides, you had been my friend. I did not choose to let my eyes see proof against you. Then— we were alone then—she spoke to me of you and Fftur.”’ “He believed it!” Fflur interrupted. There was almost hatred in her eyes. “He took that woman’s word that I, the mother of his sons, was——”’ “Fflur!’’ Caswallon did his best to smile, but the ire in her gray eyes chilled him. “You heard what the druid said. Did he not say an evil woman can corrupt the strongest man in a little while? Did the druid not say 1 was no more to be blamed than if I took a wound in battle? Have I not begged your forgiveness until my tongue stuttered against my teeth for Jack of words?” “Yes, words!” Fflur answered. “But you turned that woman loose to make worse mischief. You let her go and live with——” “Should I have kept her in my house?” Caswallon almost yelled at her. No!” said Fflur. “Should I have killed her? What would the druids have said to that? What-would half Britain have said that is forever urging me to listen to Czsar’s terms! Lud knows, it’s hard enough to rule, without new ex- cuses for dissension! iI had to say I would take time for thought. And before I could think, those Northmen came plundering the river-villages.”’ Tros tried to pour oil on the waves of argument. “The question is, what shall be done with her.”’ “That which should have first been done with her!” Fflur answered. ‘Send her back to Cesar with a whipping, in a dress turned inside out and a whip in her hand as a gift to Cesar! Bid her tell him that is Fflur’s reply to Rome!” Eomicbooks.com