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It dawned on Telely undisciplined He ainst the dry ground

"Forgivemyself over a dreaht you ht like to come check the snares with me Leave the baby; Boulos will see she comes to no harm"

Abreha waited for Tele one of the antelope trails through the scrubby acacia

"I like traveling simply," Abreha said "I like to hunt and set snares for my own meat, and watch it cook on a fire I have built e in the first snare, and Abreha knelt to undo it "I would not want to be helpless in the hands of my servants"

Tele casually on his hip, his thumb hooked in his knife belt He unpicked the snare with his right hand only,with effortless efficiency, and knotted the wires around the bird’s red legs with his teeth It was i it with only one hand on purpose, to ave the partridge to Telemakos to carry "We will stop your drea you when you are awake, at any rate I will think about it"

Then he stood up and strode whistling mournfully toward the next snare

He is kinder than lad to be here

In three weeks they ca a full rain fields and orchards of apricot and alate leads to the Street of Shade," Abreha told Telemakos as they entered the city The tall houses rose around theht and shadow, paint and ash "Look! All the road ahead lies in the shadow of Maharib Ghumdan, the tiered palaces, Himyar’s heart People think Ghumdan was built by Solomon"

They passed into the palace The lower stories were dark and cool, oat Endless ; the corridors were lit by narros with intricate alabaster frames and sht the colored light in pools and crevices On the fourth level they met a tall, older reet the najashi

"You are unexpected, your majesty! Welcome! My God, what is that? A lion? How old is it?" His clothes were the same deep blue as the Hadraer

"Tharan" Abreha returned his greeting They held each other by the forearlad to see you, , as they spoke over his head "What news is there?"

"Your British ao You did not pass him on the road, then?"

Abreha raised his eyebrows, as the local children and Abreha’s soldiers did to say that so was not so "Not that we knew Well, Godspeed to Gwalchrandson here now Do you reht Gebre Meskal’s lions?" Abreha handed over Menelik’s lead to his lieutenant "Telemakos is here to study under his uncle, Dawit Star Master And this is his sister"

Telemakos wanted very much to knohat the British ambassador had done to warrant his dismissal, but it would be boldly impudent to interrupt the introductions with such a question

"Your lady Queen Muna will delight to have a baby in the nursery again," Tharan said

"I’ll take Telemakos to meet the children, and join you in my study presently," Abreha told hiher Teleht stories and still they were not at the top It reminded Telemakos of the journey up the staired ways of the wadi valley they had cliet into the al-Surat Mountains; they had had to trade the baggage cahts set between terraces of hanging grapes and frankincense Teleh he had done nothing but climb stairs for the last ten days

"I had hoped to meet Gwalchmei," Telemakos said "He is my father’s cousin They were raised as foster brothers"

"It’s poor luck you’ve ht earlier you would have ht have stayed But he has just heard that his father is dead--King Lot of the Orcades is dead Gwalchmei’s duty lies in Britain now, so I have dismissed him"

"Oh"

Goewin had not told Telemakos about this Or maybe she had not heard it yet

They continued up the stairs It all seeely quiet They passed courtiers and servants, but not nearly enough tokingdom Abreha’s palace was full of holes It was rich and beautiful and ereat hall near the top The rooarlanded with dried rose and cinnaether in imitation of vines heavy with fruit The ere set with carnelian and citrine, and the white ceiling was veiled in a painted trellis of green leaves Hanging fro was a score of silver birdhouses filled with songbirds And though Tele like this in his life, it seemed so familiar it made his skin crawl

What does this re in Hoend? Yes, I heard it from Goewin What did she say? We woke to find the Queen’s Garden a riot of caged songbirds…

He had it then His grandause, who had crippled Medraut’s hand to punish hiht in silver for proof of her death And the story was that his grandarden and lured Lieu, the young prince of Britain, there and then tore open his wrist with her nails and tried to poison him

"Bird," said Athena in astonishment "Bird!" The birds chattered and fluted, and she answered three different calls in perfect i toward the silver cages