The Mist and the Lightning. Part 13 - стр. 4
“Menerhis was subordinate to Prince Ariel Riel.”
“They came with you.”
“They came for the wealth of the reds, there is nothing to be done, this is a war. And I heard rumors that Emil was leaking information about our actions to the Black City to his brother, and Clive Gabriel was reporting everything to Leonardo.”
Lis shook his head, he looked upset and gloomy, lit a cigarette as usual. Kors noticed that Lis’ face was still dirty, streaks of soot smeared across his cheeks. He didn’t wash or clean himself up after the fight. Before the meeting, he laid out Fort’s plan on the table and made notes in pencil, but didn’t take a minute to simply wipe the dirt off his face with just a wet towel. Lis was so preoccupied with his war that apparently he didn’t even think about it, it seemed he didn’t think about anything at all except the war. And Kors bitterly concluded that this attitude towards himself and seemingly trifles gave up Lis as a commoner, a poor man, accustomed to do without water and walk dirty, without discomfort. Kors moistened a napkin on the table with water from a jug and handed it to Lis:
“Alis, wipe your face, please.”
“What?” Lis looked up from the Fort’s plan. He looked at Kors a little questioningly, as if trying to understand what he wanted from him.
“Wipe your face, please, you're black with soot.”
“Kors, don't bother me with any bullshit now, okay?” But Lis took the napkin and wiped his face. Kors felt relieved from his heart, now his noble friends would not think anything bad about his son-in-law. Lis lit a new cigarette, his pensive glance back at the plan. Nikto and Arel entered the room.
“Nik, have you called your commanders?” Lis asked quickly.
“Yes. Zaf, Nija and Tazh will come now.”
“Whose commander is Nija?” Kors remarked skeptically. “Of five unclean ones?”
“Kors, I need him,” said Lis, “I also can't stand him, believe me, but now I need him,” he glanced at Karina. She averted her eyes. She didn’t open her face, because her lips had not yet fully healed and Karina didn’t want her father to see that Lis was beating her. Moreover, Lis told her that she could only be with an open face in their rooms. And he forbade her taking off the scarf. Therefore, Karina, obeying his orders, remained with a black silk scarf on her face.
“Send Karina away,” said Kors, “she has nothing to do at the meeting. Let her rest in the room.”
“She fought on a par with everyone else,” Lis objected. He turned to Karina:
“If you want to rest, you can go to the room. If you want to stay by my side, you can stay.”
“Can I stay with you?” Asked Karina, pleadingly looking at Lis with her expressive eyes.
“Yes, you can.”
And Karina, right in front of her father, fell on her knees before Lis, bending over to his boots:
“Thank you…”
And Nikto, smiling under his mask, made Kors feel what Lis felt now, when such a beauty as Karina, with her noble black father, humiliating herself, crawled at his feet. And Kors went up inside with indignation. Lis lifted Karina, again placing him on the chair next to him.
“You yourself, Alis, run into trouble, at first you drag her everywhere you go, where some men are, and then she kisses others,” said Kors.
“She will not do it anymore,” Lis smiled.