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"Vait, you're losing me", Coldan interjected as soon as Asta paused to breathe. Apparently the morning had been anything but eventless at the inn, and he was getting more and more confused by all those references to things which had happened in his absence. "Vy are you talking about two ladies now? Vas zere another one besides zat perian woman - vat did you say her name vas? Elanor?" The name sounded much too grandiose for a halfling; if he had come across her as a character in a play, he would have thought her a fitting counterpiece to 'Mary the Elf'.
"Elanor Gamgee", Brinn repeated impatiently. "She's Lord Samwise's daughter. - Now listen, Asta - "
"Samvise Gamgee's daughter?" Coldan interrupted her. "You mean, the daughter of ze one I'm playing, ze one who didn't die on Veathertop after all, whom Branor and ze others met ze other day? And she's going to help us viz ze play?" This was more luck than they could ever have hoped for. "Zat's vonderful! Vat did she tell you, Brinn?" He couldn't wait to have a look at the notes she had just shown them.
"Oh stop it, Coldan!" Asta cried out, bumping against his ribs in an aborted gesture of exasperation. "We don't have time for this now! There won't be a play as long as our playwright is being held in some dungeon the Valar know where!"
Coldan almost made a sarcastic remark about her passionate concern for Aldarion's safety, but having learnt a lesson or two since yesterday, he bit on his tongue just in time.
"But vat reason would Sador hev to - ", he started to object, when something clicked in his mind and the pieces came together. There wouldn't be a play without Aldarion; much as he hated to admit it, Asta was right about that - and perhaps this was just the point.
"Actually", he corrected himself, "zis may not be as crazy as it sounds, Brinn. Zat Lord Cirdacil who left Sador here viz us isn't too fond of us, is he? Judging from vat Rollan told me, he'd be glad for any excuse to run us out of town vizout heving to pay us. Sador vas left viz us under ze pretense of working on ze script viz Aldarion and helping him iron out the mistakes ve hev made, but has anybody seen him doing anyzing of ze kind? To tell ze truth, I heven't trusted zat sweet-tongued clubfoot from ze moment I first saw him. Vat if his true orders are to sabotage our play - and vat better vay to achieve zis zan by kidnapping our playwright?"
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