BooksBarbecue
Back A Night of Flames Save as PDF
Chapters (76)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise forMATTHEW HARFFY
  3. BY MATTHEW HARFFY
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Maps
  8. Epigraph
  9. Contents
  10. Place Names
  11. One
  12. Two
  13. Three
  14. Four
  15. Five
  16. Six
  17. Seven
  18. Eight
  19. Nine
  20. Ten
  21. Eleven
  22. Twelve
  23. Thirteen
  24. Fourteen
  25. Fifteen
  26. Sixteen
  27. Seventeen
  28. Eighteen
  29. Nineteen
  30. Twenty
  31. Twenty-One
  32. Twenty-Two
  33. Twenty-Three
  34. Twenty-Four
  35. Twenty-Five
  36. Twenty-Six
  37. Twenty-Seven
  38. Twenty-Eight
  39. Twenty-Nine
  40. Thirty
  41. Thirty-One
  42. Thirty-Two
  43. Thirty-Three
  44. Thirty-Four
  45. Thirty-Five
  46. Thirty-Six
  47. Thirty-Seven
  48. Thirty-Eight
  49. Thirty-Nine
  50. Forty
  51. Forty-One
  52. Forty-Two
  53. Forty-Three
  54. Forty-Four
  55. Forty-Five
  56. Forty-Six
  57. Forty-Seven
  58. Forty-Eight
  59. Forty-Nine
  60. Fifty
  61. Fifty-One
  62. Fifty-Two
  63. Fifty-Three
  64. Fifty-Four
  65. Fifty-Five
  66. Fifty-Six
  67. Fifty-Seven
  68. Fifty-Eight
  69. Fifty-Nine
  70. Sixty
  71. Sixty-One
  72. Sixty-Two
  73. Author’s Note
  74. Acknowledgements
  75. About the Author
  76. An Invitation from the Publisher

“And once again, you do not think I can offer you more, despite me showing you that I am more than just a beast of burden.”

“What more? What do you mean?” I squirmed and thought of all the times I had snapped at this man, ordering him without thinking.

“I know this al-Zarqālluh.”

“Truly?” I could scarcely believe it, but there were many things I had once not believed that I now knew to be true.

“Well,” Ahmad shrugged, “I have not met him. But I know of him. He is one of the richest men in the world, and his appetite for learning is insatiable. They say his madrasa,” he thought a moment for the word in Englisc, “his school, in Išbīliya teems with students and has more books than the ancient library of Alexandria.”

I was astounded by his words; amazed that a man whom I had barely thought of should know of the great library of the Mouseion at Alexandria. And I imagined such a place as he described, filled with books and scrolls, and of the character of the man who would possess such a library. The power of vision that would have this man of learning send out men to acquire tomes from far flung reaches of pagan lands. How Leofstan would have loved to meet such a man, I thought.

Ahmad could see some of the thoughts behind my eyes. Perhaps Leofstan had spoken to him about the book, or he had listened to my mentor and I discussing it, for now Ahmad’s eyes narrowed.

“I can guide you to the book you seek,” he said. “For a price.”

“A price?” I asked, but I knew what he would ask before he spoke, and I could not blame him.

“My freedom,” Ahmad said.

*

Ahmad’s freedom would be hard-bought. The search for The Treasure of Life would lead us far to the south, to the torrid lands of the Moors, to Al-Andalus and even beyond the great rock of Jabal Ṭāriq. But that is for another day. I am weary. The weather is closing in around the minster and I can smell snow on the wind. I must rest now, and pray that, if it be God’s will, He will give me the strength to continue my story. Until then, I commend my soul to the Lord. May His blessings be upon all who read this tome.

And thus ends the second volume of the Annals of the life of Hunlaf of Ubbanford.

Author’s Note