Axler, James - Deathlands 05 by Axler James

Author:Axler, James
Language: eng
Format: epub

Chapter Nineteen

"the memories are flooding back and filling my brain with the past," Ryan said vehemently.

They'd been walking through the evening and into

the night, traveling on a twisting network of narrow

footpaths. They heard the sound of the pack of hounds,

called back by a blaring horn, gradually fading away to

the south, toward the ville.

Jak led the way with his good night sight, and at one point spotted the far-off glow of cooking fires. Ryan re-called that there were many small hamlets or settlements scattered around the area.

"They all owed work and land to the ville," he said. "The baron had almost total power over them."

"Almost?" Doc questioned.

Ryan grinned, his teeth white in the moonlight. "Yeah, Doc. Almost. Ville couldn't stop you chilling yourself." He paused. "But your family'd suffer if you took that road out."

One thing had changed in the years since Ryan had fled the r egion, half-blind and nine parts crazed.

There had been a steady infiltration of mutie raiders from the west, and all the small communities now had

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armed patrols out every night, all local men who knew every twist and turn of the dense forests.

Jak and Krysty heard them coming almost simulta-neously. But it was too late.

170

Short of a full-fledged firefight, Ryan and his group had no way of escape.

The villagers must have heard them coming, or seen them through the trees. There were six men, all armed with a variety of handblasters, ranging from an old En-glish Enfield to a target .22 Colt with sawed-off sights. All of them handled the pistols as if they knew how to use them. They had come in on opposite sides, calling out a warning from cover.

"One step and you're all chilled!"

Jak was the only one who went through with a draw, hefting the gleaming Magnum from his belt and waving it threateningly at the trees surrounding them. Ryan snapped out an order for him to holster the gun.

"Don't, Jak. Not now."

"Do like the one-eye says," came the voice, soft and calm.

"Okay, Ry...Floyd!" The albino nearly blew the pseudonym, just remembering it in time.

"Like to see all the blasters by your feet, real slow 'n' easy."

Ryan glanced around. He spotted the six men easily enough, but saw that they were well protected by the trunks of the sycamores. He felt angry with himself for allowing the double-poors to come and take them as easy as that. The only consolation was that they hadn't opened fire on them.

There was also the odd feeling that he didn't need to take any precautions. He was Ryan Cawdor, son of the old baron and brother to Harvey Cawdor, ruler of Front Royal ville and the thousands of acres around it. Why should he not feel safe? And that same feeling had some-how communicated itself to Jak and to the rest of the group.

171

"Put the guns down," he ordered. He raised his voice to address the leader of the patrol. "We're traders.

Our wag ran dry three days back. Been wandering around these forests ever since.

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