Book 1 - Shadow of a Dark Queen by Raymond E. Feist

Author:Raymond E. Feist [Feist, Raymond E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fantasy, Fiction
ISBN: 9780688124083
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 1994-07-15T07:00:00+00:00

13

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The barman looked up.

The inn was crowded, and in the normal course of business, anyone entering should not have caused him to notice. But the figure who entered was not one of his ordinary customers, nor was the barman an ordinary barman.

The newcomer was a woman, tall and alert in her stance, wearing an all-concealing robe of sturdy weave, fine enough to mark her as more than a common street girl, but not so elegant as to mark her as nobility. For a moment the barman expected one or more men to follow her, escorts to protect her from the street’s rougher denizens. When none appeared, he was certain there was nothing ordinary about this woman. She glanced around the room as if seeking someone; then she locked eyes with the barman.

She threw back the hood of the cloak, revealing a youthful appearance—though the barman knew well enough appearances were deceiving—with dark hair and green eyes. She was not pretty but striking, with a full mouth and good cheekbones. Her eyes were dangerous. Most men would have called her beautiful, but most men wouldn’t have known how dangerous she was.

A young bravo stepped up to intercept her before she could reach the bar. He was at the peak of youth, feeling too much the rush of blood and ale. He was nearly majestic in appearance, half a foot taller than six feet, with shoulders broad with iron plates, and enough scars to ensure that few of his boasts were challenged as lies.

“Here, now!” he said with a drunken laugh, pushing back a crested helmet so he could see better. “What is so wonderful a wench doing without my company?”

This brought a laugh from two of his companions and a disapproving look from the whore who had counted on all three of these soldiers making her night profitable. The woman stopped as the young warrior stepped before her, and looked him slowly up and down. “Excuse me,” she said softly.

The man-boy grinned and seemed about to say something. Then his smile slowly faded, until he looked down upon the woman with a puzzled expression. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly as he stepped aside.

His friends looked on in amazement and one stood up to say something. The barman produced a light crossbow and put it on the bar, with the bolt pointed directly at the protester. “Why don’t you sit back down and finish your drink!”

“Hold on, Tabert. We spend a lot of gold here! Don’t be threatening us!”

“Roco, you get drunk on cheap wine down at the market, then stagger up here to grope and fondle one of my girls until closing, when half the time you don’t have enough to pay for her company!”

The girl who had been sitting with the three men stood up and said, “And the half of the time they have money, they don’t have any iron left in their swords from all that cheap wine, and even when they do, it’s nothing much to brag on.

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