Cold Fury: King's Convicts III by Gail Z. Martin

Author:Gail Z. Martin [Martin, Gail Z.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy, Epic, Two Hours or More (65-100 Pages), Literature & Fiction, A Blaine McFadden Adventure
Amazon: B019ZRM6XM
Publisher: DreamSpinner Communications
Published: 2015-12-29T00:00:00+00:00

PART FOUR: Liberation Day

“I just knew that hunting trip was going to come back and bite us on the ass.” Piran paced as he and Blaine awaited the arrival of Commander Prokief, in the cold courtyard with the others. Prokief did not stand on ceremony, and if he was of a mind to get his final vengeance on them, anywhere would do.

“You really have a way with words, anyone tell you that?” Blaine replied. Humor hid his tension, but not convincingly. Piran should have earned his Ticket six months earlier, along with Kestel and Dawe, but Prokief used the disastrous wolf hunt as an excuse to extend Piran’s sentence. This was supposed to be their liberation day, the day they earned their Tickets of Leave along with the rest of the inmates who had arrived on the Cutlass three years ago, and all those whose arrival had been near that time.

Both men wore the best clothing they had, which wasn’t saying much, Blaine thought. Since their new provisions had been destroyed on the wolf hunt, they made do with the prison garb that wasn’t in tatters. The morning had started out well. Guards called for the departing prisoners to gather their meager belongings and come to the parade grounds, where they would be formally released and granted their papers.

Blaine and Piran had traded good-natured barbs with the men who had been their barracks’ mates for three years. Garrick and the rest would soon be their neighbors in Skalgerston Bay. The colony was small enough that Blaine had no doubt he would see familiar faces. Though they all tried to play down their anxiousness, everyone felt a buzz of excitement at the possibility of their impending release. I’ve waited so long for this, Blaine thought. Let’s hope nothing goes wrong.

He knew he was not the only one who feared that the long-awaited liberation would be denied. Blaine remembered how, six months before, Dawe had spent the night in front of the makeshift altar he had built, beseeching the High God, Charrot, and his consorts Torven and Esthrane for their safe deliverance on the night before he and Kestel were released. Throughout their incarceration, Dawe had been the most devout of any of the men, although some stopped by with a small offering of food or a trinket of whittled wood during the high feast days or when they needed a favor. He had left his altar behind when he earned his Ticket. Last night, there had been a near-steady line of men bringing tribute and stopping to offer a prayer. Blaine had largely given up on the gods hearing him the night his father had beaten his mother to death. But even he saved a crust from dinner for an offering, just in case.

When morning came without incident, Blaine had relaxed, a little. Piran seemed in good spirits, meaning his cynicism about the reality of being set free was only slightly modified. Blaine had felt a weight lift as he walked out of the barracks for the last time, his paltry belongings tied up in his extra cloak.

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