Kathir's Redemption (Book 6) by Kristian Alva

Author:Kristian Alva
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: epic fantasy, dragons, dark fantasy, YA fantasy, fantasy
Publisher: Defiant Press
Published: 2015-03-30T23:00:00+00:00

10. An Ambush

Back at the Highport Mountains, the situation between the clans was getting worse by the day. Snow had started falling incessantly, blanketing the mountainside with freezing white powder. For the dwarves stuck outside, their living conditions became unbearable. The political stalemate continued, with neither side willing to compromise.

Skemtun tried to get things moving by sending Kathir to speak to Utan in secret. Kathir tried to catch Utan on several occasions, but he didn’t dare approach the gate when there was no way to be sure which of the guards Bolrakei had bribed.

The only time Kathir actually found Utan outside, Druknor prevented him from talking to him. Druknor wagged a finger at Kathir as if he were chastising a naughty child. “Are you sneaking over there to speak to Utan?”

“No…” Kathir lied.

“Good, I’m glad. We don’t want you to interfere in this little political situation, Kathir. That’s not what Miklagard needs from you, is it? The High Council hired you for a very specific need.”

“I know, I know. I’m just a bodyguard,” Kathir finished for him.

“Exactly. I’m glad we understand each other.” There was nothing friendly about Druknor’s smile. “Now, don’t interfere. Remember who’s paying you. Remember why you’re here.”

“The High Council pays me, not you. I know you’re chummy with Delthen and the council, but you don’t have the right to give me orders. So tell me…why are you here?” Kathir itched to reach for his sword, but that would mean a public fight with Druknor, who was a very powerful man. No matter how badly he wanted to, Kathir couldn’t risk trying anything now. “Don’t tell me that you’re simply here as Delthen’s friend. What does a slaver care about what’s happening with the dwarf clans?”

“A slaver? Why would you call me that? That’s just a vicious rumor, you know,” Druknor said. “Is it so hard to believe that I would want this situation resolved quickly? Orcs spreading farther north would be bad for Miklagard, but it would be even worse for me. My fortress isn’t protected by a magical dome.”

Kathir’s eyes narrowed. “You could have let the High Council deal with this without involving yourself. Why are you really here?”

“Sutt-Burr doesn’t have much of a defense against an army of greenskins, so I’m invested in the outcome of this little skirmish. And of course, there are certain…opportunities when such conflicts arise.”

“Of course,” said Kathir. “Now it all makes sense. You saw another opportunity to make a profit—off someone else’s misery.”

Druknor smiled slightly. “I’m a businessman, not a charity. I see opportunities in many things.”

“You’re a war profiteer,” Kathir retorted. Wars meant captives, refugees, and stranded civilians. For a man like Druknor, it would be a perfect hunting ground to collect more helpless slaves to smuggle and sell like cattle.

Druknor’s eyes hardened, but he didn’t stop smiling. He stepped forward so that his face almost touched Kathir’s. “Those are some tough words, mercenary. What are you going to do about it?”

Kathir clenched his teeth and backed away. He knew it would be foolish to start a fight with Druknor now.

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