Onyx of Darkness_An epic dragon fantasy by Norma Hinkens

Author:Norma Hinkens [Hinkens, Norma]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781947890046
Publisher: Dunecadia Publishing
Published: 2018-07-02T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

“Did you see him?” Orlla hissed over her shoulder to Erdhan.

He looked around uncertainly. “Who?”

“Akolom, the man wearing the hat. Standing by the candle stall we went by.”

Erdhan turned around in the saddle and stared at the elderly man shuffling away from the stall with his back to them. “Are you sure that’s Akolom? That man is advanced in years and walks with a stoop.”

“He has aged rapidly in the past few days,” Orlla admitted. “But I could never mistake his eyes.”

“That means Khor might be here somewhere too,” Erdhan said, an undercurrent of excitement in his voice. “Keep combing the stalls. He will try to make his presence known to us if he spots us.”

They fell silent as they continued down the main thoroughfare, scrutinizing the farmers and merchants packing up for the day, hoping to catch a glimpse of Khor somewhere in the midst of the activity. Carts trundled by in both directions, but there was no sign of the Protector anywhere.

“If he’s here, he’s lying low,” Erdhan muttered.

“He said he would find us,” Orlla reminded him. “He might follow us to the inn and wait until night falls before making contact.”

A short time later, the inn came into view, a stone and wood-beamed building huddled along a curve in the main street with the soft flicker of lanterns visible through the shuttered windows and a cozy spiral of smoke going up from the chimney stack. After the group had taken their horses around to the stable at the back, and Lord Davian had unbuckled the saddlebag containing the dark dragon stone, they made their way inside.

From behind a worn wooden counter top, a lanky innkeeper acknowledged them with a swift dip of his pointed chin. Gray hair sprouted stiff as a broom from atop his pinched face. His hooded eyes darted over them, as if calculating the profits to be made from a group of their size. “Welcome!” he bellowed across to them, displaying a cursory gap-toothed smile beneath expressionless eyes, which immediately flagged him as somewhat untrustworthy in Orlla’s mind.

“Wait here,” Lord Davian said to them. “I’ll find out if they can furnish us with rooms for the night.” He strode over to the innkeeper and leaned across the counter, making it impossible for anyone else to overhear their conversation.

While the mercenaries and soldiers milled around the entryway, Orlla kept an eye on Davian’s dealings from behind a large, supporting beam. Her initial hunch about the innkeeper, and her awareness of Lord Davian’s scheming ways, made her suspect that the covert deal being struck might not be strictly concerning lodgings for the night. Her misgivings heightened when Lord Davian produced a bulging purse from beneath his cloak and counted out an inordinate amount of coin.

Orlla sidled over to the door where Shanks and the other mercenaries were engaged in conversation. As soon as Shanks saw the look on her face, he broke away and beckoned her closer. “What’s wrong?”

“Lord Davian is up to something. He handed over enough coin to house us here for a month or more.

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