Outlanders 32 Evil Abyss by James Axler

Author:James Axler
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

A small bent man spoke to Kane from the brush line. He wore an olive-drab tunic laced with rawhide strings, homespun shorts and leather sandals. His black hair was long and unkempt, speckled with gray. Three of his lower front teeth were missing.

The man's wrinkle-netted face was impassive, having much the same color and texture as his sandals. Kane assumed his eyes were jet-black, but it was hard to tell since all he could see were slightly curved slits surrounded by baggy flesh. He looked to be about five and a half feet tall, but because he was bent in an apparently perpetual crouch, he looked smaller still. The man's voice reverberated within Kane's head, first as a conglomeration of liquid syllables before the translation program from the PDA fed him the English equivalent through the Commtact.

"You are an outlander," the man observed in his harsh, hoarse voice. "As was the girl."

Kane, keeping his Copperhead trained on the man as he capped the canteen, looked behind him. He didn't see anyone else lurking in the brush. "You saw a girl?" "Oh, yes," the small man replied. "Saw her as clear as I'm seeing you now. Very pretty girl, very spirited." Kane's sudden surge of relief ebbed when the man added, "Yes, a very pretty girl with wavy dark hair. Too pretty for these parts."

"Did you see anyone else with her?" Kane asked. The man frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Was there a man and another woman with her...a woman whose hair was like sunset?" He surprised himself with his poetic turn of phrase. He hoped it translated accurately.

The little man shook his head. "No. I saw only the dark-haired pretty girl. Too pretty for her own good, she was."

"You keep saying that," Kane snapped. "What are you talking about?"

The small bent man uttered a wheezing laugh. "She caught the general's eye. He's always interested in pretty young girls."

"The general of what?"

"The general, warlord of these territories. Soon he will rule all of Angkor Thom."

There was a touch of pride in the old man's tone that aroused Kane's suspicions. "How long ago did the general take her?" he asked. The man shrugged. "Four days, I think."

"How far to Angkor Thom?"

"Nearly fifty miles, but she is not there."

Kane stepped forward, jaw muscles bunched as he struggled to tamp down his rising temper. 'Then where the hell is she?”

The man's rasping laugh was louder this time, almost scornful. "Like I said, the general has her. If you would go to him, I can show the best route to take. My name is Chou Chan, and I can serve you as a guide."

Kane scowled down at him. "That's very convenient. Do you expect me to believe that you just hang around out here in the jungle, waiting for outlanders to pass by so you can guide them to places of interest?"

Chou's expression didn't change, but the timbre of his voice did when he answered, "No, outlander, I do not expect you to believe that.

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