The Dragon Series by Elizabeth A. Lynn

Author:Elizabeth A. Lynn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
Published: 2017-09-12T16:00:00+00:00

In the house on Coil’s Ridge, the men were placing bets.

“A penny on the cat,” Blaine yelled.

Nils, who had helped to trap the cat, threw a shoe at Blaine. It missed. One of the hounds leaped on it and carried it away to chew. “A penny? Blaine, you chiseler. Ten pennies.”

“Twenty on the cock,” offered Edan. He had to raise his voice to be heard. It had been Edan’s idea to put the feral cat and the red fighting cock together in the barrel. Two men had been badly scratched, and the cock had nearly pecked Edan’s eye out.

The noise was astonishing. In a moment the old man would come lurching down from his rooms, and shout at them. Someday, Treion Unamira decided, someday he would rip the old sot’s throat out, as he had no doubt the cat was now doing to the bewildered cock. The cock had sharp spurs and a wicked beak, but the cat had teeth and claws and night vision and a deadly hunter’s instinct. Were he willing to bet, he would bet on the cat. He lifted his wineskin. It held merignac, that liqueur of the gods. It tasted like honeyed fire. His grandfather’s cellars contained six jeroboams of merignac; five now. He smiled, remembering the night’s work. It was only a beginning, but still, they had done well. The old sot, his grandfather, had never done more than steal sheep and harry unwary merchants while Karadur Atani’s back was turned. There was no future in sheep-stealing, and no fun in it either. But now, with the horses, his little tribe of brigands could do more. They had all of Ippa to range in—no, all of Ryoka. They would grow. He saw himself riding at the head of an outlaw band a hundred strong... The Bastard’s Company, men would call it. He would like that.

He had originally intended only to steal the horses, not to kill, but the arrogance of the old horseman, coming at him with a sword, had enraged him. Firing the house had been an afterthought. Still, it had given him pleasure to watch it. He had always liked fire.

The uproar from the barrel was becoming tiresome.

“Stop it,” he said to Edan. “Let them out.” The men looked at him in stupefaction. Edan started to argue, thought better of it, and kicked Edric in the side.

“Get up. We’re letting them go.”

Warily they pried the top from the barrel. The cat staggered out, sneezing, bloodied. Nils whooped, and stuck his hands out. “Pay me!” he yelled. They squabbled about the winnings.

“Shut up,” Treion said. He didn’t raise his voice, but the place grew still. They were all learning, except the habitual drunks and the stupid ones, and unfortunately as long they could ride and shoot, he needed even the stupid ones. At least they had learned not to lie to him. He loathed lies—they made him sick, literally. He had warned his grandfather’s men—curs, who lied as easily as they breathed—the very

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.