The Patrician by Joan Kayse

Author:Joan Kayse
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Historical Romance, (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
ISBN: 148109873X
Publisher: Ink Lion Books
Published: 2012-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

There wasn’t enough to fill the sack halfway, yet Jared spent the afternoon packing and repacking their meager possessions until he had driven himself nearly mad. Ironic for a man who once had had belongings enough to fill large chests too heavy to carry. Aggravated, he tossed the flimsy sack onto the bed.

Cicero’s revelation had sharpened his unease. Even before Bryna had decided that their departure could wait—and why he had allowed that to happen only proved her adeptness at manipulation—he had known that they had stayed in one place too long. And that was dangerous for fugitives.

Sliding his knife, now finely honed and razor sharp thanks to Cicero, into the belt around his waist he began to pace the room. There would be no more delays. When Bryna finished her tasks in the bake shop this afternoon, they were leaving and he’d not suffer any objection on her part.

Cicero rushed into the room, limping, his face mottled, and his eyes full of dread. “Go!” he wheezed.

In two strides, Jared reached the old man, helped him to sit. “Calm yourself, Cicero. It’s only a board game. I promise to let you win.”

Cicero clutched at his hand. “No, no!” He gulped. “They’re coming. I saw them from the front of the shop.”

The hair on the back of Jared’s neck raised. “Who is coming?”

“Soldiers. At least six of them along with two men who look like they’d kill just for the sheer enjoyment of it.”

Bounty hunters? Jared’s hands curled into fists. “They must be on a routine patrol.”

Cicero’s eyes filled with pain. “No, they are not. Lito is leading the way.”

Before the thought could register in his head, a shout sounded from the front of the building. Jared snatched up the sack. “Bryna! Is there a back way to the ovens?”

Cicero’s shoulders sagged. “Bryna is not here. She went with my daughter to make deliveries.”

There was no time to consider the terror and relief that washed through him knowing Bryna was safe—for the moment. He had to find her before she returned to the shop. As if reading his thoughts, Cicero said, “They should be nearly done by this time of day. Aea said the last delivery was to be at the magistrate’s house near the temple of Ceres.”

The clanking noise of scabbard against leg drifted from the shop. Cicero pushed at him, urging him down the corridor toward a storage room. He sprinted around the corner, finding only a window, one just large enough for him to squeeze through.

Behind him, he heard Cicero expressing surprise at the mere thought that he should be harboring runaway slaves. Through the muffle of voices he heard the excited, cracking voice of Lito, followed by the sound of a slap and a squall of pain. Wishing he could have had the pleasure of meting out the boy’s punishment, Jared hoisted himself through the opening and slid to the ground.

***

Bryna sighed, leaned her shoulder against the smooth marble of a column and raised her eyes to the blue sky.

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