The Storyspinner by Wallace Becky

Author:Wallace, Becky [Wallace, Becky]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction, Love & Romance, Fantasy & Magic, Action & Adventure, General
ISBN: 9781481405676
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2015-03-02T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 46

Leão

Four men, armed with short swords, blocked off the main trail into Performers’ Camp. They were all thinly muscled, their arms bared by multihued vests, but not malnourished.

“State your business.” The speaker was a bit taller than his companions. He wore a bright red strip of cloth tied around his brow and another around his bicep like a band of office.

The Keepers’ Elite Guard wore the braided cadarço to signify an advanced level of training. Leão cringed inwardly, hoping the similarity was a fluke, and not proof of Jacaré’s story. “We’re looking for someone,” he said, signaling to Pira, Tex, and Jacaré, a few horse lengths away.

“Got a name?”

“No, but I can describe her.”

The men on either side of the leader shifted, hands edging toward the weapons slung through the wide sashes at their hips.

“Son,” the leader said, stepping closer to Leão’s horse. “You wouldn’t be the first man to lose his heart to a Performer girl, but don’t claim she stole your coin purse. We Performers are flighty by nature, and as you don’t know her name, she certainly won’t remember yours. I’m sorry for your long journey, but you and your”—he studied the approaching group, eyes lingering on Pira’s face—“people need to move on. We don’t allow strangers into Performers’ Camp.”

Leão’s cheeks flushed red. “This isn’t about hearts or purses, this is about—”

“A debt unfulfilled,” Jacaré said. “A Performer once saved my life, and I heard that he was recently killed in a fall. We rode from Impreza to offer a boon to his wife.”

“He must be talking about Arlo.” One of the younger guards elbowed the man next to him.

The leader wasn’t so easily taken in. “That’s a long ride to offer a boon to a Performer. Why not wait till the next time a troupe made it to your town?”

“There was no guarantee that she’d be with them, and I don’t know her name. But I’d recognize her face if I saw it and would know my debt was fulfilled.”

“Are you sure you’re not from Santiago?” The leader said with an arrogant smirk. “I didn’t know men from Impreza were so committed to honor.”

“Arlo saved my life. Don’t I owe his family a personal visit?”

The leader shrugged. “You can give me the boon and I’ll be happy to pass it along.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you, friend,” Jacaré said, sounding decidedly unfriendly. “But fifty gold pieces is a lot of money to put into the hands of the wrong person.”

“Fifty gold,” the youngest guard whispered, eyes wide with awe. “That is a lot—” His words cut off when the leader smacked him on the back of the head.

“I’ll talk to our Council and see what they make of your claims.” He pointed to a narrow trail, branching off into some pine trees. “Head that way and make camp. I’ll send someone back with word on the Council’s decision by dawn.”

“Thank you for your assistance. Can you give me a name to call you by?”

The leader turned, walking backward down the rocky trail without a stumble.

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