The Song of the Marked (Shadows and Crowns Book 1) by S.M. Gaither

Author:S.M. Gaither [Gaither, S.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-09-17T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

The next morning, whether because of luck or because of the command Cas had given the Mist spirit, she and her party passed through the Kirith Forest without incident.

They found the road on the other side as empty as they’d hoped they would. It was steep and poorly maintained, but it soon brought them near enough to the city of Belwind that the walls of that city became clearly visible, cutting a crumbling shape against the hazy blue sky.

As they approached the outermost gate, their party began to splinter into several smaller groups. After the blockade incident of the day before, the consensus was that they would be better off not attempting to use the king-emperor’s authority to get what they needed out of this city; an undercover operation would better serve their purpose.

So Cas joined Elander, Tara, and Caden in shedding any and all regalia that marked them as servants—or saviors—who were working in the name of that king-emperor. Once they looked like civilians, and their horses like common beasts, the four of them covered the last miles into Belwind alone.

Or they appeared to be alone, at least; in truth, several more groups of royal soldiers were trailing at a distance, better armed and prepared to intervene if it became necessary.

But her group carried only the simplest of weapons themselves. Cas had a well-balanced short sword that Varen had insisted on sending along for her use. And a simple weapon was not a strange thing to see in this city; Belwind was a bustling trading hub, given its location where the three realms of Bloodstone, Prymarsh, and Bywilds came to a gathered point. They were also not far from the In-Between, which meant that Belwind hosted an elaborate underground market that dealt in the illegal trade of crystals and other magic-infused objects. All of these things led to streets that were not safe to walk after sundown—particularly if you were unarmed—as well as a native population that knew better than to interrogate strangers about whatever they might have been carrying.

This mind your own business mantra was evident as soon as Cas and the others stepped onto the main street that divided the city into its northern and southern sections. No one made eye contact with Cas. Even the few street vendors they encountered kept their gazes fixed on something in the distance as they shouted out their deals and the endless merits of their products.

“We’re heading for the Misthill district, on the north side,” Caden informed them. “According to my informant, that’s where the majority of the cases have been quarantined to.”

He led them down that main street at a casual pace. Since people didn’t seem interested in staring at her, Cas was free to observe everyone they passed. After several minutes, she still hadn’t made proper eye contact with anybody. There was an odd energy in the air that she couldn’t quite decipher; it was almost as if the entire city was braced for something. Their steps

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.