Empire of Exiles by Bastian Knight

Author:Bastian Knight [Knight, Bastian]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-08-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty

“Hey now, let’s not be rash.” Grady looked over his shoulder toward the doorway behind him. “Yayla, Nayta, get your asses out here and man the front. I’m gonna take these clients into the back.”

Jason blinked at the sudden excitement displayed across the Furred’s muzzled face. Sindyrrith huffed and gave a sharp nod. “That is better.”

Grady gestured toward the far side of the wooden counter. “Come on back, and I’ll see about getting us something to drink while we talk shop.”

Natalie was the first to move, and Jason joined Zarah as they followed the furry craftsman into the back of his shop.

Two dark-furred, jackal-eared men rushed past them, heading for the front. They were Bissian, just like the guards. Though bare-chested, both wore expensive-looking skirts and bronze jewelry.

Grady led them past two small storage rooms and into what looked like his personal quarters. Another door led off to the left, but the Lourox gestured to a round stone table with curved bamboo stools nearby.

“Have a seat,” he said before moving to a series of cabinets along the right wall. Jason studied the room as Grady rummaged around, collecting thick glasses and a large clay jug.

The walls were the same painted mudbrick he had seen throughout the city. Several quilts and hides covered them, softening the look and giving the room a lived-in feel.

A leather and bone monstrosity of a chair reminded Jason of a recliner. More shelves lined the wall behind the strange-looking chair. An assortment of brightly painted figurines were arrayed across them, and he grinned at the sight of what looked like terrain for tabletop wargames stacked beneath the bottom shelf.

Jason took a stool and pulled up to the table, unsurprised when Zarah grabbed one and scooted it over to press up against him.

He hadn’t expected Sindyrrith to position hers almost as close to his other side. She smirked when he glanced her way.

That’s encouraging. Maybe she’s warming up to me?

Sindyrrith turned to Grady and accepted a glass. “I appreciate the hospitality.”

“Yeah, well, don’t expect much more. I’m not used to having guests.” The Werewolf-looking man filled Sindyrrith’s glass with a fragrant, dark-brown whiskey.

Grady poured his own drink after serving them, then dropped into the large recliner. “So, just you four took out a tukuron, or were there more involved?”

“Does it matter how many of us fought it?” Jason asked before sipping his drink. The rich, amber whiskey was more potent than expected but held a not-so-subtle undercurrent of honey. It warmed his mouth and throat but carried only a mild burning despite the high alcohol content.

Grady downed half his glass in a single gulp, smacked his lips, then grinned. “Besides knowing how much of the hide and scales you have to sell? Not in the slightest.”

Sindyrrith took a dainty sip of her drink, pursed her lips, and set it down before shifting to face Grady. “You may relax then. We have the entire hide, with only a single gash, along with the scales. And before you ask, you cannot buy all of it from us.

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