Quest of Thunder by Karissa Laurel

Author:Karissa Laurel
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: strong female lead, deities and gods, steampunk, fairy tales and folklore, teen and young adult, sword and sorcery, fantasy and magic
Publisher: Evolved Publishing LLC
Published: 2017-12-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

I shouldn’t have been surprised to find Falak and Svieta waiting for us, both squatting on the steps leading to the costumes wagon’s rear door. A pair of lanterns perched on the steps beside them, casting harsh shadows across their faces. As Sher-sah ambled closer, they both stood, Falak with his hands on his hips and Svieta wearing a cynical smile as she stroked her chin. Her gray hair straggled loose from its coiffure in kinky coils, and she looked a bit like a hedgewitch from a children’s story.

“Welcome back, ladies,” Falak said when the princess and I had dismounted from the lion. “It’s awfully late for a ride, isn’t it?”

“Would you believe me if I told you I wanted to get in a little extra practice?” I asked.

The ringmaster slit his eyes and shook his head. “Try again.”

“It’s my fault.” Genevieve stepped up to my side with her head bowed, eyes pinned to the ground. “I....”

The same doubt that infected me had obviously affected her. Did we tell Falak the truth and risk him casting us out, or did we lie? And if so, what could we say to possibly convince him?

“We saw the tracks,” Falak said, giving us no opportunity to devise a story. Smart move: we couldn’t lie, if he never gave us the chance. “A pair of horses came near the camp and went back out again, followed by a lion. Coincidentally, we also discovered the two of you had gone missing.” He gestured at Genevieve. “I take it by the princess’s disheveled state that she was the subject of those horsemen’s interest. Bonhemmish horsemen, if I had to guess. Royal guards, perhaps?”

The princess glanced up at me. I shrugged at her—it was her story to tell. Her shoulders slumped. “They were my sister’s men. They had been watching us most of the evening, waiting for an opportune time to take me.”

“And what opportunity did they choose?”

Genevieve glanced at me again. “I was checking on my horse.” She pointed at the lion. “Sher-sah was with me, but I told him I was fine and sent him on his way. They took me while I was on my way back to the costumes wagon. I never saw them coming—they moved like ghosts.”

Falak turned to me. “And how did you get involved?”

I pointed at the lion. “His fault. I noticed she was missing and asked for his help. He carried me to her.”

The ringmaster’s expression turned harsh, and the muscle in his jaw flexed. “Then what?”

I licked my lips, swallowed, and shoved my hands deep into my trouser pockets. “Then, um, he attacked the guards. Really, I’m not sure why he insisted I come along. He handled everything quite efficiently on his own.”

While I talked, Falak’s eyebrows had arched high on his forehead, and he folded his arms over his chest. “He attacked the guards?”

My stomach swirled unhappily. “We left them on the road. One of them had a broken leg. We took their horses and released them a few miles back.

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