Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
“What are you doin’ here at this time of night?” he asked, looking around me as though someone might jump out of the bushes.
“Please forgive me my intrusion,” I said with a gracious smile, bowing a little. “My horse went lame on the road and I dared not stop for too long. The roads can be dangerous at night. Unfortunately, it took me way longer than I could’ve expected on foot. Please, I’m tired and my feet are sore. I need an inn and a hot meal or warm bed—“
The sound of hooves and the clink of metal interrupted my rehearsed speech. A light danced down the road, a bright lantern showing the side of a wagon, a ruddy sort of face with long whiskers, and the silhouettes of a team of four horses.
“Well what’s this, now?” the gatekeeper demanded, his accusation plain.
I didn’t bother answering, instead stepping to the side and further into the shadows. I knew that wasn’t part of Weston’s pack. What I didn’t know was if these newcomers had any connection to Alexander. He might not have been lurking these last several days, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t traveling the roads. Maybe it was a long shot, but I knew better than to take chances, especially with him.
“Whoa,” the whiskered man said as the horses drew near. “Whoa!”
The horses whinnied as metal clinked and leather groaned.
“You there!” the man shouted when he was within earshot. “Open the gates!”
“By whose authority?” the gate keeper shouted in return.
“I’ve got supplies here and a new shipment of tradable goods. We got some of Granny’s Special.”
A thrill coursed through me and I stepped a little further into the shadows beside the gate, lowering my lantern as much as I could without making it seem like I was trying to hide. Hopefully the light, now coming from below, would distort my visage somewhat, hiding my identity.
“We don’t need none of that Granny bullcrap,” the gate keeper growled. “We’ve got too much as it is. It’s ruinin’ this town, I say. That stuff is pure evil.”
“It’s not for you to decide what this town needs,” the stranger snarled. “This order was placed by the mayor. Open the fucking gates. I’m already way behind schedule. You’re holding me up.”
“The mayor is getting a cut of it, that’s why,” the gate keeper said, leaning out a little more. “Crooked, the lot of them!”
“That’s the way the world works. Hurry up.”
Continuing to grumble to himself, the gate keeper disappeared from view. The man on the wagon looked down at me, his light shining against his glass eye.
“What are you doing all by your lonesome at this time of night?” He looked me over. “A pretty thing like you shouldn’t be traveling all alone.”
“That’s why I’m here,” I answered smoothly, if a little defiantly. There was no hint of the frightened girl I remembered. “I was waylaid. My travel companions are inside.”
“That right.” His mouth worked for a moment before he spit off to the side. His gaze trailed over me, noticing my lantern and then the pack on my back. “Fancy lantern. It don’t seem to match your cheap clothes or that dingy rucksack.”
I huffed and looked away as though annoyed. My legs shook.
“Not that it is any of your concern,” I replied haughtily, “but the lantern was a gift and outlasted my travel lantern. It is the only reason I use it now.” A latch clinked beyond the wooden gate. I turned and applied the same scrutiny to the stranger. “As far as my attire . . . well, you’re in no position to judge, are you?”
He paused for a moment as the whine of a crank began. His smile showed a few gaps in his teeth.
“Feisty. I like that,” he said as the gate started to open. “When you get tired of your travel companions, I’ll be at the Red Lion Inn. You know, in case you run out of funds. Hah!” He snapped the reins, getting the horses moving.
I was pretty sure that last bit was meant to be lewd—an offer to pay me for my services. Charming.
The gates were wide open by the time the wagon was through and I slipped in after it, darting through the shadows and ignoring the “Hey!” from the gate keeper. If memory served me correctly, he wouldn’t be bothered to get down to chase me. Even if he did, he wouldn’t catch me.
The town didn’t so much as open up before me, more like it gathered around. A couple banners flailed limply from spires off to the sides of the modest gate I’d just walked through, a greeting for those visiting or returning. Each featured some sort of creature I couldn’t decipher, maybe mythical, but probably a sigil of the mayor or whatever noble essentially ran this place.