by Stuart Daly
He smiled modestly. ‘You obviously didn’t see my hands trembling.’
‘My brother couldn’t be more grateful for what you told him,’ Bran said. ‘Already he’s diverted some of his forces to counter the Roon landing near Castle Crag and to ambush and harangue Roy Stewart as soon as he leaves Sharn O’Kare Glen. Nobody knows what the next few months hold in store for us, but at least now we have a fighting chance. And it’s all thanks to you and your friends. The entire kingdom is in debt to you, Caspan.’ He leaned in closer and lowered his voice. ‘There’s even talk that the King might reward you and your friends with titles and estates.’
Caspan stared dumbfounded at the Duke. ‘I … don’t know what to say.’
‘Thank you might be a good place to start,’ Shanty chided, then pursed his lips thoughtfully. ‘Baron Caspan. It has a nice ring to it, I think. And speaking of your friends, where have Sara, Kilt and Roland raced off to? I was hoping they could join us, but I haven’t seen them all day.’
‘We went down to see Lachlan earlier, but I’ve not seen them since,’ Caspan said vaguely, still reeling from the possibility of having a title bestowed upon him.
‘I think Sara took them over to the city library to visit her father,’ Bran commented.
Shanty rolled his eyes. ‘I should have known. Hasn’t she visited him every day since arriving in the city?’
Caspan nodded. ‘She’s very close to her parents, especially her father. We were promised a fortnight’s leave upon the completion of our training, but were then sent north to find the Dray weapon. Sara felt cheated, and I thought at one point she was going to argue the matter with Duke Connal. But it just so happens that this is Sara’s home city, so she’s making the most of the opportunity.’
‘And she asked Roland to accompany her and Kilt?’ Shanty frowned. ‘Hmm, I’m not too sure about that. Roland in a library doesn’t seem like a wise idea. It’d be a bit like inviting a hammer to a glass party. I don’t think even a muzzle would be effective in keeping his mouth shut, let alone the polite requests of the library staff.’
Caspan grinned. ‘Sara invited me yesterday. She’s keen to introduce us to her father.’
‘Well, if she’s happy with Roland running around the aisles like a crazed dog chasing its tail, then so be it.’
Caspan laughed, imagining Roland talking at the top of his voice in the library, blissfully unaware of the scowls directed his way. Caspan had been surprised by the vast size of the building during his visit yesterday. Never before had he seen so many books, scrolls and parchments. For someone who was accustomed to sewers and dark, abandoned alleyways, he found the silence of the library eerie and unsettling. Errant footsteps echoed along the aisles and there was a tomb-like quality to the musty air. But Sara was in her element and introduced Caspan to her favourite books with such pride they could have been her dearest friends.
Sara’s father had an office on the second floor and he greeted them at the door. Caspan was surprised at how much he looked like his daughter. Both had the same brown eyes, thin lips and curly hair. The archivist had a soft, gentle nature and was seemingly reserved, but warmed to Caspan and took him on a tour of the library, all the while entertaining the boy with tales of Sara’s childhood. Sara blushed at first, but soon took great pleasure in recalling humorous stories. She laughed and elaborated on certain points, all the while holding her father’s hand and gazing adoringly at him.
The archivist shuffled along with the assistance of a walking stick, and Caspan recalled Sara saying that books allowed him to mentally travel to distant lands and go on the most amazing adventures. His imagination was free to wander wherever it wanted, set free by the historical personalities in his favourite books. Caspan also noticed the look of absolute pride and marvel on his face when she told him of her adventures and everything she had achieved since joining the Brotherhood.
Later, when they had left the library and were heading back to the royal precinct, Sara confided in Caspan that her father’s praise and admiration made her realise just how much she had changed and grown. She was no longer the timid girl who had left her family to try out for the Brotherhood, and she held her head high with newfound confidence and self-assurance.
A terrible moaning rose from somewhere within the palace, drawing Caspan from his thoughts.
‘What on earth is that?’ Bran asked.
Shanty screwed up his nose. ‘It sounds like an injured cow.’
The sound suddenly stopped. Shanty drew breath to comment, when it started again, only this time it was so high-pitched it caused goosebumps to form all over Caspan’s flesh.
Bran reached for his sword. ‘What manner of beast is that? We’d better call out the palace guard.’
Shanty agreed. ‘You don’t want to take any chances.’
‘Wait,’ Caspan said, stalling the Duke and dwarf as they rushed from the balcony. ‘I think I know what it is.’ He listened for a few seconds before he guffawed.
‘What’s so funny, lad?’ Shanty asked.
Caspan regained his composure, just as the sound rose even higher, reaching an ear-piercing screech that made Shanty and Bran stick their fingers in their ears. Caspan gripped his sides and burst into laughter again.
‘You’d better tell me what’s making that sound, by thunder, or I’ll tear down the entire palace until I find out!’ Shanty gripped his sword. ‘And believe me, it won’t be a happy ending.’
Caspan raised a calming hand. ‘There’s no need for that. Although, hitting him might knock some sense into his head and save us from several months of torture.’
Bran frowned. ‘Him? Surely no person can make such a noise.’
‘Oh, this person can.’ Caspan wiped tears of merriment from his eyes. ‘It’s Roland. He’s back from the library and he’s playing his bagpipes.’
Shanty stared at him in disbelief. With his sword, he motioned for the Duke to follow him as he stormed towards the door. ‘It’s worse than we thought. Call out the palace guard. In fact, recall every soldier in Andalon back to the palace. That boy will single-handedly destroy the entire kingdom if we don’t hurry up and put an end to his bagpipe playing!’
Holding his sides in hysterics, Caspan hurried after them. The royal capital was safe for the moment, but he didn’t think Roland’s cherished bagpipes would live to see another day.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
As always, a special thank you to the wonderful team at Random House Australia, particularly Zoe Walton and Cristina Briones, and to my amazing family and friends – you all know who you are.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stuart Daly is a History teacher in a private high school in Sydney. He is the author of The Witch Hunter Chronicles series, an epic tale of witch hunting and demon slaying set in the seventeenth century. Brotherhood of Thieves is his new action-packed fantasy series about a secret order of treasure hunters. Stuart lives in Sydney with his wife and three children.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Version 1.0
Brotherhood of Thieves 2: The Highlanders
9780857984708
Copyright © Stuart Daly 2014
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
A Random House Australia book
Published by Random House Australia Pty Ltd
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Random House Group can be found at http://www.randomhouse.com.au/about/contacts.aspx
First published by Random House Australia in 2014
National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication Entry
Author: Daly, Stuart
Title: The highlanders [electronic resource]
ISBN: 978 0 85798 470 8 (ebook)
Series: Daly, Stuart. Brotherhood of thieves; 2
Target Audience: For secondary school age
Subjects: Thieves – Juvenile fiction
Dewey Number: A823.4
Cover illustration by Jeremy Reston
Cover design and typography by www.blacksheep-uk.com
Cover image of circular metal disc by DeAgostini/SuperStock
Map by Stuart Daly and Anna Warren
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