“Well, that just leaves the three of us,” Frath said after they were gone. He took Pelya’s shoulders into his right arm. He held his left out for Ebudae. She slid under it and felt instantly safer. Having a father was wonderful. “What say we get dessert and sit in the conservatory for a while? We can discuss how to fill Ebudae’s remaining household staff. I’ll take a couple of days off and help the two of you get everything settled there.”
“I’d like that, Daddy,” Pelya said.
“So would I . . . Daddy?” The word sounded both odd and pleasant to Ebudae’s tongue.
“You are the most wonderful daughters a man could ever ask for.” Frath smiled at them and led them out of the sitting room.
Epilogue
“Watch your step, Master Blavoci. There’s mud below the carriage,” Tooby warned in a sniveling voice. It was too late. Master Blavoci’s boot disappeared in the deep mud outside the long abandoned inn. Even the moons were hiding behind clouds as though not wanting to gaze upon the business he had. “Oh, that’s just terrible. This drizzle just doesn’t stop in the springtime,” Tooby said.
Tooby Obden was an oaf, but a useful one. Brown wisps of hair circled a balding skull. He was skinny with a potbelly and his clothes were always messy. He knew the most terrible people in Dralin too, which made him even more unpleasant unless a person needed to get in touch with a terrible person.
“Why are we meeting out here in this forsaken field? My son has purchased a perfectly acceptable manor in Dralin that I’m certain has a warm fire in it.” Master Blavoci was an irritable man and it showed in his posture and tone. He pulled the hood of his yellow cloak tighter over his head and pulled his boot out of the mud. Each step was a chore.
“I should have pulled the carriage closer, but I’m just not good at these things. I’m so sorry, Master Blavoci,” Tooby said.
“Just take me to see him. Let’s get this over with.” He worked his way through the mud to the rotting door, irritated by the fact that he was squishing. Gentlemen never squished.
“Yes, Master Blavoci. Tooby squished faster and made it to the door in time to open it for him. The hinges were in such bad shape that it fell to the ground, barely missing Blavoci. It did splash mud all over the distinguished man though. Tooby held both hands to his mouth in horror. “Ohhhhhhh . . . The . . . the drizzle will wash that mud off if you stand there long enough, Master Blavoci.” Blavoci stared at him in displeasure for a long moment before entering the inn.
A lone candle sat on a table to the left of the common room. It was the only light except for the dim glimmer of moonlight through the rain. The ceiling of the common room had numerous holes in it that let water through from the floors above.
Blavoci walked to the table, not noticing the shadowy figure sitting there until the last minute. He was startled. “Wha? . . . Why didn’t you say anything you fool! I didn’t . . .” He remembered that he was talking to an assassin. Blavoci looked down on most people, but had the wisdom to know when it was a bad idea to insult someone.
The shadowed man stood. His cloak was drawn and he stood so the candle didn’t illuminate his face, making it appear as though he was a shadow. Blavoci became nervous, looking over his shoulder for Tooby, but the sniveling rat had stayed outside as he was supposed to. The man stood there silently, waiting for Blavoci to speak.
“I have a job for you. I was told you were the best.” The man was mysterious and few people knew anything about him. It had been nearly impossible to get in touch with him.
The figure nodded slowly, saying nothing.
“Good. I have one person I want you to kill. I’m told you only accept payment up front and always succeed in the job.”
Another nod.
“That’s not the normal way to do things. It should be half up front and half when the job is done.”
The figure remained completely still.
“Right. Obviously we’re not going to do business the normal way. Obviously you’re not going to say anything. Obviously this is a ridiculous, miserable place to be and I should have just gone to a guild.” Blavoci sighed angrily.
The figure remained completely still.
“A statue would be envious of your ability to act like stone,” Blavoci said in exasperation. “But so be it. Full payment up front. Shall I tell you the target first?”
Another nod.
“Statues don’t nod you know.”
The figure remained still.
“The target is Lady Ebudae Pallon.”
The man shifted as though surprised.
“Oh, you know of her?”
There was a pause and then a slower nod.
“Well good. That’ll make your task easier. The stupid bitch destroyed all of my holdings in Dralin by leading the City Guard in an attack on my estate. I want an example made of her!” Blavoci’s voice had risen to a yell by the last sentence and his fists were balled. He was incredibly angry about the events from the summer before.
The details were confusing, but Master Blavoci had learned that City Guards, working from Lady Pallon’s estate, had attacked his home in Dralin and then taken down every person he had working for him. They had confiscated all his property there, destroying a vital hub of business and costing him countless amounts of money. He was staying with his son and working on building things back up. They couldn’t do so legitimately yet, but they had the underground workings begun already with the help of a faction of Rojuun.
He came back to his senses. It wouldn’t do to stay in his anger while dealing with the assassin. However, the assassin was gone. “Hey where’d you . . .” He jerked forward.
Blavoci looked down at the liquid-silver blade sticking out of his chest. Its dim glow swirled beautifully in the dark room. Every part of his body felt cold and he could see his breath. The blade pulled out and he fell to his knees as though it had been the only thing holding him up.
“Master Blavoci?” Tooby’s voice came from the doorway. “Is everything alright, Master Bla . . .” The words ended with a grunt.
As Master Blavoci fell to the ground, he realized that the assassin had killed them both. He wondered why as he watched his last breath puff out in an icy mist.
###
Book 3, “Pelya”, is available at the same store you found this one.
***
About the Author
John H. Carroll was the youngest of seven children and was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1970 where he was kept in a dresser drawer with the clean socks. Luckily, he wasn’t kept with the dirty socks or else he might have grown up to become slightly warped.
As a child, John spent most of his time wandering through the Mojave Desert in an attempt to avoid people. He would stare at the sky, imagining what it would be like to explore different worlds. One of his favorite memories is watching his dad build the fuselage of Evel Kneivel’s skycycle in their garage. One of his least favorite moments was watching that skycycle fall into the Snake River. (Not his dad’s fault and he has documentation to prove it, so nyah)
As a teenager, John spent most of his time driving wherever he could in an attempt to avoid people. He would stare at the road, imagining what it would be like to explore different worlds. He was the captain of the chess team, lettered in golf and band while in high school, and wasn’t beaten up anywhere near as much as one might imagine.
As an adult, John spends most of his time staring at a computer screen in an attempt to avoid people. He stares at the monitor for hours, imagining what it would be like to explore different worlds. He has been married to his wonderful wife for sixteen years and they have three obnoxio . . . wonderful children who always behave . . . when they’re asleep.
Emo bunny minions surround John at most times. He is their imaginary friend and they look to him for guidance. At one point, they took over the world. No one noticed because they left everything exactly as it was. They gave the world back after a week because it was depressing.
The Willden Trilogy i
s his first endeavor into the field of writing. Other series and standalone works will be forthcoming. In addition, John has written a number of short stories that can be found at most eBook sites. He writes in the evenings and weekends whenever possible. Regrettably, the family mentioned in a previous paragraph desires food and shelter, requiring the author to possess a full time job until his writing makes him rich.
If you would like to be alerted of new releases, you may sign up for his newsletter. Your email will never be shared with anyone else. You may unsubscribe at any time. http://mad.ly/signups/76337/join
You can follow his blog where he discusses writing, emo bunnies, family and various other topics of insanity.
http://www.ryallon.blogspot.com/
Follow him on twitter if you like insane ramblings and random comments.
http://twitter.com/kookoo88
Find him on Facebook where he discusses current projects and writing in general: http://www.facebook.com/John.H.Carroll.Author
His Goodreads Page:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4479427.John_H_Carroll
Stories for Demented Children:
Odd tales of anti-heroes doing their best to survive odd circumstances.
The Emo Bunny that Should (Illustrated)
Zachary Zombie and the Lost Boy
Drippy the Peg Legged Rainbow
Unholy Cow
Attack of the Sugar Plum Fairies
Naughty Nanoworms
Zachary Zombie and the Wicked Worm
Novels of Ryallon:
My full-length novels are set in the world of Ryallon. They are high fantasy with rogues, knights, dragons and flower children. You can get them at the store where you found this one.
Willden Trilogy (Written first)
Rojuun
Anilyia
Kethril
Dralin Trilogy (Set in time before the Willden trilogy)
Dralin
Ebudae
Pelya
The Wyvern Trilogy (Parallel to the Willden Trilogy, set in time after the Dralin Trilogy)
Wyvern
To Be Announced (Coming 2014)
Cloudswept (Coming 2014)
Stand-alone Novella
Rain Glade
Coming soon:
The Crazed Trilogy (Set in time after the Willden Trilogy)
The Morhain Trilogy (Set in time after the Willden Trilogy)
Ebudae Page 36
