Daryk Warrior Read Online Free

mother was a prostitute who ran a brothel.”
    Those full lips rounded in surprise. “Oh, I see.”
    He shrugged. “I was abandoned in the ice lands of Imekland
when I was two. I was lucky that a band of people traveling to Leadious Castle
found me and saved my life. I grew up there and when I realized I was a Daryk
One I joined the ranks and was assigned to Bardannia. They say I’m made of ice
or I wouldn’t have survived.”
    Her sweet mouth parted again and heat surged into his groin.
Good thing his tunic shirt was long enough or she’d have an eyeful of a
full-blown erection. He doubted she’d know what to do with a cock if she saw
one. After all, if rumors proved true, women who became Scribes were cold virgins
with no sexual prowess or interest whatsoever.
    He cleared his throat. “I can see I won’t get any sleep for
now.” He sat up and reached for his pack with the meager supplies to cover one
person. He nodded toward the water bladder lying not far away. “Drink up.” He
handed her a length of dried meat. “Eat this.”
    After she’d taken a few sips of water and chewed the meat
greedily, she said, “Thank you.”
    “For what?”
    She sighed and looked at the ground for a moment before
meeting his gaze. “For taking care of me.”
    “You were doing well enough on your own.”
    She smiled but it was short-lived. “A man who gives a woman
credit.”
    He shouldn’t have felt surprise but he did. “Magonian men
keep women under their control.”
    “Total control, if they can.”
    “There have to be women who don’t comply. Women like you.”
    She stared into the darkness toward the back of the cave.
Shadows danced, thrown into the deep rock shelter by firelight. “I wasn’t
always this way.” Conflict covered her features. “I had a breaking point.” She
glanced back at him and abruptly changed the subject. “Are you certain you
can’t guide me to Grimnald?”
    “I’m not taking you to Grimnald. Why do you persist in
asking?”
    Mia shrugged. “You sound like the elders at Scribe school.
They always wanted me to listen, take notes and never asking annoying
questions. I was hoping Dragonian men would be different.”
    Eryk bristled. “Different than what? What are Magonian men
like short of gutless, ruthless bastards?”
    Mia flinched as if he’d hit her. He narrowed his eyes and
watched caution spread over her face.
    “Your judgment is harsh but I agree with it,” she said.
    He hadn’t expected that assessment. “You don’t like your
people much, do you?”
    Her gaze fell to the cave floor. “Some of them. Not many.”
    Silence dropped down between them while she drank and ate.
He watched her movements, intrigued and drawn to her grace and composure.
Though dirty from her ordeal, she managed dignity where many women would be
panicky. Admiration welled inside him and he ruthlessly squashed it.
    “For a woman who survived a shipwreck and is stranded in a
strange land, you’re doing well,” he said grudgingly.
    She made a doubtful noise. “I’m good at putting on a face
for the crowd.”
    “There’s only one of me here.” He lay back and her gaze
skittered up and down his body. “No need to put on a show.”
    “There is always need for show.”
    Impatient, he said, “Dragonians say what they mean and mean
what they say. Pretense is considered unhealthy.”
    She laid aside the water bladder and didn’t hide her
surprise. “How refreshing. Are you certain?”
    “Absolutely. If there is one thing I cannot abide, it is a
liar. Magonians are heralded as being great liars.”
    He half expected her to become angry but she simply said,
“So I learned not long ago. Dragonians don’t lie?”
    “It is against a Daryk One’s code of honor.”
    She peered at him. “But not all Dragonians are Daryk Ones,
are they? What makes a Daryk One?”
    “Dragonians who are extraordinary from birth.” He took pride
in explaining what made him different than the average man. “We are