Theft of Dragons (Princes of Naverstrom) Read Online Free
Author: John Forrester
memory was of the flame-red-haired girl who worked at the inn and had snuck into his room after his grandfather had gone out on one of his mysterious errands. The scent of her skin still haunted his mind.
Lamplighters urged the gas street lanterns to life, and at their ignition cast eerie, flickering shadows onto brick and stone walls. What had surprised Tael about Perinith was the lack of cobblestone or stone streets found in plenty of the other cities of the kingdom. Perinith's streets were a muddy mess that smelled of shit. When he had asked the Boar's Breath innkeeper why there were no stone streets, the man had scoffed and said the muddy streets made a good home for the pigs.
By the time Tael reached the inn he felt a chill in his bones from the night air and he rubbed his hands briskly before reaching out to open the iron and wooden door. The heat and noise inside washed over him as he entered, and the only eyes that noticed him were that of the fat innkeeper, who the locals called Paddy.
"Welcome to the Boar's Breath Inn." Paddy squinted and studied Tael. A flash of recognition and concern spread over his face, but was gone in an instant. "Take a load off and warm yerself at the fire. I'll have Maysie bring you a mug of warm mead."
Maysie...wasn't that her name? Tael remembered bright blue eyes and ruddy cheeks on a smile that flowered under a curious glance he'd first given her. They had exchanged words in the flurry between her delivering drinks to tables and patrons by the fire. He discovered that she was orphaned after a plague had killed her parents when she was sixteen. After that she was forced to seek work, leaving her devastated village for Perinith. Although the work was hard, the inn was safe and kept her fed and sheltered, with a promise of one day finding a farmer who was willing to marry her. Or as she teased him, a strong, handsome boy who'd take her away from the life she lived.
A short, squat woman waddled over to Tael, and handed him a warm mug filled with mead. Tael's heart sank. So this was Maysie?
"There you go, dearie. A little drink to fight off the chill in yer bones." She flashed a smile of missing and mottled teeth.
Tael thanked the woman and sipped the sweet mead. "Where is the red-haired girl that worked here about a year ago?"
A grin played on the woman's face and she wagged a fat finger at him. "You little devil, you. I remember you and Daisy flirting and carousing all night. And don't you think I failed to notice her sneaking into your room after your grandfather went out on his business. Naughty boy... You're a bit late coming back for her, though. She done been married off to a carpenter, and happy was she that a fine, strong man like him ask for her favor. He wasn't handsome or anything as you, but he loved her and offered her a good life in a house he'd built with his own hands."
"I'm glad to hear it," Tael said, and meant it. "She had a hard life with her parents dying from the plague and all. Now she can start a family of her own."
Maysie's eyes brightened. "You remember all that about our little Daisy? Tis rare for a man to listen to women, and even rarer for them to remember us. Will you be needing a room for the night? And where is your grandfather?"
"I'll be meeting him later...and a room for the night would be much appreciated."
"Oh, it's nothing, dearie, nothing at all for someone as you." She patted his arm and waddled back to the kitchen.
Not a little disappointed, Tael was happy for Daisy nonetheless, though he still wished she were there to keep him company at night. Maysie came back and handed him a warm plate filled with a huge helping of cottage pie. She winked at him and returned to the bar, where she whispered to the innkeeper. Now Tael knew why his grandfather had chosen the inn, it was safe and almost felt like visiting family. And the idea of seeing his family again was a distant, painful memory.
After he'd devoured the food and had had his third
Lamplighters urged the gas street lanterns to life, and at their ignition cast eerie, flickering shadows onto brick and stone walls. What had surprised Tael about Perinith was the lack of cobblestone or stone streets found in plenty of the other cities of the kingdom. Perinith's streets were a muddy mess that smelled of shit. When he had asked the Boar's Breath innkeeper why there were no stone streets, the man had scoffed and said the muddy streets made a good home for the pigs.
By the time Tael reached the inn he felt a chill in his bones from the night air and he rubbed his hands briskly before reaching out to open the iron and wooden door. The heat and noise inside washed over him as he entered, and the only eyes that noticed him were that of the fat innkeeper, who the locals called Paddy.
"Welcome to the Boar's Breath Inn." Paddy squinted and studied Tael. A flash of recognition and concern spread over his face, but was gone in an instant. "Take a load off and warm yerself at the fire. I'll have Maysie bring you a mug of warm mead."
Maysie...wasn't that her name? Tael remembered bright blue eyes and ruddy cheeks on a smile that flowered under a curious glance he'd first given her. They had exchanged words in the flurry between her delivering drinks to tables and patrons by the fire. He discovered that she was orphaned after a plague had killed her parents when she was sixteen. After that she was forced to seek work, leaving her devastated village for Perinith. Although the work was hard, the inn was safe and kept her fed and sheltered, with a promise of one day finding a farmer who was willing to marry her. Or as she teased him, a strong, handsome boy who'd take her away from the life she lived.
A short, squat woman waddled over to Tael, and handed him a warm mug filled with mead. Tael's heart sank. So this was Maysie?
"There you go, dearie. A little drink to fight off the chill in yer bones." She flashed a smile of missing and mottled teeth.
Tael thanked the woman and sipped the sweet mead. "Where is the red-haired girl that worked here about a year ago?"
A grin played on the woman's face and she wagged a fat finger at him. "You little devil, you. I remember you and Daisy flirting and carousing all night. And don't you think I failed to notice her sneaking into your room after your grandfather went out on his business. Naughty boy... You're a bit late coming back for her, though. She done been married off to a carpenter, and happy was she that a fine, strong man like him ask for her favor. He wasn't handsome or anything as you, but he loved her and offered her a good life in a house he'd built with his own hands."
"I'm glad to hear it," Tael said, and meant it. "She had a hard life with her parents dying from the plague and all. Now she can start a family of her own."
Maysie's eyes brightened. "You remember all that about our little Daisy? Tis rare for a man to listen to women, and even rarer for them to remember us. Will you be needing a room for the night? And where is your grandfather?"
"I'll be meeting him later...and a room for the night would be much appreciated."
"Oh, it's nothing, dearie, nothing at all for someone as you." She patted his arm and waddled back to the kitchen.
Not a little disappointed, Tael was happy for Daisy nonetheless, though he still wished she were there to keep him company at night. Maysie came back and handed him a warm plate filled with a huge helping of cottage pie. She winked at him and returned to the bar, where she whispered to the innkeeper. Now Tael knew why his grandfather had chosen the inn, it was safe and almost felt like visiting family. And the idea of seeing his family again was a distant, painful memory.
After he'd devoured the food and had had his third
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