β Scribed by Crpnshaw, Jon
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
Kat's eyes snapped open. She looked around in the darkness and blinked, recalling where she was. How long had she slept? She pulled her knees up to her chin, bringing her cloak around her, trembling against the cold. Tiredness clung to her, clouding her thoughts.
The huntsman's face filled her mind. She remembered in him in that moment before he died, before the fire spread through his insides, the way his eyes widened at the sight of his missing hand, the way he screamed. She shook her head, trying to push away the image of flames linking from his eyes, the way his fat hissed and skin turned to ash, how his bones turned to a blackened husk.
She bit down on a bottom lip, wishing she could take back everything that had happened, wishing she could do it all again with different decisions. If only she had ignored the sound of that pup's panicked yelps. If she had just walked away, she would have awakened her blade, she would not have been forced to act, she would not be hiding in the hold of a ship. If only she had controlled her anger and let the master's do their jobs as they saw fit. Witz had advised this. Her mother had advised this. If only she had listened. If only she had not been so stubborn, so stupid. If onlyβ¦if onlyβ¦
Her fists grew tight and tears filled her eyes as a wave of sorrow passed over her. Could she have done it all differently? Could she have made better decisions? What if she had listened to her mother and ignored the huntsmaster? What if she had kept silent in court and kept her feelings to herself about the wedding? What if she had stayed away from Hansel? And what about her mother and father, and the unnamed prince?
So much had happened in the days since she had received her woman's blood. She could never have predicted that she would leaving her home, headed to a foreign land in search of sanctuary. Witz had been right, there was no going back. Not yet, at least. Her head thundered with the questions, the guilt, and the regret.
π SIMILAR VOLUMES
The pale wyvern flew on ahead, leading Kat up a flight of stairs and past a row of plain doors, lantern light spreading shadows in all directions. It landed before the last door on the right, turned the handle and peeked inside. "There is space in here. I presume you will not mind sharing." "That i
Kat pulled up her hood and brought her cloak around her as she walked slowly along the gangplank and onto the jetty, sailors fanning out around her. Fine rain drifted almost mist-like across the docks, soaking barrels and handcarts, making the stones slippery beneath her steps. She turned back to th
The first six books in Bernard Cornwellβs masterful series that tells the iconic story of King Alfred and the making of a nation, now in one complete eBook for the first time. THE LAST KINGDOM, THE PALE HORSEMAN, THE LORDS OF THE NORTH, SWORD SONG, THE BURNING LAND, DEATH OF KINGS. Uhtred, born into