Of Blood And Fire by Ryan Cahill (best color ebook reader txt) 📗

lives. How could they do that if they always had money looming over their heads?

However, Tanner was a good man. At least, from everything Rhett said, she believed him to be. Rhett was a good judge of character.

In truth, she was backed into a corner. Despite her spine feeling like it was days away from snapping from the vibrations of the damned wagon and the fact that they were running out of coin, Falstide would still be her preferred choice. She didn’t want to owe anything to anyone. She was more than willing to put up with another month or so of travelling to truly start anew.

Unfortunately, Tanner had already paid for the ticket from Gisa. No matter what they did, when they arrived in Berona, that fact would remain. Ella knew Rhett well enough to know that he would not be able to live with himself if Tanner paid out that kind of coin on Rhett’s behalf, in good faith, and it was never returned. There was only one true option. She cursed the man in her head.

Ella looked out the back of the wagon. The open plains were behind them, and the foothills of the Lodhar Mountains were on their left. She had never been so far from home. It had only begun to hit her in the last few days of travelling. That sickness in her stomach, a longing for home.

She was happy – moving to Berona was mostly her idea – but that did not mean she didn’t miss her parents. The way her father looked at her whenever he saw her, like she was a shining star fallen from the night sky. The way her mother sat up with her at night, just talking about the world, the stars, boys. She even missed Calen. He really was a thorn in her side most of the time, but he had a good heart, and he always did right by her. She put her hand on her stomach, as if it would do something to alleviate the sinking feeling.

Ella turned her head to look over the front of the wagon. The city of Gisa came into view just as they crossed the Irnell river. Its massive grey walls wrapped around the city in a semi-circle, stopped only by the coastline. The Beacon Tower rose high above everything else within the city walls, famous for its eternal flame that marked the city for ships far and wide. There were, of course, other beacon towers across Epheria, but this was the first. Her father had told her that. He always thought she wasn’t listening, but she was.

Ella leaned into Rhett, resting her head on his chest. Not long now.

Decisions aside, it didn’t matter to her what they did. It was Rhett who mattered. They would work it out.

The merchant – Master Harson Link – had not charged them anything for the transport. He had sold most of his wares in Midhaven and was meeting a supplier in Gisa. “No sense in taking an empty cart,” the wiry old man had said, the teeth he had left spread wide in a friendly grin. The kindness of strangers was not something Ella had come to expect in life. Most people were good at heart, but that didn’t always translate to kindness when nothing was offered in return. Harson Link, however, was a kind man.

Ella looked around at the people they shared the back of the wagon with. One other couple, and a father and his son. Neither pair looked wealthy. Their clothes were not torn or dirty, and they did not look hungry, but they also did not carry the aura of someone who could afford to live in Gisa. Although, she supposed to herself, the simple fact that they were riding in the back of a merchant’s wagon could have told her that. Perhaps they had family on the other side, like Rhett did. Maybe they were going to Gisa in search of work. They did not talk, so she would never know. They all rode in silence.

Only Rhett’s arm catching her shoulder saved Ella from being thrown forward into the small child when the wagon stopped abruptly.

“Are you okay?” he asked, waiting for her disgruntled response before he stood up.

Ella heard voices at the front of the cart, but it was almost impossible to see what was happening.

“Oi, all of you in the back of the wagon, out now. By order of the emperor.” The voice belonged to a man. His gruff tone suggested that he was not one who liked to be kept waiting. Barely more than a few moments passed when a soldier marched around the rear of the cart, the black lion of Loria emblazoned across his crimson breast plate. His face looked like he had been beaten off a rock as a child. His nose had clearly been broken in several places, and deep pock marks painted his cheeks. “Did you lot not hear me?” he growled, the impatience in his tone deepening. “Get your arses out o’ this wagon, now – fucking Southerners.”

Ella was about to say something, but Rhett squeezed her shoulder, just enough to let her know that now was not the time. He was the first to jump off the back of the cart.

“Of course. Right away.”

The soldier grunted, looking him up and down as he walked past. Rhett was easily half a foot taller than the man.

Ella and the rest of those in the wagon followed Rhett’s lead, jumping down from the back of the cart and making their way around to the front. Harson Link had come down from his seat at the front of the cart, and his bony old fingers fidgeted with the straw hat that he now held clutched to his chest. He stood beside Rhett, with five soldiers lined out in front of them. It all seemed odd to Ella. What was the empire doing stopping random carts on the road to Gisa?

“Is there something