The Mask Wearer by Bryan Perro Read Free Book Online Page B

your trick. No one upsets the lord of Bratel-la-Grande without suffering consequences.”

BANISHED
     

 
    A mos went back to the inn, accompanied by his father and Beorf. A full, clear moon softly illuminated Bratel-la-Grande. Frilla and Urban welcomed the young humanimal as a son. During their meal, Amos explained to his parents how he had met Beorf in the forest. He also told them that the knights had captured the Bromansons and burned them on the pyre.
    Worried, Frilla suggested that they leave Bratel-la-Grande as soon as possible. After all, their goal was to reach the woods of Tarkasis, and staying in town any longer seemed like a bad idea. They decided that they would be on their way at sunrise. Beorf would go with them. They still had enough money, and the horses had had plenty of time to rest.
    Beorf then began to tell them what he had seen in the forest. He stopped suddenly and stared at the cat the Daragons had taken in.
    Amos smiled. “Don’t pay any attention to the cat,” he said.“He’s not dangerous. We found him in one of the villages before we arrived here. He was the only creature that hadn’t been turned into stone. Probably because he’s blind. We took pity on him and adopted him.”
    Beorf whistled to attract the cat’s attention and threw him a piece of meat from his plate. The cat jumped to catch it.
    “As you can see, this animal isn’t blind!” Beorf said. “Don’t trust the way his eyes look. I tell you, he’s not normal. Something about him makes me wary. I have a sense about these things when it comes to animals. I can feel their malicious intentions. This cat isn’t honest. It pretends to be blind when in fact it’s watching us and listening to everything we say.”
    To calm her guest, Frilla took the cat upstairs and locked him in her room. She looked carefully at the eyes of the animal before putting him on her bed. The cat was definitely blind. Two large cataracts covered its eyes. After her thorough inspection, she was convinced that the young humanimal was mistaken, and she came back down to sit at the table. Beorf resumed telling them what he had seen in the forest.
    “They were women. Their bodies were monstrous and powerful. They had wings on their backs and long claws on their feet. Their heads were huge and totally round. They had greenish skin, large noses, and teeth that stuck out like boars’. On top of that, these creatures had forked tongues hanging out the sides of their mouths. I saw a blazing gleam in their eyes. When I looked at them, I wondered what was keeping their hair in constant motion. I almost died when I realized that it wasn’t hair writhing on their heads but dozens ofsnakes! These hideous creatures are nocturnal, and they’re always screaming in pain because the snake-hairs constantly attack their shoulders and backs. The sores ooze a dark liquid, thick and sticky. What I also know is that as soon as other living creatures lock eyes with them, they’re turned instantly to stone.”
    “But tell me something,” Amos said. “How do you know about the blazing gleam in their eyes if those who look at them are transformed into statues? Shouldn’t you have been petrified too?”
    The question seemed to surprise Beorf. Indeed, he should have been subjected to the same fate as the other men, women, and animals. He took a few seconds to remember what had happened, then explained how he had met up with these monsters.
    “I was picking wild fruit near a village when night caught up with me. I went to sleep in the still-warm grass. The screams of the panicked villagers woke me up. I morphed into a bear and went closer to the houses to see what was causing such terror. I hid behind the forge and peeped through a hole in the wall, but I couldn’t see things head-on. Then I noticed a large mirror in the blacksmith shop. The knights probably used it when they tried on new armor. The Knights of Light are so arrogant that if they could ride their horses