The Protector of Esparia (The Annals of Esparia Book 1) by Lisa M. Wilson Read Free Book Online

hillside?  She closed her eyes against the horror she felt, but then she remembered.  Quirt reported he saw the bodies being thrown in the kitchen well.
    She opened her eyes.  The two men were leaving, leaning on each other for support.  “The well,” she called, “look in the kitchen well!”
    The younger man stopped, his abrupt action nearly causing the older one to collapse.  “Did you hear that?”
    “I heard nothing but the wind,” Cordon replied irritably.  “Come on.  I’ve got to get to Ramadine, warn Larone. And you’re going to Ider Hoffle, tell the elders what happened.”
    “Look in the kitchen well!” Jessica yelled.  She maneuvered around two bodies to get closer to the retreating men.  “Do you hear me?  The family’s in the well!”
    Cordon froze, his bad leg in mid-air.
    “Tell me you heard that.”  Reese barely whispered.
    “I heard it…a buzzing noise making words in my head.”
    “The kitchen well?  Could the Saylon family be in the well?”
    “It’s worth a look.  That’s the one place I haven’t searched.”
    Smoke cloaked their receding forms.  Jessica didn’t follow after them, she had no desire to see what was in the kitchen well.  Instead, she turned her attention to what was left of the great building before her.  She walked to the edge of a crumbled partition and gazed into the gutted interior.  From deep within the bowels of the burned out building, something called to her.  It touched her mind, a whisper, a yearning.  She stared downward, past the rubble, past the cinders.  A weak light, like the beam from a tiny flashlight, appeared through the darkness.  It called again…more insistent…more compelling.  It wanted her to reach for it, take it and command it.  Justice.  Judgment.  She reached forward.
    “Oh man!  This game’s impossible!  Marko, when are you going to get cheat sheets for this thing?”  Thomas’s voice jolted Jessica back. 
    “Only wimps use cheat sheets,” Mark retorted.
    “Then I guess I’m a wimp.” 
    Jessica combed her fingers through her hair, trying to reorient.  She was certain she was losing her mind.
    “You’re probably not very hungry, having eaten such a late dinner, but let’s go look at the food,” Thomas suggested, seemingly unaware of Jessica’s loss of reality.  “My dinner was before graduation and Mrs. R. just brought down another pizza.”
    “Yeah, yeah…that sounds really great.  I could go for a big chunk of chocolate right now.  About a pound would be good. ”
    “You like chocolate, huh?”
    “Ooooh, yes.  Best stuff in the world.”
    When they reached the table, most of the goodies were gone, but a fresh pizza still steamed.  “Hmmm, no chocolate.  Guess I’ll settle for pepperoni,” Jessica said.  “You’d be amazed at how much I can eat.  Running cross-country keeps me famished most of the time.  I’ll bet the girls’ cross-country team could out eat the football team any day.  I’ve been to buffets with those runners and even I’m amazed at how much we can all put away.”  Jessica grabbed two pieces of the homemade pie.
    “Drink?”  Thomas gestured to a row of sodas. 
    “Just water.  I’m still in training.”
    He filled two cups from a glass pitcher.
    They took their food outside onto the small, well-lit patio.  Music came from hidden outdoor speakers.  Thomas led the way, weaving through six sets of dancers to reach two empty chairs.  A full moon illuminated the clear night sky.  Its light shimmered on the four foot high rock wall surrounding the cement pad.  A pleasant breeze blew, and the smell of newly mowed grass drifted on the air.
    “So, are you going to Europe with your family?” Jessica nibbled on her large slice of pepperoni.
    Thomas set his cup down.  “Yeah, I’m the youngest, so my mom planned this whole summer adventure:  Italy to see a brother in the Navy, Paris to a friend, and of course, Euro Disney.”  He paused for a