The Shadow's Heir (The Risen Sun) by K. J. Taylor Read Free Book Online Page A

ye’ll crawl out of here with one less ear.”
    His friend stuffed Laela’s bag of money into his tunic. “Hurry it up, will ye? We don’t want no guards findin’ us.”
    Aled ignored him. The hand holding the knife crept down Laela’s front. She struggled again, harder, trying to scream through the hand still muffling her, but there was nothing she could do. His hand slid inside her dress, down and down to clutch at her breasts, and she felt herself slide into an abyss of pure terror and despair. She was going to die . . .
    No. They weren’t going to kill her. It would be worse than that, far worse . . .
    Aled tensed suddenly, and his hand stopped.
    “Who are
ye
?” Laela heard him grate out.
    Someone else had appeared in the alley entrance. “What, ain’t ye gonna give
me
a go, too?” they asked.
    Aled spat. “Sod off.”
    The stranger came closer. “Selfish, ain’t ye? C’mon, give me a piece of the action why don’t ye?”
    Aled’s friend pointed his knife at him. “Get lost, or I’ll stick this in yer gut.”
    The stranger sighed and leant forward, until they were almost face-to-face. Laela heard him say something—she didn’t know what. Whatever it was, it had a terrible effect on Aled’s friend. The man jerked away from the stranger, paused a moment, and then ran.
    That left Aled and the stranger.
    “Found yerself a nice prize, haven’t yer?” the stranger said, in conversational tones. “Got any t’spare?”
    “Clear off,” said Aled, though he was beginning to sound uncertain. He pulled his hand out of Laela’s dress and pressed the knife against her throat again. “Go on, get out, or—”
    “Ye’ll do what?” said the stranger. “Ye want to be a murderer, too, do ye? Wanna know what that feels like?”
    Aled realised his game was up. He abruptly removed the knife from Laela’s throat and thrust her toward the stranger before turning on his heels and running away.
    Laela collided with the stranger and fought to get away from him as he grabbed at her, trying to hold her still. He caught her by the wrist, and held on. His grip was cold, and horribly strong.
    “Let go!” Laela almost screamed at him, half-mad with fear.
“Let go!”
    The stranger looked past her, to where Aled had disappeared. “Coward,” he muttered.
    Laela tried to hit him in the face. He avoided the blow easily and pinned her arms to her sides. “Calm down,” he said.
“Calm down.”
    She stilled, panting. The stranger was . . . she couldn’t tell who he was. He wore a hood that hid his face in shadows, and his clothes were all-concealing. He was even wearing gloves. He smelled of cold.
    “Let me go,” Laela said again. She started to shake. “Please, just let me go.”
    “Keep calm,” the stranger advised. “I ain’t gonna hurt yer, see? I just wanted . . . want t’know if ye’re hurt.”
    “I’m
fine
,” said Laela. “Let me go.”
    He did. “I didn’t mean none of what I said; that was just cover. Are ye all right? Tell me for true.”
    Laela backed away from him and tried to pick up her belongings, but her hands were suddenly clumsy, and they slipped through her fingers. She felt tears prickling at her eyes.
    The stranger came toward her. “I can help . . .”
    “No . . .” Laela tried to pull away from him, but in that moment the last of her strength slipped away, and she started to sob.
    The stranger seemed to understand. He bent and gathered up her possessions, wrapping them neatly and efficiently back up in their blanket. “It’s all right,” he told her. “Ye’re safe, see?
Safe.
What’s yer name?”
    Laela managed to pick up the sword. “L . . . I’m . . . I’m . . . Laela. Laela R . . .” But she broke out in a fresh wave of sobbing before she could finish.
    “Here,” said the stranger, offering her his hand. “Let me help yer. Can ye tell me where ye live?”
    “Not . . . not here,” said Laela. “I ain’t . . . ain’t