The Vagrant by Peter Newman Read Free Book Online

feeling a little less confrontational.’
    Lil scowls at the Vagrant. ‘It’s the best deal you’re gonna get from us, Kell. We go free and you get goods to trade without risking any more of your men in the field. Deal?’
    He makes a show of consideration. ‘Deal!’
    Handing the sack over, the Vagrant walks down the narrow path between Kell’s followers, his shoulders brushing those on either side. The goat follows, for once obedient. Lil comes last, she and Kell turn slowly as they pass, neither willing to look away.
    Under his coat, the baby kicks and whimpers.
    Everything stops, focusing on the foreign sound.
    The Vagrant closes his eyes.
    Hands grab at his arms and shoulders, the baby’s cries get louder.
    ‘Well, well,’ Kell crows. ‘Looks like we’ve got a new deal on. You give us—’
    The first bullet punches the rifle from his hands, the second goes through his knee. Kell screams reflexively as he falls forward.
    Lil’s pistol nestles in behind his ear. ‘Here’s the new deal: Let us go, right now, or I put a new piercing in your brain.’
    ‘Argh! You’ll die for this you bitch!’
    ‘Not before you. Tell them to let us go.’
    Kell spits on the floor, bites back another wave of pain. ‘Let the bastards go. You hear me, let them go!’
    The colony of grimy fingers retreats, and the Vagrant moves forward, reaching the gate.
    Lil watches, the time is coming when she’ll have to run for it. There are too many people and too few bullets for her to succeed. She grits her teeth, allowing no time for tears or second thoughts, preparing to take her chance.
    She turns, pointing the pistol at those immediately in front of her. They flinch away and she jumps for the gap, focusing on the goat’s lank tail, still in sight. Her flight is brief, arrested by a chunk of stone that strikes her temple, stunning her. A fist catches her between the shoulders, and Lil falls into the pale grass.
    Too late, the Vagrant sees. His hands itch for the sword but they are full already. His foot lifts, wanting to rush to her side, but he cannot put the baby down here, dares not take it back into danger. Head low, he carries on.
    A crowd gathers around Lil, boots stamping down.
    The tension in the air grows, drawing tighter with each kick. Kell’s people step back. Between them, Lil’s body lies face down in the dirt, a sliver of blood runs from her temple.
    Alone, her death would be but a whisper. She is not alone. Many have fallen, each adding weight to a cry that passes beyond mortal ears and into another place, where it demands response.
    With a shriek, the air splits above the fields, and something that should not be manifests within its shell. The pipe arches groan with the added weight, until the Unborn’s chain snaps, unleashing its cargo upon the wretches below.
    Just once, the Vagrant turns back.
    The Unborn’s burst shell rocks back and forth, spurting liquid from many cracks.
    Long grasses undulate, a sea of pale yellow, allowing glimpses of the new horror birthing in the field. Where it finds people it consumes them, not the careful possession of its elders but a wild, destructive instinct.
    Above it, the air ripples and folds, fighting to close once more.
    Most in the fields have been taken by surprise but those further out pause in their petty struggles. Weapons are trained on the new threat, men and women briefly united in their desire to survive. Precious bullets are spent.
    Voices fade away, the grass whispers.
    Nobody emerges from the field.
    In its sheath, the sword begins to hum softly. The Vagrant rests two fingers on the hilt but the noise does not quieten. He walks away, leaving Kendall’s Folly to its fate.

CHAPTER SEVEN
    Gravel crunches rhythmically underfoot. The suns rush across the sky, manic compared to the broken mountains that inch past. Under their uneven shadows, the Vagrant walks. Their progress is steady.
    The baby will not stop crying. It screams beneath his coat, inconsolable.