Ties of Blood by D.W. Jackson Read Free Book Online

enough punishment having to listen to Darryl who was talking absurdly loud right into the man’s ear.
    “Can I get your order?” the young waitress form the night before asked doing her best to shove her breasts into Darryl’s face. “Yes we will have whatever is hot and ready but please not as spicy as last night I don’t think our stomachs can handle that this early in the morning. Also is there any way we can get some of that ale from last night to take with us.”
    The girl looked at Ballard the tried to stifle her laughter. “Oh yes, that’s Lucas’s special brew. He had miniature kegs of it, though it’s fairly expensive. Six silvers a barrel but it’s extremely popular.”
    Digging out a small hand full of coins Eloen counted them out to the young girl. “Have them bring us four of the small kegs please, and make sure they’re sealed tight. I don’t want to have them break open when were on the back of our horses.”
    “Yes my lady.” The waitress said before disappearing into the back.
    The waitress brought out their meal which consisted of two eggs and a slightly spiced piece of thin slices of lightly spiced ham. It was tasty and didn’t set too heavily on her already delicate stomach. Before they finished their meal the four kegs were brought out. They were slightly larger than she had envisioned about the size of a large pail. She was sure she would be able to fit them in her travel pack, but barely.
    After squeezing the kegs into the magical travel pack the three started following the southern road. It was hard to call what they followed a road. In Farlan the roads were well maintained and paved with cobble stone in many places. What passed for a road in Abla was nothing more than a dirt path that looked as it had been worn down by heavy travel. While not bad for horses it had to be hard on the wagons that passed through.
    The initial excitement of being deep in enemy territory faded as the days passed. Abla was a mountainous land with only sparse patches of green. After a while one mountain looked no different than the other no matter the size. At night they ate the same meal of dried meat and fruit. It was bland but filling but what she wouldn’t give for some fresh meat. They had looked for some wild game, but the only meat they could find had been owned by the few farmers that dotted the countryside.
    Four days after they had set out from Boral they came across a band of travelers. It was a rather large group filled with mounted guards and wagons loaded down so heavily Eloen could hear their axle’s creak and pop as they rolled along. From what she could see most of the wagons were loaded down with raw metal ore, and grain. The group was moving slow but headed in the same direction as they were. Midday was already well past and night was fast approaching so they decided it would be best to spend the night in the company of the caravan.
    The Caravan master didn’t seem to mind letting them ride along for a bit as long as they didn’t cause any trouble. He even took a few moments to see if they wanted to buy any of their wares. Ballard bought two bags of oats for the horses at a horribly high price as far as Eloen was concerned, but it helped soften the caravan masters mood, and while they weren’t running low at the moment there was no telling when the bags would come in handy in the rocky terrain of Abla.
    Eloen didn’t like the slowed pace even if it was for a short time. If it wasn’t for their lack of information on the area she would have demanded they continue on. As it was she wasn’t even sure they were still headed in the right direction. It was frustrating to know that every minute they wasted the chances of catching up to Thad drifted father away.
    As night settled in the caravan stopped pulling their wagons into a large circle. Eloen had seen the formation before and knew that it was done to offer the best protection in the case of an attack. It was a good idea but she