Master of Chains - Jess Lebow [27]
As a group, the prisoners, led by the drum-beating taskmaster, marched in a wide circle around the wooden benches in the center of the room. When they reached the same place they had started from, the taskmaster abruptly stopped beating the drum.
"Do it just like that until we get to where we're going, and I won't be forced to hurt you."
Pulling the bolt on the door, the taskmaster let it swing open. Outside was a courtyard enclosed by a high stone wall and two-dozen armed guardsmen on horseback. To one side sat a carriage, not unlike the one Ryder had ambushed with Liam.
"Here we go." The taskmaster beat the drum, and the gang of chained prisoners moved forward.
When they reached the middle of the courtyard, the mounted guard captain shouted, "Halt."
The taskmaster stopped beating the drums, and the prisoners came to a stop. The guardsmen moved their horses into positions beside them. Holding loaded crossbows in one hand and the reigns to their horses in the other, they surrounded the prisoners.
The captain lifted his arm in the air then let it fall. "Forward."
Another set of doors opened up across the courtyard, and the drumbeat began again.
The sun was going down on the horizon, turning the sky a deep orange.
Ryder stepped forward, then stepped forward again. "I will not go down easy," he said under his breath.
The tattooed man turned to look at him. Ryder thought he might say something, but all he did was nod.
The taskmaster picked up the pace, and they marched out of Zerith Hold toward the setting sun. The carriage rolled out behind them, taking up the rear.
Boom, boom, boom, boom…
* * * * *
Captain Beetlestone pulled the knob on the door leading into Lord Purdun's private study and entered the room.
He bowed before the baron. "You sent for me, my lord."
Lord Purdun turned away from the windows looking out over the harbor. The sun had gone down. The only light that could be seen was the reflection of the moon off the lightly rippling water.
"You've been with me a long time," he said. "I trust your judgment."
"Thank you, my lord," replied Beetlestone, standing up straighter.
The baron took deep breath. "Tell me honestly. Do you think this is the right thing?" asked Purdun. "Do you think Liam is the right choice?"
The captain nodded. "I was there when they attacked the carriage, my lord. I saw him with my own eyes. He's definitely the one."
"What about his brother?"
Beetlestone shook his head. "He would never give in. Liam is the one we want. He has the skills and the good sense to keep himself in one piece."
Lord Purdun nodded. "All right," he said. "Then we will proceed." He turned back toward the window.
"Yes, my lord." Captain Beetlestone turned and, closing the door behind him, exited the room.
CHAPTER 6
Liam woke up with a start. He was in his own bed. He was warm and comfortable. He touched the pillow, then his own face.
"Dear Tymora, please let that have been a dream."
Then the images of Ryder came back to him. The aching in his chest, the crushing anguish, and the guilt rolled back in, and Liam was certain that it was no dream. That moment of obscurity, between asleep and awake, was a small taste of bliss. But now the realities of Liam's life had come crashing back into his consciousness, and he would have to deal with it.
Swinging his legs out from under his blanket, he put his feet on the floor and lifted himself out of bed. The sun hadn't come up yet. All the better. Darkness suited his mood.
Slipping his clothes on, he grabbed a hoe from a rack on the wall and headed out the door. Down the path, he turned and headed east. He didn't need the sun's guidance to find his way. He'd walked the path so many times that he sometimes felt he could find his way completely asleep.
All of the farmers in Duhlnarim shared the same set of fields. Nobody owned them, of course. They were all the property of Baron Purdun and his wife, the Princess Dijara, who was also the king's younger sister. Each family was allotted an amount of land to work as they saw fit, but every season, the