Avondale Read Free Page A

common-born orphan after all; dreams of life in palaces were just that, dreams. She had no time for dreams—she was too busy surviving. Ti helped in small ways when he could, but he was training to become a Paladin, which would make them enemies at some point.
    The Paladins served the city as peacekeepers and enforced the Earl’s laws. Unfortunately, Lexi’s skills weren’t exactly legal. She hurried up the stairs and into a small room where she found a shawl that she draped over her shoulders and head. Then she moved out into the main level of the palace. It was normally a busy place where citizens pled their cases to Earl Aegus or his son Leonosis, and where merchants loitered, waiting to bribe a city official in hopes of navigating the intricate maze of Avondale politics.
    Everyone had gone out to see what sort of creature was attacking the city. Lexi understood their curiosity and their desire to ensure their own survival, she just had a different way of doing it. She tried one door and found it locked, then tried another and went inside a small series of rooms. She knew she didn’t have much time, so she hurried to the large desk. It was a massive piece of furniture, carved from dark wood with dozens of small drawers and bins that were filled with rolls of parchment. She pulled open several drawers before finding a small pouch. She lifted it and felt the weight of gold coins and heard the delightful sound as the coins clinked against one another.
    She was tempted to take the entire pouch and flee. She guessed there was enough coin in the pouch to keep her fed and safe for a year, but she also knew if the pouch went missing, a search would be made. Security in the palace would go up and she wouldn’t be allowed near the royal residence, much less inside it. She pulled the leather opening and saw the glint of yellow gold. She fished out a single coin, then pulled the leather thong to close the little pouch and returned it to the drawer. The single coin was more than enough to feed her for a week. She slipped it into a hidden pocket of the thick rawhide belt she wore, then slipped back out toward the palace’s main entrance.
    Lexi’s clothes were simple gray homespun garments. She didn’t wear shoes and her hair was cut short and left sticking up at odd angles. But she had a pretty face, and a smile that put most people at ease. She may not have been properly dressed, but being an attractive young woman made most people give her the benefit of the doubt.
    Lexi waited while the battle on the city walls took place, doing her best to stay in the shadows and not be noticed. Once the danger had passed, scores of people returned to the palace. Most ignored Lexi completely; those that took a longer look got a flash of her smile and most returned it.
    “What are you doing here?” Tiberius asked as he came down the winding staircase from the watchtower above.
    “Waiting for you, of course,” Lexi said, her smile not forced this time.
    “Is something wrong?” Tiberius asked as he walked her out of the palace.
    “No,” she said. “I have something to show you.”
    “I don’t mind you coming to the palace, but you could at least clean up a little.”
    “I thought you liked me this way,” she teased.
    “I just don’t want you getting into trouble.”
    “Why would I be in trouble? I didn’t do anything but wait for you,” she lied.
    “If Leonosis sees you, you’ll wish you had listened to me.”
    “Your brother doesn’t scare me,” Lexi said, lying again.
    “That’s because you don’t know him,” Tiberius said. “Where are we going?”
    “This way,” Lexi said, taking the lead.
    The city of Avondale was made up of long streets that ran around the edge of the mountaintop. At regular intervals, wide stone steps led down to the lower streets, where homes and shops were carved into the porous sides of the extinct volcano. The avenues on the lower levels were narrow and some ran into long tunnels. The