Dead Stars - Part One (The Emaneska Series) Read Free Page B

you through Jorpsund? Trading? Rich husband send for you and the girl? Not much of a country for sight-seeing, is it?’
    The woman shook her head and took a careful sip of her drink. ‘We are in search of an education,’ she said, nodding towards her little girl.
    ‘For your daughter?’
    The woman nodded.
    ‘So you’re heading to a school?’
    ‘You could say that.’
    ‘I see.’
    ‘And you? What business brings you out this far along the Fool Roads?’
    The mage waved the stem of his pipe in the air, shaking his head. ‘Aptly named, those roads.’
    ‘I’ve never understood them. Is it foolish to want to explore? Foolish to seek strange lands and new peoples?’
    ‘They call them that because of the people that tread them, lady, as far as I’ve seen. You could say that’s what brings me out here. On a fool’s errand.’
    ‘And what is that, good sir?’
    The mage turned around to check on the cloth-wrapped box sat nestled against the foot of the bar. Darnums was still staring at him, furiously polishing glasses. The mage rested his elbows on his knees and his chin on his pipe. ‘Secret,’ he whispered, winking at the little girl.
    ‘I like secrets,’ said the girl, in a voice as clear and musical as a bell made of glass, bright as her eyes. The mage held her inquisitive gaze for a moment and then turned to the girl’s mother, who was combing her tangled fringe with her fingers. She sensed a trade was coming.
    ‘I’ll tell you my secret if you tell me your names,’ offered the mage.
    ‘Our names?’ she asked. She gave him a shy smile. A secret in exchange for a brace of names. ‘And what would you want with those?’
    A moment passed as a smoke ring drifted to the ceiling. ‘What any man would want; to use them. Would you prefer me to call you “woman” and “girl” all evening?’
    The woman looked at the little girl, who had already caught on to the game. ‘I see. And what gave you the idea you would be spending the evening with us?’
    The mage shrugged. ‘Your choice.’
    ‘Tell you what. My daughter’s name for the secret, and my name for a glimpse of what you’re hiding in that box of yours,’ said the woman. She uncurled a finger from the warm handle of the mug and pointed towards the bar, towards the mage’s empty stool and the box between its legs. She had a sly glint in her smoky eyes. ‘And your name, as well. Unless you’d like me to call you “sir” or “mage” all night?’
    The mage bit the mouthpiece of his pipe and drummed his grimy fingernails against its wooden bowl. He shook his head, closed his eyes, and stuck out a hand, which the woman shook daintily. ‘Thialf,’ whispered the man. ‘Manesmark, born and bred.’
    ‘A pleasure to meet you, Thialf. The little one is Samara, and my name is Lilith.’
    ‘Lilith eh?’ mused the man. ‘A pretty name for a pretty woman.’
    The hollows beneath Lilith’s cheekbones turned a soft crimson. Thialf wondered if it was still all an act. He was starting to hope it wasn’t.
    ‘And Samara. What an interesting name.’ The little girl smiled at this. ‘Did you choose it?’ Thialf turned back to her mother.
    ‘I did indeed.’
    ‘I’ve never heard it before. What is it, Paraian?’
    Lilith shrugged, looking down at the little girl, who was now perched on the very edge of her stool, an inch from falling off. She was busy cradling her warm mug and swinging her legs back and forth as quickly as she could. ‘It just came to me one day,’ she said.
    ‘Fair enough,’ grunted Thialf. He stood up and adjusted his belt. He sauntered over to the bar to fetch his cloth-covered box and wine. He gave Darnums a wink before he returned to Lilith. He could feel the heat of the landlord’s eyes on the back of his neck as he returned to the little fire and the enraptured females. There might have even been a little swagger in the way he walked, and this time it was not because of his wine.
    With a thud he set his half-empty