Skull Gate Read Free

dared poke in the ashes of her past? She swallowed hard, striving for a measure of control. “What's it going to be? Aki has a long day tomorrow and needs her sleep."
    A deep laugh echoed in the room. “Gods! The bitch dares to be impatient with me!” He laughed again. “Maybe you're a sorceress after all, as some say."
    â€œIf it were true,” she answered, “be sure I'd blast your soul to hell!"
    Again, the room grew quiet. Again, the intruder broke the silence.
    â€œAll right,” he said, “the game is yours, but we'll play again another time.” He stepped forward into the light that spilled through the window with Aki locked tightly in the crook of his arm. The short sword still hovered near her throat. Even in the faint illumination she could not see his face.
    â€œYou'll give me a fair start, on your honor?"
    â€œA fair start,” she affirmed, “before I send the guards to hunt your carcass through the city."
    He moved toward the door, keeping Aki between himself and the point of Frost's sword. She backed away, but not so far she couldn't reach him if his own blade wavered a hair.
    He paused at the threshold.
    â€œLet her go,” Frost said.
    His grip on Korkyra's child-queen did not lessen. “Not a night for assassins, it seems.” He shrugged his shoulders. “Ah, well, had I succeeded, I was to leave this behind. Now, it's just extra weight to a running man.” He sheathed his sword, though he still clung to Aki. The empty hand disappeared inside his tunic for a brief moment. Then, he tossed something that clattered at her feet. “It belongs to my employer. You may know him."
    She glanced at the thing on the floor, barely visible in the gloom. “What—"
    Aki's startled cry was scant warning as the intruder pushed the little queen straight at her sword's point. She twisted to avoid splitting her royal charge. Little queen and guardian fell in a tangle of arms and legs, and Frost felt cold metal slice her shoulder. She had no time to think of the pain. In the doorway, the assassin balanced a dagger in his fingertips.
    She reacted swiftly, tugging Aki's smaller body under her own. She heard a thunk and opened her eyes to see the quivering blade sprouting from the leg of a stool near her hand.
    â€œIt goes without saying”—the intruder laughed—"I could have put that in your heart at any time."
    â€œLiar,” she began, but there was no chance to ask him how he would have done that with a child in one hand and a sword in the other. He made a short bow and vanished in the outer gloom.
    She let out a string of curses with a viciousness that surprised even her. She pulled Aki roughly to her feet. The youngling's arms went around her waist, and her hands locked tightly. Aki trembled all over.
    â€œIt's all right now,” Frost soothed. “He's gone, and we're both fine."
    Tears misted in Aki's azure eyes. “Who was he?” she cried senselessly. The child part of her overwhelmed the queenly part. She buried her face in Frost's short nightshirt.
    Frost separated herself from Aki's grasping arms and retrieved the object the assassin had left behind. It was a medallion. Her fingers traced the device raised on its surface. She started, and slowly the fire rose in her cheeks again. No mistaking that emblem. She didn't need a light to recognize that seal.
    â€œIt wasn't your life he wanted, little one.” She ran the tip of her tongue over her lips, tasting her own sweat. The assassin had not gone to the wrong bed, as she first thought. “He came for me."
    Aki gave her a quizzical look. The mist began to clear from her eyes.
    â€œAn old enemy dogs my tracks,” she explained. “I'd completely forgotten him, a nearly fatal mistake.” She picked up her sword. “Stay here and wait until I come back. Lock the door."
    â€œWhere are you going?” Aki asked with wide, innocent eyes. “You gave