Free The Sword of Light: Book One of the Veredor Chronicles by E J Gilmour

and
clenched his fists in readiness to defend his friend. Falsig
sneered up at Eben. A moment later Red smiled. He was not afraid of
Falsig at all.
    ‘ Relax, you’ll get your reward, Falsig,’ said Red as he
removed his arm from Falsig’s grip.
    ‘ Make sure of it,’ said Falsig as he turned and walked
away.
    ‘ I don’t like this. I hope I haven’t foiled our plan,’ said
Red, his eyes narrowing as he watched Falsig head toward the back
of the ship.
    ‘ Maybe we should go back to our original plan of the wine
barrels,’ suggested Eben.
    ‘ No, it’s too late. He’ll probably go straight to the
Zyranians if we change anything now. He can’t comprehend that we
would be prepared to risk our lives for anything other than
treasure, and he’s determined to get his share.’ Red glanced back
out toward the sun as it descended beneath the waves. The cool
evening was growing dark.
     

CHAPTER
SIX
     
    It was late in
the afternoon on the second day after leaving Ancora. The ship
crossed a small bay and was approaching the docks. Eben looked out
at the sight of the Citadel of Zyran that towered ominously above
the docks. At least a hundred stone towers rose high into the sky
above and a weblike network of dozens of stone bridges linked the
towers together. A massive grey stone wall, at least a hundred and
fifty feet high, completely surrounded the Citadel. Hundreds of
ravens circled in the gloomy haze above the towers, and dark murky
clouds hung low in the sky.
    Cassiel, Red,
and Stella stood with Eben toward the front of the deck; they all
stared out at the Citadel as the ship neared the docks.
    ‘ It looks frightening,’ said Stella nervously.
    ‘ The wizards of Zyran are by far the most cunning in all of
Veredor. We must be careful,’ said Cassiel, looking up at the
Citadel uneasily.
    The ship
slowly approached and entered under the dark cloud which hovered
not far above the tops of the towers. The gloominess was
oppressive. The area of the docks was about three hundred feet down
from the edge of the wall of the Citadel. A large village made up
of many huts and small houses surrounded the dock area. The sailors
threw ropes and tied the ship to the dock. Captain Orstag began
yelling at his sailors.
    Falsig
approached as the ship came up beside the docks. The sailors rushed
about and secured lines and placed a gangplank. Eben and the others
were preparing to disembark. ‘You would be wise to get a room in
the inn over there,’ said Falsig, pointing toward a large inn at
the edge of the village. ‘I’ll meet you at the bar around noon
tomorrow, and we’ll discuss our dealings in more detail.’ He
shuffled down the gangplank and was followed by his five shadowy
companions.
    ‘ I don’t trust him at all,’ said Stella, grimacing as she
watched Falsig walk away. Eben nodded in agreement.
    Cassiel walked
down the plank and across the docks. Eben, Red, and Stella followed
him across the way and up the slight slope toward the inn. The sign
above the door read: ‘The Lost Mermaid,’ and had a faded picture of
a sad mermaid sitting on a beach. It was a large stone building
with an upper floor and a gabled roof. Cassiel pushed the door open
and stepped in. Eben, Stella, and Red followed Cassiel’s lead.
    The common
room was crowded and very warm with large open fire burning at the
far end. Groups of men filled most of the tables and many others
stood at the bar. A long bar stretched along the wall on the right
side of the room.
    Cassiel
stopped and scanned the room. He then leaned toward Eben. ‘Some of
these people could be dangerous, so be careful and discreet. I’m
going to see if we can reserve some rooms for tonight.’ He then
turned and walked toward the bar. No one in the room seemed to
notice the small group of newcomers.
    ‘ Let’s take that table in the corner,’ said Red. They walked
over and sat down. ‘At least this place is warm. I remember staying
here once a few years ago when I was a