Free Blood of the Redd Guard - Part Two by Dan Decker Page A

Kyson well enough to be interested, in some ways Kyson had reminded her of her father. He’d never tired of answering questions and had kept her needs in mind. One time, after they’d both stayed late at the archives, he’d insisted on walking her home.
    Nelion had been both amused and curious at the offer. As a former soldier, she was more than capable of handling any trouble she might run into and between the two of them, Nelion was the one that went around armed. If Kyson kept any weapons on him, she had never been able to detect them.
    The closer they had gotten to her place, the more she’d wondered about his intentions. Would he try to steal a kiss? Perhaps invite her to do something? At the door to her apartment, he’d given her a smile and disappeared into the night. She’d been surprised at the disappointment she’d felt when she realized his intention was to only see her home.
    The images of the arrow skewering him came to mind and she fought back tears and anger. Her wrists hurt. She realized that she’d formed her hands into fists and her bonds were cutting into them. It was bad enough that she’d made a fool of herself before General Rahid; she didn’t need to do the same before her captors. She took a breath and relaxed her hands.
    Panic, tears, and anger were her real enemies. She continued to breathe at a slow rate, emptying her mind.
    She had to keep her wits about her.
    When the scratchy hood was removed from her head, Nelion recognized it as a bad sign that some of her captors hadn’t bothered to hide their identities. She refused to let the concern touch her.
    Altogether, it looked like she was surrounded by a group of about twenty people, five of whom had their faces uncovered and were conversing several feet away from her. The rest wore cowls and masks; similar to the man she’d killed earlier at the Paroke Army archives.
    They had dragged her up some stairs and she’d been tied down. While she hadn’t thought to count each step, she believed they were on the second floor.
    The room was spacious and musty. A lantern had been set on a table nearby, giving light to the tables scattered throughout, most of which had chairs set upside down on top of them. She was in either a tavern or a meeting hall; it was hard to decide in the poor light.
    She could see that it was still dark outside through a couple of windows along the far side of a wall. She didn’t recognize any of the dark buildings on the outside but that wasn’t a surprise. Rarbon was a big enough city that she didn’t have to go far to venture into unfamiliar territory. She was far enough away from the windows that it wasn’t likely that anybody would notice them from the outside. She wondered if anybody would be able to hear her if she screamed.
    That would be a last resort, but when the time came, if it indeed came to that, she’d scream herself silly or until they knocked her unconscious.
    Or worse.
    It was ironic that the most dangerous situation she’d ever encountered hadn’t happened during her time in Korew army, but when she was working as a scribe. She remembered thinking when she took the job that it would be a great deal safer than the life of a soldier. She repressed a snort of dark laughter.
    Once her utility to them had passed, her body would be found in an alley or floating face down in one of Rarbon’s canals. Or even worse, perhaps she wouldn’t be found at all. The thought of her disappearing without her mother knowing what had happened caused her to tighten her mouth and push down the panic.
    She had to keep them thinking they needed her. She’d hold out through the interrogation as long as possible until she figured out something she could tell them that would make them want her alive.
    As the group of un-hooded people talked just out of earshot, she twisted her arms, looking for any give or weakness in the knots keeping her secured to the chair. None were apparent.
    Not wanting them to see her looking,