Free The Blind Dragon by Peter Fane Page A

between the southern side of the barracks and the retaining wall's parapet led back out to the barracks' front terrace, where she'd just left the Tevéss riders.
    Anna heard a dragon roar. It was followed by an impossibly deep response. Moondagger cocked his head at the sound, his eyes wide.
    Voidbane.
    For some reason, hearing the giant dragon made Anna feel better. Voidbane was there. And, no matter what happened, he was a force to be reckoned with. Dagger pointed his nose at the lodge, sniffing and tasting the air.
    "Your sire." Anna patted Dagger's side. "You'll meet him soon."
    She walked around the courtyard's perimeter, staying out of sight behind the hanging laundry, working her way up to the barracks' back door. A neat stack of empty tubs sat there. Anna tried the door. Locked. But the shutters of the barracks' rear windows were open. Anna took one of the laundry tubs, flipped it over beneath the window, and stepped onto it. Slowly, she lifted her head so she could peek inside.
    She was looking into the barracks' rear utility room. There was no one there. On the right side of the room, shelves ran floor to ceiling, filled with carefully folded blue uniforms. On the left side of the room, lines of neatly arranged brooms, mops, buckets, dusters, rags, and other cleaning supplies hung from well-ordered hooks. The wall directly across from her, opposite the window, was lined with shelves carefully stacked with clay dishes, plates, mugs, pitchers, and bowls. There was a narrow staircase in the near corner to her left that descended into the barracks' kitchen. In the far right corner, a swinging door led into the common room.
    Anna pushed at the window. It swung open soundlessly. She jumped to the stone sill, slid herself over, and lowered herself into the room. Moondagger thrust his head into the window, his eyes wide, broad tongue tasting the air.
    "Stay here," Anna whispered. "Absolute silence."
    Dagger's pinkish nostrils flared, but he made no noise.
    Anna opened the window all the way, so that she might leap out if necessary, then crossed to the swinging door that led to the common room. The door had a round window in its center and swung both ways to ease traffic coming up from the barracks' kitchen.
    Anna put her ear to the door crack and listened.
    The low murmur of quiet conversations. She couldn't make out any specific sentences or words, but the inflection and pattern was marked by that unmistakable western accent.
    Anna cracked the door and peeked inside.
    Soldiers wearing the maroon livery of House Tevéss filled the common room.
    Dozens of them. Dozens of dragon riders—.
    No.
    More than dozens.
    At least a hundred soldiers in all. The common room was packed with them. And not all were riders. In fact, most were ground troops. They wore round infantry helmets and heavy combat armor under maroon livery. Shields were strapped to their backs and battleswords hung from their belts. Several of them carried carbines over their shoulders. The Tevéss riders that she could see wore the same kind of equipment that Captain Corónd and his riders outside had worn, a combination of scout harnesses and full battle gear. There were about a dozen dragon riders in total, sitting at the head table near the common room's front; the infantrymen mostly stood. The entire group gave the impression of having been waiting for some time. The riders were checking and re-checking their blades, revolvers, and knives, murmuring and talking over the soft click of harness and gear, the scrape of stone on steel. Several ate grapes or figs from clay bowls. Water pitchers and cups sat about everywhere. The group seemed calm, but it also radiated a kind of underlying tension, the coiled energy of a war company ready for battle.
    A group of infantrymen stepped away from the far corner, and that's when Anna saw the bodies. They were piled neatly on the far left side of the room. The bodies of at least two dozen House Dradón dragon riders and