Free The Sword And The Pen by Elysa Hendricks Page A

along as she moved from booth to booth to see the fair merchandise. A booth selling swords and knives caught her attention. To keep pace with her, Brandon pushed away his impending panic.
    Before he could stop her, she picked up a sword. Without putting any of the people around her at risk, she tested its weight and balance with a series of ballet-like movements. Her dress swirled around her legs as she moved. Several people applauded.
    "Wow!" the young man in the booth said. "You're good. A complete natural with that. Are you interested in buying it?"
    "Thank you, but no. The balance on this sword is off." She carefully replaced the weapon. "In battle that could mean the difference between life and death."
    The young man's smile wavered. "Yeah, well, most people just hang them on their walls." He stared at her for a moment. "You look familiar. I know!" He grabbed a well-read paperback from behind the counter.
    Brandon cringed. He tried to tug Seri away, but she was busy examining the display of knives.
    "You look like her." The young man shoved a copy of Warrior Woman: Serilda's Valor under her nose.
    Memory of what he'd read the night before increased Brandon's growing panic.
    She grimaced at the scantily clad woman holding a sword aloft in two hands as she stood over the body of a fallen opponent. "I don't believe so," she replied.
    "Yes, you do. Though you're prettier."
    "Thank you." Seri smiled at the young man.
    He blushed and turned his gaze on Brandon. An expression of amusement crossed his face. "Hey, man, if your hair was longer you could almost pass for Donoval. Are you two here for the contest?"
    He groaned. As promotion for his next Warrior Woman book, SERILDA'S JUDGMENT, and the pending movie deal, his publisher was running this contest. Insane. Ridiculous. As if any real woman could compare to the image in his mind.
    The woman next to you far surpasses it.
    He ignored the annoying voice in his head.
    "No," he snapped at the young man. Before Seri could ask, Brandon grabbed her arm and pulled her away. Unfortunately he headed the wrong direction and ran smack into the middle of the festivities. Everywhere he looked, men and women were dressed in costumes straight out of the pages of his books. He and Seri were surrounded.
    Seri froze in her tracks, pulling him to a stop. "What is this?" she demanded.
    "You don't want to know," he muttered, and reached again for her arm. "Come on, let's get out of here."
    "Mauri?" She evaded his grasp and took a step in the direction of a young girl dressed in costume.
    The child looked up and smiled, but then an older woman in a Serilda costume and a red wig took her hand and led her toward a low stage in the middle of the mall's main court.
    "Here we have Megan O'Connor as Mauri," a man's voice said over the loudspeaker. The stage where the girl was being presented was set to resemble the great hall in the castle Andre Roark had commandeered.
    Seri flinched, and looked at Brandon in growing confusion. He had to get her out of here.
    "Lovely costume, Megan. Judges, what do you think?" the announcer continued.
    Before Brandon could snag her arm, Seri moved toward the stage as if in a trance.
    "Wow! You're Brandon Davis. The Brandon Davis." A young man stepped between him and Seri. "They said you wouldn't be here. Would you sign my books?" He shoved a stack of novels and a pen into Brandon's hands.
    Not wanting to call any more attention to himself, he murmured an assent and dashed off his signature inside the books. By the time he finished and managed to slip away, the announcer was speaking again.
    "Thank you, Megan. We'll take a short break while the judges tally the vote for the Mauri lookalike and then we'll come back for the main event." The announcer paused for effect. "The Serilda contestants! So stick around, folks. The best is yet to come."
    Brandon looked around. He'd lost Seri.
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    In a fog, I watched the little girl move across the dais and disappear into