Free Trusted: Dragons' Trust Book 1 by Krista Wayment Page A

pushed and slid his face against the ground. Small rocks and twigs left stinging scratches on his face, and his mouth filled with dirt. Renick continued on. Once he reached the bushes, he thrashed around a bit until he could see back into the camp. He was surprised to see that no one was watching him. He hesitated, unsure if he should continue.
    Renick turned his attention back to the bush in front of him. Moving through the thorn–laden branches would be worse than inching along the dirt. For a moment, he considered abandoning the escape attempt. Thane, Lainey, and Plyth were probably far away and safe by now. He would not be able to find them, and traveling in the forest alone was dangerous.
    But he had to try.
    He took a deep, dust–filled breath, shifted his knees back and forth, and drove his head into the bush. Several sharp thorns bit into the back of his head and neck. His forehead, though, received most of the torment. Renick gasped, blowing a cloud of dirt around his head. The dust coated his lungs and he coughed a few times. After taking a moment to recover, Renick readied himself to move again. He pushed forward, but instead of driving further into the bush, he was pulled backwards by a pair of strong hands gripping his ankles. Panicked, Renick kicked hard, but the pressure on his ankles increased.
    "Settle down, boy!" Gunther said. The hunter flipped Renick over on his back. "Thought ya might try somethin' like that. Caught ya, stupid." Gunther slapped Renick in the head and chuckled to himself. Taking Renick by one leg, Gunther pulled him to the center of the camp. He called to one of the other hunters, "Ho, Marrkit, drive me a pole righ' here." Marrkit, who sat near a freshly gathered pile of firewood, picked up a long branch about as wide as his fist.
    "Here." Marrkit threw the branch at Gunther. "Drive it yerself." He returned to his drink.
    Gunther dropped Renick's foot. Renick waited until he could hear the thump, thump, thump of Gunther driving the piece of wood into the ground. Not really caring where he was headed, Renick started crawling again. He had not made it very far before a hard boot on his back pressed him to the ground.
    "And where do ya think ya're goin'?" Gunther's voice asked.
    Renick rolled on to his back, knocking Gunther off balance. With all the strength he could muster, Renick drove his feet toward the man's face. He heard a crunch and Gunther wailed in pain. Renick laughed. The hunter sounded like a little girl.
    "What's your problem?" Horrin asked as he approached.
    "Da liddle brat brod my dose," Gunther complained.
    "Git!" Horrin said. "I'll handle the boy."
    Gunther's footsteps shuffled away.
    Renick was pulled to his feet and brought face–to–face with Horrin.
    The cavity where his second eye should be commanded all of Renick's attention. After a moment, he blinked and refocused. Renick spat in Horrin's good eye. The hunter recoiled and punched Renick in the gut. As he doubled over, Renick caught a glimpse of a small tattoo in the hollow of Horrin's neck. "The seeker's mark?" Renick recognized it from a book his father had shown him once.
    Horrin grabbed the hair at the base of Renick's neck and yanked him forward. "I'll say this once. I've been kind thus far. If you dare to defy me again, I'll slit your throat. You're trying to play me for a fool. I know who you are, son of a dragon breeder. I'll not let you thwart me. I'll find and slaughter that dragon, and you'll help me," he promised.
    "I'll die first!" Renick said.
    "Oh, I'm counting on it."

Chapter 13: Brave to the Rescue
     
    Thane wrapped his arm around the tree branch and leaned forward to get a better view. He watched as the figures of the hunters milled about. As he marked each man's movements, Thane calculated his chances against each one. He could probably take any one of them, but that was it—just one. Stealth was his only option. Thane returned to studying the way station. In the center of the camp, near the