Back to chapter 1 - Start at the beginning of the series with Chapter one of The Slave Warrior.
It was still sticky. The crowd of people made it hot in the Great Hall, but the celebration was more than just a welcome feast. It was a needed show that the Hawkwell family, once divided by many things, was now together and standing at each other’s backs.
There were too many people. The Great Hall was not large enough for those who had been there before Laun had come back. With over two hundred more people, it was the nobles and top officers and a few entertainers that wedged themselves into the stone and beam room.
A calf had been roasted in hunks, plattered and passed with as much ceremony as the household ever was able to do. Fine breads were tossed from the head table as wheaten largesse. Sweetened tea was had by most, cider and ale by a few. It was a fine feast inside the Great Hall.
About an hour in, Laun excused herself from Falmir’s side and kissed Dreng’s head on the way past, putting her fingertips on the cheek with the scar. She touched the shoulders of many of those seated, some for the first time. She worked her way through the crowd until she was at the door to the courtyard.
It was cooler, even though the night winds were not licking down into the walls as Laun would have liked. There were a few people in the stables, a smile for their Lady as she paused to wave to them. Laun saw people along the roads, getting some of the night air, and talking. She started to walk towards the soldier’s encampment, a few people asking if they could walk with her as she went.
Her sandals let through most of the heat of the road, reminding her of her first walk from the safety of Salam-Dir, but the thin leather did protect her from the stones that were lying in wait. She had on more layers than she really wanted, but the skirt and tunic were both very light and let through most of the cool air pushed down the slopes of the old volcano. She even had let Disa put up her hair to show off her Aunt’s crown, but had refused any coloring on her face.
She was on the arm of one of the nobles that had come with Falmir, one of Dougals men on the other side. A Private was behind her on the right and one of the women protectors was on her left. A good selection of who was in the household right then. Several soldiers along the outskirts of the camp stood and saluted as Laun and her escort approached. She stopped a few yards away and saluted, asking, “May I enter?”
“Yes, Ma’am. Do you need directions or escort?” »Read More