Read Online A Dance of Blades by David Dalglish - Free Book Online Page B

vanished into the next room.
    “My name is Matthew Pensfield,” said the farmer, extending his hand. Haern accepted it, and was shocked at how much his own hand shook. He hadn’t eaten much, he knew, but had it really affected him so greatly?
    “Haern,” he said as he pulled his cloaks tight about him and surveyed the house. It seemed cozy enough, and not a hint of draft. The man had done well in building it.
    “I know some of the Haerns,” said Matthew as his wife returned. He had a hard look, his square jaw covered with stubble, but he spoke plain and seemed more at ease now that Haern showed no inclination to violence. “Good men, own several fields west of here. What’s your full name? I might have heard them speak of you.”
    “Just Haern,” he replied, nodding to the boy. “And I have no name for him. I found him wounded; why does not concern you. That room beyond there, is that your kitchen? Might we speak in private?”
    Some of the farmer’s worry returned, but he nodded anyway.
    “I reckon we can.”
    Once in the other room, Haern dropped his voice to a whisper.
    “I have a difficult request for you,” he said. “I need you to take care of that boy until he’s regained his health. I cannot stay.”
    “We don’t have enough food to…”
    He stopped as Haern drew out a handful of coins and dropped them upon the table. His eyes stretched wide. The gold shone in the dim light.
    “People will be hunting for him,” Haern said. “No matter what, you treat him like your own child. When he regains his health, he’ll tell you his name and where his family might be, assuming they’re still alive. Until then, give him up to no one.
    “What if they threaten violence?” Matthew asked, his eyes lingering on the gold.
    “Would you give up one of your daughters?”
    The farmer shook his head. “No. I wouldn’t.”
    Haern let his cloak fall away from his left side, exposing one of his swords.
    “I hope you understand,” he said. “I’ll return, and if I find him abused, or dead, I will repay you tenfold in blood.”
    “He’s sick and wounded. What if he dies of fever?”
    Haern smiled, and he let the coldness he felt in his bones creep into his eyes.
    “How well do you trust your children, your wife, to tell the truth? I will know one way or the other what happened to him. Do not give me cause to wonder.”
    Matthew swallowed. “I understand. This land is harsh, and we’ve taken in children before. Once he heals up, and the weather breaks, I’ll take him where he needs to go. If he doesn’t know, well, there’s always a need for more hands on a farm.”
    Haern slapped him on the shoulder, nearly laughed at his terrified jump.
    “Good man,” he said. “Now how about a warm meal?”
    He ate some soup while he watched the wife tend to the boy. She put a wet cloth across his forehead, dressed his wounds far better than he had, and then used a spoon to slowly get him to drink. Haern was impressed. Seemed these Pensfields knew how to take care of themselves. Whoever the boy was, he could do far worse for a temporary home.
    The soup did wonders for his mood. Its warmth seeped deep into his chest and then spread to the rest of his limbs. Combined with the heat of the wood stove, he felt warmed within and without. He could feel his muscles tightening from lack of motion after so much exertion, and he did his best to stretch in the cramped quarters.
    “You can spend the night here if you wish,” Matthew said as the day neared its end. “I’d be a sad man to banish a guest just as the sun sets.”
    “Thank you,” Haern said. He shifted further away from the fire so the children could take a turn. He wrapped his blankets around his body and closed his eyes. For the first time in his entire life, he found himself in a true home, with a real family. The children bickered, but there was a harmless familiarity to it. He thought of his own childhood, never spent with someone his own age, only the