Read Online Golden Son by Pierce Brown - Free Book Online Page A

attention?You’retheonlyGoldalivethatwouldn’tbothergettinganewhand.”
    “I wonder why you provoke me still when your reputation is shattered. Your bank accounts emptied.” I shift in my seat. “Oh, yes. You didn’t know? Pliny is thorough when he cuts a man’s hamstrings. He emptied all your funds. So really there’s very little to you. But here you sit, at the bottomofamoon.Alone.Withme,withmine.Throwinginsults.”
    “These are yours?” I ask, glancing at the lowColors around us. “I would have thought they’d disgustyou.”
    “Whosaidyouhavetolikeyourchildren?”theJackalaskspleasantly.“Theyareaproductofour Golden loins.” He gnaws on the chicken leg, cracking the bone with his teeth before discarding it.
    “DoyouknowwhatIhavebeendoingwithmytime?”
    “Wankingoffinthebushes?”
    “Alas,no.Mydefeatatyourhandssetmeback.I’mnotafraidtosayit.Youhurtmeandmyplans.
    My sister also wounded me. Gagging me? Binding me naked and throwing me at your feet? That stung, especially when all the grand lords and ladies of our fine Peerless caste got a chuckle at my expense.”
    “Webothknowyoudon’tfeelpain,Adrius.”
    “Oh,callmetheJackal.Hearing‘Adrius’fromyourlipsislikehearingacatbark.”Heshivers,but leansdelightedlyforwardinhisseatwhenaBrownwomanwiththickarmsandtattooswebbingher pale,pockmarkedskinslipsfromthekitchenscarryingthreesteamingbowls.Shesetsthembeforeus.
    “Thankyou!”hesays,takingtwoforhimself.
    Ieyethebowlsuspiciously.
    “I’mnotapoisoner,”hesays.“IcouldpoisonmyfatheranytimeIwant,butIdon’t.Doyouknow why?”
    “Becauseyou’venotgottenwhatyouneedoutofhim.”
    “Andthatis?”
    “Hisapproval.”
    TheJackalwatchesmethroughthesteamofhisbowl.“Quite.Ihavebeenofferedagreatdealof apprenticeships.Theyofferittomyfather ’sname,nottome.TheydespisemebecauseIatestudents.
    But it’s such hypocrisy. What else was I to do? We’re told to win, and I did my best. And then they criticize.Actnoble,asthoughtheydidn’tcommitmurderthemselves.Madness.”
    Heshakeshisheadwithalittlesigh.“Yes,IcouldhavegonetostudywarattheAcademylikeyou.I could have studied politics at the Politico School on Luna. I might have been a decent Judiciar if I couldstomachVenus.ButIwillrisewithouttheirhypocrisy.Withouttheirschools.”
    “I’veheardtherumors.Anytrue?”
    “Most.” He pulls more noodles out of the bowl, spreading red pepper sauce over them. “I am a businessman now, Darrow. I buy things. I own things. I create. Of course I’m seen as a money-grubbing Silver by those pretentious Peerless jackasses. But I am not one of the fading lords of twentieth-century Europe. I understand there is power in being practical, in owning things. People.
    Ideas.Infrastructure.Somuchmoreimportantthanmoney.Somuchmoreinsidiousthan”—hemakes
    afunnymotionwithhishand —“spaceships and razors .Tellme,doesashipmatterifyoucan’tsupply andtransportthefoodtofeeditscrew?Iaboveallothersknowtheimportanceoffood.”
    “Youownthisplace,don’tyou?”Iask.
    “In a manner.” He smiles with too much teeth. “I feel I must be blunt with you. We were nearly eighteenwhenwelefttheInstitute.Wearenowtwenty.Ihavebeentwoyearsinexile,andnowIwish toreturnhome.”
    “To socialize with Peerless jackasses?” I laugh. “If you have been paying attention at all, you’ll knowIdon’thaveyourfather ’sear.”
    “Payingattention…”HesharesaglancewithVictraandleansforward.“Reaper.Iamtheattention.
    DoyouknowhowmuchofthecommunicationsindustryIhaveacquired?”
    “No.”
    “Good.ThatmeansI’mdoingitproperly.I’veacquiredmorethantwentypercent.Withmysilent
    partner,Iownnearlythirty.You’rewonderingwhy?CertainlyfamilieslikeVictra’sdonotconsider themselvesdirtiedbybusiness.Afterall,theJuliihavepartakenintradeforcenturies.Butmediais differentforus.Slimy.LeavethattoQuicksilverandhisilk.Sowhywouldsomeonewithmylineage dirty his hands with it? Well, I want you to imagine media as a pipeline to a city in the desert.” He waves around. “Our