Read Online The King's Blood by S. E. Zbasnik, Sabrina Zbasnik - Free Book Online

ditch is dictating your destiny?" The brown eyes, a funhouse mirror of skepticism reflected back onto his own.  
    Aldrin stopped waving his arm around and looked at the half rotted thing seemingly for the first time. "Yeah, you're right. It belongs back with the dead where it fell."
    And pulling his arm back, he heaved the thing as far as it could go. Swords aren't the most aerodynamic of weaponry 8 , especially one that twisted like a stream, so it flew five feet before crashing awkwardly to the dirt.
    Ciara grabbed a hold of Aldrin's hand and huffed, "Come on," leading him away from the forest.
    Neither of them noticed the hand rising from the marshy ground, clasping the hilt.
    "Maybe I'll try giving out rolls of pennies next time instead."

    Pulling her cowl's hood over her head, Ciara tried to look as inconspicuous as possible. This, of course, drew more attention to her than if she'd walked into the town square and burped the Hold's anthem. "Let 'em all go to hell, except for Aldershan!"
    Luckily, she walked slightly in front of the boy who could vanish in a crowd of one. It had always been difficult for his nurses to punish Aldrin because they forget who they were talking to halfway through a "And you'll get such a caning for...who broke this vase?"
    The town was settling down after a hard day of trying to pretend they didn't just watch the castle go up in flames and avoiding anything political outside of who the mayor was sticking it to 9 . Only a strong light poured out of a set of hanging doors that marked the town's pub, inn, rec center, and hospital 10 .  
    It wasn't that the doors were supposed to be perched so precariously upon their hinges, the owner was simply going through a bit of a post-modern moment and got his level from the lady of the drainage ditch. If you didn't grip on tightly while sitting at the bar, you were likely to find yourself sliding into your neighbor. All of the furniture in the west room on the third floor was nailed to the ceiling, and it's best to not talk about what happens to anyone who visits the midden.
    The rest of the town was closing, the grocer sweeping all the apples that crashed to the floor into a bucket labeled, "Free or best offer." And the extremely exquisite clothing store "Liarta's Garments," so fancy she makes you take your shoes off before you can try the pants on, flickered its lights once for last call.
    Ciara sized up the garment store, a satin dress with mouse holes cut into the bodice on prime display in the window; and, grabbing Aldrin, dragged him in. A bell jangled greedily to welcome fresh money and Liarta looked up.
    She couldn't have been much past thirty, but the spackle on her face gave the illusion she'd seen her 60 th winter. Nearly an inch thick, the white reminded Ciara less of Marna's haunting face and more the saddest specimen to take to the performing arts, a Bard that never learned any stories. The bright dots on her cheeks and swipe of kohl both over and below her eyes completed the mime look.
    "How may I be of service today?" Her smile was faker than the blush on her cheeks as she surveyed the state of these guests, coated in dung and leaves as if they'd just had a roll in the fertilizer. Or worse, were professional peasants.  
    Ciara steadied herself, "We'd like to sell you something."
    Liarta snarled, "I don't do trades. I have all the bruised fruit I could need thanks to that ninny next door refusing to fix the leg on her tables."
    But the girl was undeterred; she leaned in as if she had some major secret. Subconsciously, Liarta joined her until their heads almost touched. "Now, I shouldn't be telling you this. My mistress would throw a right fit she would, but for you, and just for you, I'm offering velvet. Royal velvet."
    The shopkeep snorted, "Show me?"
    Ciara pointed a finger to the boy who up until this point had been counting the buttons in the case beneath the counter.
    Liarta leaned back, her hands sliding under the counter, "You must