Birth of a Mortal God Read Online Free PDF Page A

She looked down and realised that in her eagerness, she had forgotten she was naked. Blood rushed to her cheeks as she almost dove back under the pile of pelts. When it seemed like she would not resurface, he said, “No need to be so embarrassed, all living things are born naked. Could you tell me your name now?”
    “Jessica,” came the muffled reply.
    “Jessica,” he repeated to himself. “A fair name. Do you have any family, Jessica?”
    “No.”
    “That’s a shame, any place you would like to go, now that you’re free?”
    At this, she resurfaced. “What do you mean free? I’m branded, I will forever be a slave.”
    “Well, seeing how your master died in the fire, along with any who could have pursued us, I think you can dare to hope. Unless, of course, you intend to run around screaming you’re a fugitive slave, baring your brand for the world to see,” he replied as he poked the fire.
    Her eyes brimmed with tears as her hand went to the mass of welted skin on her right shoulder. “Is that really true? Are they all really dead? You mentioned a fire?”
    He looked at her and again felt the strange sensation he had at the inn. “Yes, those idiotic bastards were so bent on seizing me, that they did not care about the lanterns that were toppled in the attempt. The next thing we knew, the whole damned town was burning down around us. I barely escaped the flames with you; they weren’t so lucky.”
    She stared at her saviour’s face in an attempt to detect deceit, but he only smiled in a way that made her self-conscious. “May I know the name of my liberator?”
    “Killmar,” he answered unintentionally before falling into contemplation. There was something about her that made him oddly comfortable; a quality he found dangerous.
    “That is quite a unique name, much like your blue hair and golden eyes. I’ve never heard of any foreigner bearing those traits. Are you from some kind of far-off land?”
    “Yes, I am . . . from a very distant land,” he said with a note of sadness.
    “Sorry, I didn’t mean to remind you of anything painful. It must be hard to be out here alone.”
    He smiled, and she felt her cheeks starting to glow. For, despite his peculiar features, most women would count him among the most handsome of men.
    “Here have something to eat.”
    Her mouth watered as the aroma of the offered piece of roasted meat caressed her nostrils. She took a small bite and found herself struck by its unexpected delectable taste. “Which animal is this? It’s fit for the gods.”
    Killmar tossed a clean eaten bone into the fire. “Not for the gods, but for mortals. It’s ordinary deer, only with extraordinary spices. Tell me, how many winters have you seen pass?”
    She answered with pride. “Eighteen, and you?”
    He gave a playful wink. “As many as you’d want me to have seen.”
    She tried but failed to smother her girlish giggle.
    “Well Jessica, I am afraid this is where our paths part,” he said finally as he stood and rummaged through a small bag which had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. “Here is something to wear. If you head north, you’ll find—” before he could finish, she jumped up from underneath the furs and wrapped her arms around his waist, holding onto him as tightly as she could.
    For a moment, he stood paralyzed, then he looked down at the crying girl. It was far from the first time he had been embraced by a woman, but this seemed somehow different. He found himself intrigued.
    He lifted her chin. “Here is some advice: don’t do this with other men you meet. They might get the wrong impression.”
    “Please, don’t leave me,” she pleaded.
    He felt her hot lips press against his own and tasted her tears, but it was wrong. The kiss was cold, as if given by a doll. He threw her to the ground in anger, his eyes completely devoid of the warmth they had but a moment ago. “Don’t look down on me, woman! Do not think me some brainless fool you can manipulate