Brave Men Die: Part 2 Read Online Free PDF Page B

second man arguing with the earl. But that wasn’t the only thing he was listening for; the background noise around the keep was different. The staff knew something had changed. There was a hum of activity. A sense of urgency.
    Dathe pushed the door open and they entered together, immediately taken back by the sight before them. Cygnus was up in the earl’s face, screaming back at him turn for turn. The same size and shape of his father, and the same stubborn streak, Cygnus was clearly not prepared to back down.
    Dathe looked around the room. All the captains and council members of Gravid’s Drift were present and none of them were making a move to interfere. Whatever this was, everyone was going to let it play out.
    Turning to whisper directly into Lacey’s ear, Dathe mumbled under his breath, ‘This can’t be good.’
    She looked at him, her heart in her throat. It wasn’t just the fact that her father and brother were arguing, it was what the argument implied. Everyone had been on edge since the signal smoke appeared over the mountain outpost in the Musea Pass. It wasn’t just for the safety of the men stationed there, nor was it for the security of the Kingdom, but for Thol who had been posted there for the last year. The seventeen year old would have been on the front line when the Kyzantines attacked.
    Captain Figur had led his company immediately to the pass to reinforce the guards. On horseback it was only a day and a half travel time but Dathe was beginning to suspect they hadn’t made it. Gazing over the faces in the room, he spotted Figur standing in the background and realised he was right. If Figur was back, he hadn’t seen combat at the outpost — it had already fallen.
    ‘Back down Cygnus, that’s an order,’ Arryn screamed three inches from his son’s face.
    ‘No sir, we should already be on the move to the pass. Give the fucking order so we can get on with it.’
    ‘They are already dead Cygnus.’
    ‘You don’t know that. They could have taken prisoners.’
    ‘Who would have surrendered, son? You know Barcus and all the others posted there, you served with them, none of them would have lowered their weapons.’
    ‘Thol …’ Cygnus muttered.
    ‘You know your brother. He would have taken as many down with him as possible.’
    ‘He is a valuable prisoner …’
    He’s dead with all the rest,’ Arryn answered.
    Cygnus retreated a step, stumbling as it sunk in, his father’s words gutting him even harder than the initial report had. He looked around for something to support him, found the closest chair, and sunk into it.
    The earl left his son to his anger and grief and faced the waiting crowd. He met the eyes of every person in the room, noting their demeanour before moving to the next man.
    ‘Captain Figur returned a short time ago. The Kyzantines have destroyed the command stationed at the pass and the only survivors were those that Aspring had sent out as messengers at the onset — six men out of the hundred.
    The enemy are now using the Musea Pass as a staging ground for their invasion into the Kingdom. They are massing huge numbers and will shortly be moving south toward our position. The men of Gravid’s Drift will be marching north to meet them.’
    Arryn turned to look at his son with his last comment to see his reaction. Cygnus looked up from his stupor and grudgingly nodded his head — he was after all getting what he wanted.
    Dathe watched it all unfold. The Dunn family were hurting but the earl was keeping it together the best. He shifted his gaze to Lacey. Tears were streaming down her cheeks but she didn’t utter a sound, kept her head upright and faced her father stoically. Dathe smiled grimly, proud that this young lady was proving her worth, knowing she would never show the pain she was experiencing right now.
    Captain Figur stepped forward from the assembled captains. ‘I’ve ordered my company to hold position north of the city in the direct path of the