Brotherband 4: Slaves of Socorro Read Online Free PDF

the ground. Some instinct told him that it might be unwise to let such a large animal come into the restaurant – particularly the part where his mother did the cooking. He mounted the steps to the side door and pushed it open, peering inside.
    ‘Mam?’ he called tentatively, rehearsing his next words. He wasn’t sure whether to start with ‘Look what I found’ or ‘Can I keep it?’. Either choice was a risk. ‘Look what I found’ left itself open to a reply along the lines of, ‘Fascinating. Now go and lose it,’ while ‘Can I keep it?’ invited the terse rejoinder, ‘No.’
    There was no answer, and he edged inside the kitchen, turning back to make sure that Kloof hadn’t come any further. She sat watching him. Her tail thumped once or twice on the ground.
    ‘Good girl,’ he said softly. ‘Stay.’
    He held up a hand to reinforce the command, then moved through the kitchen to where he could peer into the restaurant itself.
    ‘Mam?’ he called softly.
    There was no reply. He tried again, a little louder this time.
    ‘Mam? Are you there?’
    ‘She’s gone to the market.’
    The voice was right behind him and he leapt in shock, spinning round to see Thorn standing only a metre away.
    ‘Orlog’s breath, Thorn! Don’t sneak up on me like that!’ he said, his voice rising to an undignified high register.
    Thorn shrugged. ‘I didn’t sneak up. I just walked in here, while you were bellowing for Karina.’
    ‘Well, you might have let me know you were there!’ Hal said, regaining his composure and trying to cover his embarrassment with righteous indignation.
    Again, the old warrior shrugged. ‘I did. I said, “She’s gone to the market.” You seem a little jumpy today,’ he added, eyeing the younger man curiously.
    ‘Jumpy? Not at all,’ Hal replied. He looked around the kitchen, moving to the bin where Karina threw meat offcuts. It was nearly full and he took a large handful of beef scraps out.
    Thorn raised an eyebrow. ‘Your jumpiness wouldn’t have anything to do with that whacking great black and white horse you’ve got parked outside, would it? By the way,’ he added, gesturing to the meat in Hal’s hands, ‘last I heard, horses don’t eat beef. They eat grass and oats.’
    ‘It’s not a horse. It’s a dog,’ Hal told him.
    ‘Could have fooled me,’ Thorn replied. ‘Although the floppy ears have a doggy side to them.’
    It occurred to Hal that Thorn must have come past the dog to enter the kitchen. ‘How come she didn’t bark when you came in?’ he asked.
    ‘Horses don’t bark. And besides, they like me. I have a way with horses.’
    ‘Is that right?’ Hal said. He stepped past Thorn to the door and elbowed it open. Kloof was still sitting where he had left her, eyeing the door and thumping the ground with her tail. ‘And I keep telling you, she’s not a horse.’
    He descended the stairs, and held out the meat to Kloof. Her ears came up and she reared back off her forepaws with excitement, bringing them thudding back to the ground together.
    ‘Horses do that,’ Thorn observed.
    Hal tossed the meat onto the grass in front of Kloof. She trembled expectantly, eyes riveted on him, until he gestured to the meat.
    ‘Go ahead,’ he said, and she immediately dropped her head, snuffling and whuffling as she gulped up the meat in great mouthfuls. He looked sidelong at Thorn. ‘Horses don’t do that,’ he pointed out.
    Thorn tilted his head to one side in mock surprise. ‘Well, what do you know? Maybe it is a dog after all. Where did you find it?’
    ‘She found me, up on the mountain track. Came out of the bushes and frightened three years’ growth out of me. I thought she was a bear.’
    ‘Bears don’t grow that big,’ Thorn said. ‘Any idea who might own her?’
    Hal shook his head. ‘Haven’t seen her around the town,’ he said. ‘And she’d be a bit hard to miss. My guess is she got lost in the mountains and wandered over the ridge.’
    ‘She’s