Even Hell Has Knights (Hellsong) Read Online Free PDF Page B

on shells since there’s hardly been any dyitzu to shoot at lately,” Arturus said. “Look, I’m not stupid. I know that you are going to end up cheating me, and I’m okay with that. But if you take advantage of me now, they won’t send me back here. You’ll stuck driving hard bargains with Galen and Rick. But if you give me a good deal, then they will send me back, and you can fleece more off of me in the future.”
    Massan smiled. “Very well, boy. Dyitzu meat is rather hard to come by at the moment. And I’d play fetch with a hellhound before I’d eat another bundle of Julian’s devilwheat.” Massan’s laugh was infectious. “Perhaps you will keep coming back, but I doubt I’ll be able to cheat you much. Give me three pounds and I’ll give you both boxes of shells. When you get home, tell Galen and Rick that you gave me an extra pound because food was so scarce. But for the barrel, you are going to have to do better than dyitzu meat.”
    Arturus pulled out what looked to be three or so pounds of smoked dyitzu and passed them over to Massan. Massan didn’t bother to weigh them, which was a sign of great trust.
    “Rick gave you a full pack, didn’t he?” Massan asked.
    “Yeah, I think he wanted you to be able to cheat me,” Arturus said, and then he looked at Massan sternly. “He did not give me ten pounds of meat, though.”
    Massan laughed
    After a few more moments rifling through his pack, Arturus pulled out a nine millimeter pistol.
    He offered it to the trader who partially disassembled the weapon to take stock of it.
    “A fine gun. Normally I wouldn’t trade it for a rifle barrel, but I don’t suppose that anyone around here is going to have a need for an infidel’s weapon.”
    “Is the rifling in it okay?” Arturus asked as he examined the item.
    “I have no idea, Turi.” Massan told him. “Never fired anything from it.”
    Arturus slid through the door blanket and held the barrel up to the light outside of Massan’s tent-house. There didn’t appear to be any carbon deposits on the inside of it. On the whole, the barrel looked pretty good.
    He looked over to Alice’s hovel then, hoping that she would be awake and moving about. She was not.
    Galen and Rick always asked for information before they left. Galen only seemed to be curious about Harpsborough’s leaders, particularly the First Citizen, Michael Baker. Rick asked for the gossip.
    “Any rumors about where the dyitzu have gone?” Arturus asked Massan.
    “A little quieter boy,” Massan told him softly as he cast a glance at the sleeping Kara, “The others are still asleep, remember?”
    “Sorry,” Arturus apologized, smiling impishly.
    Massan joined him outside of the tent.
    “None that I believe. I’m almost worried about how few devils are about, though. Aaron says it’s the calm before the storm. Like he’d know. He’s been Lead Hunter for a few years , and all of a sudden he thinks that he’s a prophet. Your friend Alice buys it, of course. You know how close those two have been lately.”
    Arturus shook his head and glanced over to Alice’s hovel. He supposed it was empty. His chest felt a lot like that hovel.
    “Oh, I wouldn’t worry too much, lad. She’s always been too old for you anyway.”
    “Why would you think I like her?” Arturus asked.
    “Because you wear your emotions on your sleeve, like Rick. If you don’t want people to know what you are thinking, then you should wear them on the inside, like Galen.”
    Arturus nodded.
    “Sometimes I can tell you were born here,” Massan said.
    I wish everyone didn’t think I was different.
    “I better get going,” Arturus said, “if I’m not back soon Rick will have two of us to worry about.”
    Massan nodded. “Goodbye, Turi. Don’t keep him waiting.”
    The trader went back inside.
    I really should go. I promised Rick I’d make the trades and that’s it.
    Besides, he had to ask Rick about the AR-15 barrel. If Galen had killed an Infidel