The Calling (Book 7 of The Blood & Brotherhood Saga) (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) Read Online Free PDF

you would do well to show some respect.”
    “Yeah? And I’m a barmaid with a spoon as a weapon.”
    Stepping forward, Seth reached out his hands before him as they were enveloped in green and yellow flame all the way to his elbows. With his own illumination, he glared at the puny guard and flashed a wicked grin.
    “I’ve shown you mine, now let’s see that spoon.”
    Seth nearly lost his resolve when Sara choked on a laugh she was trying to stifle, but holding it together he stepped even nearer the guard, who now began to sweat profusely as his legs threatened to collapse beneath his body.
    “Um… I uh… You see… What I had meant was…”
    “No need to worry yourself,” Seth reassured the guard. “We mean you no ill will, and simply would like to visit your town and resupply some friends.”
    “Absolutely, Prince Seth,” the other guard said from across the entryway. “About how many friends are you accompanied by? That is, if you don’t mind me asking.”
    “It’s your town,” Seth said with a grin. “Seven thousand, three hundred and nine, not including myself. Oh wait, there are more. Make that seven thousand, three hundred and twenty six.”
    Both guards’ faces fell and Seth simply smiled as they waved him into the town without so much as another word. They assumed, of course, that he meant a real army, not the ragtag bunch that actually followed, but it didn’t matter. With the meager defenses they had, an army of fools throwing maggots could win the town in a few hours.
    Walking through the gate and past the guards with Sara at his side, he led her through its narrow streets lined with tightly packed homes and shops in no particular order. Using his senses, he guided them to the nearest gathering of auras, and was not surprised to find that it was a tavern. Made of plain wooden construction, it was nothing to marvel over, but they entered nonetheless.
    Scanning the room quickly, he located an empty table near the door and pulling out a chair for Sara he allowed her to sit before sliding her towards the table. Rounding it, he sat as well and no sooner had he removed the weight from his legs than a plump little woman of perhaps fifty trundled on over, with breasts and belly that nearly spilled out the bottom of her too-short tunic.
    “Good evening to the both of you,” the woman began, “On the menu tonight is…”
    “No need, good woman. Just pack up the entire kitchen and round up any chickens, goats, or other livestock you have available. We’ll take everything.”
    “But surely you must be kidding,” the barmaid replied with a slack jaw.”
    “No, m’lady. We’ll see to it that the owner is well compensated.”
    “I… Um. I’ll just go get her and you can work it out together.”
    “Very well. Could you bring us some ale when you return?”
    “Yes, of course,” she replied as the room was suddenly flushed in whispers and murmurs.
    Seth sat back in his chair and reached up to pull his hair back from his face. It seemed like forever since he had last sat down to eat. It was a simple thing, really, but one that he found he missed. Did he even need food any longer? He doubted it, but even so, he looked forward to a hot meal.”
    * * * * *
    Sara couldn’t believe how casually Seth was behaving. It was almost as if he had come to terms with what had befallen them of late, but she knew better. Maybe he was doing it to ease her worries and fears. Maybe he was simply burying the emotions that just hours earlier had threatened to consume him. She didn’t know either way, but supposed that at least for the time being she would simply enjoy his lighthearted demeanor.
    Watching the older woman’s over-filled sagging flesh bounce away with her peculiar gait, she witnessed as the woman vanished through a door that slammed quickly closed behind her. Turning her attention back to her husband, she found him looking at her with an adoration in his eyes she had not seen in some time.
    “And