The Scorched Earth (The Chaos Born) Read Online Free PDF Page A

for that. But Jerrod never seemed to sleep. If Keegan and Vaaler woke up one morning to find that she and Norr were gone, it wouldn’t be hard for the mad monk to convince the others that they’d simply left.
    She wasn’t completely convinced he’d try something like that, but she wouldn’t put it past him, either.
    Do you really think Keegan’s feelings are going to disappear just because you told him to shut up? This isn’t over
.
    Scythe grinned, baring her teeth against the chill of the night air as her horse continued its stumbling gait.
    Maybe I’ll get lucky and the Inquisitors will kill us all so I don’t have to deal with this
.
    She laughed quietly at her own joke, though she knew nobody else would find it funny. Even Norr couldn’t appreciate her gallows humor.
    As desperate as their situation was, however, she didn’t feel afraid. She didn’t want to die, of course. But for some reason she was convinced they were going to come out of this relatively unscathed. Instead of dreading the confrontation, she was looking forward to it. Eagerly.
    Methodis had taught her about adrenaline; she knew it was natural to feel a rush of excitement in times of danger or stress. But this was different. She’d felt it ever since they left the North Forest, a feeling that grew stronger the farther east they traveled. Something about this harsh land spoke to her; it made her feel energized. Alive.
    She imagined Norr felt it, too, even though he hadn’t said anything about it to her. This was the land of his people, his home.
    Or maybe his return is bittersweet
.
    Norr had never spoken about why he’d left the Frozen East and journeyed into the Southlands. Scythe suspected there were old wounds, and she wasn’t about to start picking at the scabs … not when she had so many of her own.
    And then all her thoughts were wiped away in an instant as the horses went down.
    The focus of Jerrod’s Sight was split between their immediate surroundings and the enemies pursuing them. Yet he was still awareenough to react to the sharp crack of bone as the fetlock of Norr’s mount snapped beneath the barbarian’s weight.
    The animal screamed as it went down, taking the rider with it. Vaaler, following too close behind in their mad rush to reach the
Gerscheld
, couldn’t change course in time and was caught up in the crash.
    Third in line, Jerrod tried to wheel his mount to the side. But the animal didn’t share the monk’s supernatural reactions. Already pushed to the edge of its physical limits, the horse planted one hoof awkwardly as it tried to respond to its rider’s urgent command. The ankle didn’t give way, but the beast stumbled off balance and went tumbling forward.
    Jerrod threw himself from the saddle to avoid being crushed by his own mount. He hit the ground hard, the wind knocked from his lungs even though he was able to tuck and roll to absorb some of the impact.
    Behind him, Scythe and Keegan were swept up in the carnage as well: carrying two people, there was nothing the horse could do to stop its momentum from sending it headlong into the fallen riders ahead of them.
    One second Keegan was riding behind Scythe, silently cursing himself for all the stupid things he’d said. The next he was hurtling through the air. His body did a half somersault before he slammed into the frozen turf, his neck and shoulders taking the brunt of the impact.
    Disoriented and dazed, he lay motionless on his back, his eyes staring up at the dark night sky above. A burning, tingling pain radiated out from his spine and down through his limbs, and for an instant he feared he’d broken his neck. But after a few moments he managed to roll over and lift himself up to his knees, his arms and the fingers of his surviving hand numb but functional.
    The high-pitched, bloodcurdling neighs of the horses drew his attention, and he turned to see a mass of twisted, writhing chaos. He couldn’t tell how many horses were down; in the