The Sin War Box Set: Birthright, Scales of the Serpent, and The Veiled Prophet Read Online Free PDF

themselves. Mendeln was slightly out of breath and Achilios had a pale expression that the elder son of Diomedes suspected mirrored his own…even though Achilios could not yet know about the grisly discovery.
    As the pair came up to him, he immediately growled, “There’s a body out in the woods behind me! Near where the forest first thickens!”
    Eyeing the farmer’s burden, the hunter muttered, “An accident?”
    “No…”
    Achilios grimly nodded. He pulled a bolt from his quiver, notched the bow, and without hesitation went off in the direction Uldyssian had indicated.
    “What of her?” Mendeln asked. “Who is she? Is she harmed in any way?”
    “She fainted.” Uldyssian felt unusually anxious. He kept hoping that Lylia would awaken, but she remained a limp bundle in his arms. “She saw the body, too.”
    “Should we take her to Jorilia?” Jorilia was Seram’s healer woman, an elderly figure some believed half-witch, but who was respected by all for her skills. It was she who had given the brothers the herbal mixtures that had at least eased some of their stricken family’s agony. To both Uldyssian and Mendeln, she had done far more than all the prayers combined.
    Uldyssian shook his head. “She just needs to rest. She must have a room at the Boar’s Head.” He hesitated. “But we can’t bring her through the front door like this…”
    “There is a back way near the steps leading to the upper rooms,” Mendeln said with far more calm than the situation would have warranted for most other people. “You could take her through there while I go and speak quietly with Tibion in order to find which one is hers.”
    His brother’s suggestion made perfect sense. Uldyssian exhaled gratefully. “We’ll do that.”
    Mendeln studied him for a moment, perhaps reading deeper into his brother than Uldyssian preferred. As far as the younger son of Diomedes was concerned, Lylia was a perfect stranger, yet clearly she was not so with Uldyssian.
    Rather than explain all now, Uldyssian hurried on. A moment later, Mendeln caught up. They spoke no more, intent on their efforts.
    Owing to the inclement shift in the weather, they were not hindered by any startled passersby. That both pleased and frustrated Uldyssian, who wanted Lylia safely in her room but also wanted to let someone of authority know about the acolyte’s heinous slaughter. He finally satisfied himself with the knowledge that Achilios would certainly contact the Guard or the headman.
    Mendeln left him as the pair neared the Boar’s Head. Slipping around the back, Uldyssian found the other doorway. With some manipulation, he managed to get the noblewoman inside without losing his grip on her once.
    Inside, he wasted no time heading up the wooden staircase. Fortunately, most eyes in the tavern section had turned to his brother, who had apparently timed his entrance to coincide with Uldyssian’s. As Uldyssian raced up, he heard Mendeln greet a couple of those seated with a slightly louder than average voice.
    At the top, he waited. After what seemed an eternity, his younger brother finally joined him.
    “She had no quarters,” Mendeln explained. “So I had to arrange for some, with our credit. Was that all right?”
    Uldyssian nodded. He looked at the five doors. “Which?”
    “This one,” his sibling replied, pointing to a lone door farther from the rest. “More private.”
    With a look of grim approval, Uldyssian had Mendeln open the way for him. This being Seram, the room was fairly austere. Other than a framed bed with down comforter and a table and chair near the single window, there was no furniture. There were hooks on the wall for cloaks and such and a space for a traveler’s bag or trunk.
    Mendeln noted the last before Uldyssian could say anything. “She must have belongings with the caravan. Shall I go to Serenthia and take care of it?”
    While he hated involving Cyrus’s daughter in this situation, Uldyssian could see no other