Tyrant: Destroyer of Cities Read Online Free PDF Page B

was never his sister’s match with a bow.
    But he conceded defeat and sent her the horse, and then watched from his balcony as a groom took the horse to her in the courtyard, where her people were loading her wagons for her expedition to the Sea of Grass.
    He wasn’t going to let her leave until they were friends again.
    She looked up from a tally-stick, eyed the young stallion greedily and ran a hand over his flanks. Then she shook her head and went back to her packing.
    ‘Look up!’ Satyrus said quietly.
    But she didn’t.
    That night, he invited her to share dinner, as it was her last night before leaving.
    She declined.
    Satyrus went downstairs to the nursery, where his three-year-old nephew was playing with his nurses.
    ‘Hello,’ said Kineas. He had bright blue eyes.
    ‘Bow to the king, lad,’ said the older nurse. She was Sauromatae, tall and probably as dangerous as most of the bodyguards. She flashed Satyrus a grin.
    Kineas bowed. ‘Will I be king someday?’ he asked.
    Satyrus shrugged. ‘If I don’t get a move on.’
    ‘What does that mean?’ Kineas asked.
    Satyrus shook his head. He often made the mistake of answering his sister’s son as if he were an adult – or as if he were too young to understand the complexities of his position. Kineas was three, and already wise.
    ‘Would you like to go riding tomorrow?’ Satyrus asked.
    ‘Only after I watch my mother ride … away.’ The fractional pause told Satyrus too much – and made him angry.
    He played with the boy until the sun began to set, romping on the carpets and helping him shoot his toy war engine, a tiny ballista that the sailors had made for the boy. It was really quite dangerous, as Satyrus discovered when one of his shots stuck a finger’s-span deep in a shield on the wall.
    ‘Oh!’ he said. He’d given the boy the ballista himself. ‘Kineas, I have to take this away.’
    The boy looked at him a moment and his jaw worked silently.
    He was trying not to cry. ‘I didn’t— I am careful!’ he said. He grabbed his uncle’s knee and raised his small face. His eyes were already looking red around the edges. ‘Please? I am careful.’
    Satyrus took a deep breath. Someone had to take care— ‘No,’ he said. ‘That is, yes— Oh, don’t cry! Listen, lad. This is a little too powerful for a boy your age. I didn’t know. We can play with it together, but I can’t let you play with it by yourself.’
    The sun had fully set before Kineas was content. He wasn’t a spoiled boy, or a bad one – he was merely a bright lad who spent most of his day with a pair of nurses. He deserved better.
    Satyrus got a big hug before he left, and found that his anger was fresh and new. He stood at the entrance to the wing that led to his sister’s quarters for as long as it took his heart to beat twenty times, and then, common sense winning out over rage, he walked away.
    He went into his own wing, closed the door to his apartments and picked up a cup of wine.
    ‘Lord?’ asked Helios.
    ‘Send for Hyacinth,’ Satyrus said.
    And instantly regretted it. Anger at his sister did not justify excess.
    But in Hyacinth’s embrace, he lost his anger. It was replaced by sadness. Satyrus had made love often enough to know the difference. He made little effort to please Hyacinth. She, on the other hand, made a dedicated effort to please him.
    She was, after all, a slave.

 
     
     
     
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    M elitta’s column rode out through the landward gates of Tanais the next morning, and Satyrus stood with his three-year-old nephew’s hand clutched in his own and watched the procession.
    She stopped her horse when she came up to them and dismounted with an easy grace. She leaned down and kissed her son. ‘I’ll be back soon,’ she said. ‘I love you.’
    ‘I love you!’ Kineas said, and threw his arms around her neck and clutched her as if he was drowning.
    ‘Kineas,’ she said, after a pause. ‘ Kineas .’
    The boy relinquished his hold