Unleashed Fury (BloodRunes: Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

and
ratty, and the baby was in no better condition.
    She shouldn't be allowed to reproduce like
that, Jezebel thought with contempt. Disgusting, vile
creature .
    “Please,” the woman continued to beg. “We
can't afford the taxes right now.”
    Jezebel sniffed her disdain at the woman and
commented as they passed, “Isn't it sickening how many people are
out there looking for a free hand out?” She smiled cruelly at the
woman, whose gaze focused on their carriage for a moment, drawn by
her voice. “What's that woman doing going around making babies
instead of working harder so that she can pay her taxes?” Jezebel
drummed her fingers on her knee. “If it was up to me, I'd have all
those freeloaders thrown out of the city, but my father and other
important people insist on keeping them, saying it's our duty to
protect them in exchange for their taxes.” She waved her hand in
the air with a haughty flourish. “But look, this woman doesn't want
to pay her taxes. What if an army came marching through, and I just
decided that I didn't feel like it, so I wasn't going to send out
my guards that day. No, I don't think so,” she paused in thought.
“Not that it wouldn't be tempting to show them what would happen if
I didn't.”
    Jezebel chuckled and looked at the servant
girl who was now staring out the window at the woman with a strange
look on her face. When the girl noticed that Jezebel had stopped
talking and was looking at her expectantly, she turned back and
made a sound of agreement.
    Satisfied, Jezebel went on, “You should see
the way these people live. It's really quite sad. You'd think that
they would have some kind of instinct or something to clean up
after themselves, but they wallow in their own filth and then
wonder why they have plagues spreading through their populace.”
    Jezebel ranted along this same vein for a
while, simply enjoying the ride, as the carriage made its way
slowly through the winding streets towards the center marketplace.
As they approached, the sound of the shops could be heard - vendors
hawking their goods, coins jingling in purses, and the general
commotion of a busy street. The driver halted the horses, and came
around the side to open the door and help the two women out. The
girl stood respectfully off to the side and folded her hands in
front of her, waiting for Jezebel to tell her what to do.
    “Come along, dear, we're going to go pick out
new furniture for the sitting room; my father's treating me.”
Gathering her skirts around her, she flowed past the girl and
deftly moved between the people in the crowd towards the
woodworkers' guildhall.

    *
    Layna quickened her pace in order to keep up
with Jezebel who was pushing past people with no regard for anyone
around her. Given the arrogance she had just shown during the
one-sided conversation in the carriage, Layna wondered if she had
so much as an ounce of respect for anyone but herself. She failed
to see how Jezebel could sit there and believe that she was better
than everyone else simply because she happened to have been born
into a wealthy noble family, but it seemed to be a popular
sentiment among those born with status. Jezebel’s father was
powerful and well-known for his profitable investments into the gem
trades and the formidable group of well-trained guards he had to
move the gems, but Jezebel herself had nothing to do with his
business. Layna’s own family had been fairly well off compared to
many others in their town, but she had never thought herself better
than any of them because of it.
    They reached the woodworker's guildhall, and
Jezebel marched carelessly past the line of people to make her way
inside. Layna followed, embarrassed by the looks she got from the
waiting people, but made sure never to lose step with her
mistress.
    “Hello, Francis,” Jezebel gushed to the guild
master who sat behind a large oak desk just inside the
building.
    He stood and greeted her with a kiss to her
outstretched hand,