The Gray Wolf Throne Read Online Free Page A

girlie amid this chaos—traveling alone or with two wizards?

    The road traced the Tamron river north from oden’s Ford.
    To the east lay Arden and the dense broadleaf trees of Tamron Forest. To the west lay the fertile fields of Tamron, now overrun by fighting. Smoke spiraled up from charred farm buildings and manor houses.

    Sword-danglers seemed to like to burn things up.

    Tamron might be the breadbasket of the Seven realms, but 20

    p i C k i n G oV e r o L D B o n e S
    these days food was hard to come by even for those with money to spend. Small villages lined the road, a day’s ride apart, like knots on a frayed string. each was guarded by a motley local militia armed with pitchforks, staffs, and longbows, ready to drive off the ravenous hordes—soldiers or citizens—that threatened to overrun them.

    Fortunately, Han was used to going hungry.

    in every village there was at least one inn. And in every inn, Han would ask the same questions. “Have you seen a girlie, a mixed-blood with green eyes and dark hair? She’s small, she’d be this tall.” Here he’d hold out his hand below shoulder height.
    “Her name is rebecca Morley, and she might be traveling with two charmcasters, a brother and sister. you’d remember them—
    both tall, and the sister has white-blond hair and blue eyes, the brother has dark hair and eyes.”

    Some of those he asked tried to make a joke of it. “what’s the matter, your girlie run off ?” But most seemed to take a cue from Han’s expression, or the amulet that hung around his neck, or his travel-weary appearance in these desperate times.

    Missing girlies in wartime were no laughing matter.

    The dead were everywhere. Bodies hung from trees like grisly fruit, spinning slowly in the southern breezes. Here were battle-grounds littered with the bodies of dead soldiers, lorded over by carrion birds. Clouds of flies rose from the carcasses of animals along the roadside, and bodies fouled many of the waterways.

    Han traveled most days with the stench of decay in his nose. it reminded him of Arden, when he and Dancer had traveled through on their way to oden’s Ford. Had it really been nearly a year ago?

    This was the poison that had spread into Tamron and threatened to sicken the Fells.
    21

    T H e G r Ay wo L F T H ro n e

    Stay out of it, Alister, Han said to himself. you have enough battles to fight as it is.

    one innkeeper thought he remembered a girlie matching rebecca’s description traveling alone, riding a gray flatland stallion far too big for her. it seemed a thin lead at best.

    Han could hope that rebecca’s party had passed through unmolested; that the reports that put rebecca in the way of Gerard’s invading army were wrong.

    it was possible she’d turned aside and taken refuge in the capital of Tamron Court, now under siege by Gerard Montaigne’s army. Han considered detouring west, toward the capital, but there was no way to tell if she was there or not. And nothing to be done if she were.

    Han took a deep breath, released it, forcing himself to relax his neck and shoulders, to unclench his fists.

    Anyway, Corporal Byrne and his Gray wolves were headed that way. Han had his own path to follow.

    if not for his worries about rebecca, Han would have been in no hurry to reach the Fells. why should he be eager to take his place as the magical sell-sword of the upland clans who’d misled and betrayed him? why should he rush to confront the wizard Council? Did he really want to play champion to Marianna—
    the queen responsible for so many of his losses? The queen who likely still had a price on his head.

    even when he reached the Fells, Han couldn’t trust the clans to have his back. The Demonai warriors despised him because he was gifted. He was their throwaway piece, intended to buy them a little time.

    if not for rebecca, he could have run the other way. As long 22

    p i C k i n G oV e r o L D B o n e S
    as he stayed out of the mountains, he might