Chapter 27
Castien woke to the sound of voices from the next room. It took him more than a moment to understand where he was. The bed was a mere pallet on the rough dirt floor, the late afternoon light streaming in through a narrow opening on the wall that passed for a window. He recognized Theirn’s voice as one of the speakers and smiled. His lad appeared to be relating a fantastical story of the battle with the prince. Getting to his feet, Castien went to stand in the doorway and listen.
“And then,” Theirn said, “I leapt down to decapitate the soldier, armed only with my trusty dagger.” He looked up from the children seated on the floor around him, saw Castien shake his head in amused disbelief, and told him with a grin, “Well, it was somewhat like that.”
“Yes, my love, somewhat,” Cas
