Read Cloak and Spider: A Shadowdance Novella for Free Online

to his friends and colleagues, but it didn’t bother her much. Stealing a glance at her own red dress, she had to admit she made a fine decoration, one to be envious of indeed.
    “Master,” said a voice behind them. “The guards are many, and the area safe, so long as you stay within the walls.”
    Marion turned to see Kyle’s two private bodyguards hopping down from the driver’s seat of the carriage after a servant rushed up to take over. Both were female, and wore tightly fitted black shirts, slender pants, and thick boots of dark leather. Strapped to their sides were long curved daggers. Most disconcerting to Marion were the featureless masks covering their faces, smooth and white. Only their eyes were visible, and it was the eyes Marion used to distinguish between them. One had green eyes, the other brown. It was Green who was talking, her voice slightly muffled by her mask.
    “I’m glad you approve,” Kyle told her. “Though I still want you close. The last thing I need is someone eyeing the Heart of Ker and getting sticky fingers.”
    “You worry about nothing,” Marion said, squeezing his arm and urging him along. “Now come. I want to find myself a juggler.”
    The three wealthy families of the Trifect all lived in the east, but they still owned many homes and businesses all throughout Dezrel. Before them was a great mansion owned by Maynard Gemcroft, the place alight with torches burning behind colored glass. The grounds between the wall and the mansion were filled with men and women talking, all in their very finest outfits. Servants flitted everywhere, carrying a seemingly endless horde of things to eat and drink. At the gate Kyle bowed to the middle-aged advisor who checked everyone’s invitations.
    “I don’t need to present my invitation, do I, Bertram?” Kyle asked when it was their turn.
    “Lord Garland,” said Bertram. “No, you do not, for I sent yours personally. It is your wine I prefer above all others when a hard day needs to be put behind me.”
    He beckoned for them to pass through the soldiers guarding the gate, and together the group of four passed. Once they were inside, Marion saw Kyle’s eyes begin to wander. At first they went to the older men scattered about, wealthy traders who had built vast empires across the land of Dezrel. After that to the many women wearing silken outfits that more often than not enhanced, and hid little of, their curvaceous bodies. They clung to the arms of their men, mouths closed, eyes alight, as if being in their very presence was a blessed gift. It made Marion sick to think that she was one of them.
    “Is this where we part ways?” Marion asked as Kyle led her to a group of five men standing about the lawn, drinking wine from tall glasses.
    “Are you sure?” Kyle asked, looking her over. She could tell he wasn’t sure she’d been at his side long enough for her to be easily labeled as his, but she did not care.
    “Yes,” she said, gently slipping from his arm. “Enjoy your talks and deals. I need a bit of wine in my stomach before I will enjoy my time.”
    She made her way through the crowd, careful not to brush against anyone. The last thing she wanted was for someone to initiate conversation with her. Finding the nearest platter of wine carried by a servant, she snagged a glass and then looked for a table somewhere. There were dozens set about, mostly occupied, but she found one in the corner with only two seats, both empty. Sitting in one with her back to the wall of a garden, she sipped her wine. It was weaker than she’d expected, but at least it tasted phenomenal. Distant music of violins and cellos wafted over her, and she closed her eyes to try to relax.
    “Is this seat taken?” a man’s voice interrupted her thoughts to ask.
    “Perhaps,” she said, opening her eyes, “depending on who is seeking to claim it.”
    Before her was a well-dressed man with short blond hair and intense blue eyes. He was young, seventeen, perhaps