Ties of Blood by D.W. Jackson Page A

Eloen's hopes died a little. If they got Thad into the fort before they could rescue him then it was almost hopeless. She had almost promised Ballard that if that was the case she would go home without challenge but every time she thought of abandoning Thad to the Ablaian torturers her blood ran cold and the images that plagued her dreams came to the forefront of her mind. More than once she had to hold back from crying when her mind wondered.
    The day was almost halfway over as the sun was nearly past the apex in its trip across the sky. Though Abla was a barren country that was surrounded by mountains it made for a lovely sunset. It was one of the few things Eloen had to look forward to. Farms were spread far apart and took what little fertile ground that was available. Most the houses they passed had small farms next to their house though from the pile of stones that covered the ground around the small patches of land it had been a great deal of work to make the ground suitable to work. It made wonder why anyone would want to live in such a place.
    “Look” Darryl shouted as they crested a small hill. Down below was a small town if it could have been called a town at all. Six or seven stone buildings were grouped close together one was taller than the other giving Eloen hope that they could find a place to sleep besides the hard ground. They were also running low on horse fodder and vegetables. They still had plenty of meat though most of it was goat. The thought of having to eat the stringy goat meat again made Eloen's stomach turn. What she wouldn’t give for a piece of beef or smoked pork.
    If they were where they thought they were it made no sense for there to be a town. They had went five days without seeing anything that resembled a town. They couldn’t even see light in the distance but she knew that with the landscape it was hard to see more than a mile in the distance.
    The sun still a promised a few hours of sunlight making Eloen desire to continue on but she knew that pushing too hard wouldn’t gain them anything. As she hoped the large building was an inn. There was also a small store next to the inn as well as a butcher. Eloen guessed that they must do a fair amount of trade as the buildings were well made and to Eloen's relief the kids looked as if they were well taken care of. She knew that seeing a few people well off wouldn’t erase the abject poverty she had witnessed elsewhere but it left her hope.
    The inside of the inn opened into a great common room with long wooden tables instead of small ones for individual parties. The room was filled by numerous customers which astounded Eloen. A young man around the age of Eloen manned the front desk and gave her a cheerful smile as they approached. “What can I do for you today?”
    “We need two rooms one with two beds one with a single. We would also like to have baths drawn for the rooms if that would be possible.” Ballard said curtly.
    “It will take a little to have the baths drawn. While you wait I would suggest you sit and have something to eat. Miss Thera makes some of the best stew you can find.”
    After Ballard paid the man the three made their way to an open spot on one of the large tables. After she was seated Darryl leaned over her and Ballard's shoulder. “Have them bring me something to eat. I’m going to run over to the store before it closes and secure our supplies.” Seeing nothing wrong with letting him go Eloen simply nodded her head.
    It didn’t take long before a busty older woman made her way over to where they sat to take their order. While her clothes were simply they were made to accent her full body figure. “What would you dears like to eat?” her voice was raspy but it didn’t look as if Ballard was focusing too much on her mouth.
    “Ballard I don’t think she can take your order if you don’t stop staring at her chest.” Eloen said forgetting that she was supposed to be playing the meek country girl.
    As soon