The Telastrian Song (28 page)

‘
I
’m not going
to call you “my Lord”, you know.’

Soren looked over to Alessandra, who was wearing the wry smile that was always on her face when she teased him. Sitting on her horse next to his, she looked every part the lady that she now was, Alessandra dal Verrena. His wife.

‘Well, I’m not going to call you “my Lady” then,’ he said.

‘We’ll see…’

He smiled and looked down over the land that was now his, a beautiful barony a day’s ride north of Ostenheim; the manor house that was now his, a magnificent mansion built for one of Amero’s created noblemen, now resident in the Duke’s dungeons. Duke Ranph’s dungeons. Little Rikard would get to learn to swim in Blackwater Lake, and watch the grapes grow on the Bragadin estates, as his father had, and his grandfather, and all the Bragadins going back to the days of the Empire.

Giura was back in the city, still chasing down the last of the students of the mage Soren had killed in the alley. When that job was completed he would take command of the Intelligenciers and report directly to Ranph, a promotion that was as much to do with an old relationship Giura had with Ranph’s family—something Soren knew little about—as it was with his role in bringing down Amero.

Soren took another look at his house. How would they fill all of those rooms? The sight of it all lost none of its impact on a second look. He looked to Alessandra. The sight of her happy would never lose its impact. He looked at the growing bump at her stomach, proof that the theories of an old mage were not entirely correct, and realised the process of filling the rooms had already begun.

He glanced back over his shoulder at the banners fluttering from the lance heads of his small retinue, waiting a discreet distance behind them. They were still white, with two belek flanking a sword, but they were intact once again and with a few years of study they would be blue.

T
he Society
of the Sword Trilogy

The Tattered Banner

The Huntsman’s Amulet

D
uncan is
a writer of fantasy fiction novels and short stories that are set in a world influenced by Renaissance Europe. He has a Master’s Degree in History, and is particularly interested in the medieval and renaissance periods.

H
is debut novel
, The Tattered Banner (Society of the Sword Volume 1) was featured on Buzzfeed’s 12 Greatest Fantasy Books of 2013.

H
e doesn’t live anywhere particularly
exotic, and when not writing he enjoys cycling, skiing and windsurfing.

Y
ou can keep
up to date with Duncan at his website, duncanmhamilton.com, or by signing up for his new release emailing list by clicking
here
.