Blood Tempered: Book 1 of the Sword Monk Saga

Blood Tempered: Part 10

Korbo Dogrun had not been dropped on his head as a child. Which was why he dropped the witch's heavy purse of coin down the jakes. There was a physical pain in his chest as the soft pigskin bag left his fingers, and another as he threw the fine Tyrian blade she'd held after it. But coin and steel could be replaced.

Magery was a contamination. You could never tell if you'd caught something until it was far too late to do anything about it. After seeing the thing that had been an imperial scout, Korbo would have chopped off his own hand if she'd touched it.

He rubbed his face with one callused hand and tried to figure a way out of the mess he found himself in. Signing on with Jaga Khun and his motley company had been an expedient way for Augin, Mung and himself to remove themselves from Ardesh for a time, owing to their owing some unpleasant people money they could never pay back in timely fashion. Jaga had a good setup, guarding caravans across Wyeth, running off less scrupulous mercenary companies and outright bandits. And while Jaga wasn't above extorting 'tolls' from those who refused his services, he wasn't an outright reaver. How the mercenary captain had gotten mixed up with the Roumnan witch was a mystery to Korbo.

Well. It was time for him and the boys to be moving on, no doubt about that. Time to pull out, that very night if Korbo had anything to do with it. Which he did. Augin wasn't an idiot, and Mung would go along with whatever Korbo and Augin decided. That night would be best, before Jaga returned from patrol in the morning with the bulk of his troop.

Time to get going, before it was too late.