A Dragon's Heart (Book Three in the APK Trilogy)

Chapter 24 | An Unwelcome Face

Hi Guys, 

It's been far too long again, I hope you are all doing well. I told those of you on the Facebook page that this would be up by Sunday, but I re-read what I had written and decided it needed some adding to, so it's a bit late sorry xx 
That and I found the last part super hard to write because it calls for Circe to be a bit out of character, so apologies in advance for the POV change, (you can read my little note when you reach that part.)

This Chapter is extra super long, (I couldn't seem to find a good spot to finish,) and I'm not super happy with it but I definitely owed you guys an update. 

Much love!

Daisy xx

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CIRCE

I hurried quickly through the snow and pulled my furs tighter around my body. A wisp of blonde hair sneaked out from under my hood and I pushed it back impatiently. I paused for a moment to glance over my shoulder before continuing on. I was being followed, I could tell, but the pursuer was concealing themselves well and I was unable to glimpse them.
The small dagger concealed in my sleeve gave me some semblance of security, that and the fact that I had not yet been attacked and was only minutes away from reaching my destination.

My breath hung like a white cloud in the air as I paused once again under the pretence of rearranging my cloak. Straining my ears I was able to pick up the soft compaction of snow as feet trod upon the white surface, not too far behind me. I chanced another look over my shoulder.
The night was quiet and the snow was untouched aside from the footprints I left behind me. High in the sky, the moon pierced the still black night, its bloated roundness casting light down onto the rooftops. Any pursuer would have a tough time concealing themselves and this one would have to be skilled to have done so thus far.
I loosened the knife that was tucked into my belt and continued on. Whoever they were, they currently held the upper hand and there was nothing I could do until they revealed themselves.

It had been two months since we had last set foot on solid ground and although we had arrived safely at Cobalt's chosen destination, it seemed that our extended stay at sea had put us out of touch with the goings on back on land.
Balgar was a winter city, known for its hot springs and bustling trade port. A lot of people moved through the city and it was a hub of information for most of the year, however we had made port during the coldest of the four winter seasons and most of the tourism that brought the town to life wasn't currently present. Only the locals remained behind, the harsh conditions nothing new to the people who had lived here their whole lives.

Normally information of the outside world would be scarce in such isolating conditions, but it seemed that the town had a thriving underworld that lurked beneath the surface of the flashy tourist industry and a steady trickle of knowledge could be found for the right price or, in as was in our case, if you knew the right people.

Right people being Obsidian and Cobalt Bones. It never ceased to amaze me how well their names were known amongst the humans of nearly every sea faring town they went to. Of course both of them were forbidden by Hobbson to go and get the information themselves, but Samson and Jacob were having a jolly good time getting it for them and most locals were happy to talk.
Even the other crew members had been hearing rumours, apparently the cold winter months were rather boring and anything to liven up the town, including new faces, were welcome gossip.
Our fame had only served to make me uneasy though, although the men seemed unfazed. Even Lacy said that it was normal where the name of Obsidian Bones was concerned. The younger girl had reassured me plenty that everyone was always too scared to ever approach him directly to see if the rumours of his appearance were actually true. And indeed, after we had decided to secure lodgings at a local inn, the inn itself had cleared out rather quickly of all other customers, leaving us to have, (mostly,) free rein of the place.