Two duels in the same day. A true treat for Dromond.
The platform was smaller this time. I'd followed Saradon's advice and chosen a platform a mere twenty-five meters across. This caused some crowding among the guests, much to their consternation.
"You better aim to kill," Saradon said. "Master Draud doesn't forget a slight. Losing a protégé has caused what remained of his standing to collapse. He will need blood to assuage that. More, he will want it."
"What can he do?" I said. "We will be leaving Dromond shortly."
Saradon tried to smile, failed.
"I won't," he said. Those words sealed Draud's fate surer than any admonition or begging could have done.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
I expected Draud to shoot at the same time I did. Instead, he turned, presenting his side to me, making himself a smaller target. Wise, but Saradon had taken me to a gunnery range beneath the hall, where I'd spent fifteen minutes putting twenty rounds through the gun. I wasn't a master, but I had a feeling for how it shot, and a lot of prior experience. At twenty-five meters, that was all I needed.
My bullet took Draud beneath the shoulder, ripping away a chunk of his triceps and shattering his spine. He died before the Akula doctors could reach him.
I put down the gun. My hands began to shake. Traz had to lead me away from the plaza.
I found myself in Saradon's private quarters in the Trevalon house. It was a magnificent building, twenty stories high with gardens both indoor and out, on every level.
The room I was given overlooked the Hall of Unity, with its black dome. I took one look at the view, then fell into the bed by the window and slept the sleep of the dead.
Flowers of Crystal
They couldn't save their relationship. Now they must save a planet.
What to expect:
- Smart, proactive characters.
- Good guys pitted against each other.
- Research and brains-centered plot.
- Clean romance.
Check it out and get notified when it launches!
