For your enjoyment, an excerpt from Hexborn, available for pre-order on Amazon.
***
A carriage met them at the king’s private dock. As Silas exchanged words with the driver, Shiloh looked up to see the palace looming above the City, the complex completely covering the tallest hill. She could see the concentric sets of walls and the green of the enormous gardens. The irregular towers jutted up, fingers reaching for the sky. It was the law, she knew, that no building in the City could be constructed that rose higher than the shortest tower of the palace.
Silas helped her into the velvet interior of the carriage, and before she knew it, they were rattling over cobblestoned streets. Hustle and bustle closed in on all sides as soon as they departed the royal wharf. The noise was overwhelming: the clatter of wheels and horses, the cries of vendors, the angry yells of drivers trying to force their way through the traffic, the clanging of the Temples calling people to morning prayers. Shiloh could feel her chest tightening. Another buggy swiped against their own, setting it to rocking on its springs, and she could not stifle her cry of alarm.
Hatch looked up from his letter and set it aside. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“Fine,” she lied, voice cracking. She saw his eyes land upon her lap and looked down to see that she was clutching her skirts hard enough to turn her knuckles bone white. To her surprise, Hatch reached across and took her hand, carefully opened her fingers, and set them back down on her knee.
“I’d forgotten how strange it is the first time,” he said apologetically. “It seems so crowded and dangerous. When I arrived, I had not once been out of the Vine. I was convinced I would never arrive at Greenhill alive. When we travel with the whole court, they clear the street. It is much calmer that way. But I don’t rate that treatment by myself, I’m afraid.”
“Thank you,” Shiloh replied self-consciously. “It’s just so noisy. I’ve never been anywhere so crowded. Obviously.”
“Take deep breaths,” Hatch advised. “Soon we’ll arrive. I’ll hand you off to the Matron and to your maid. She will show you your room and help you get your bearings. This afternoon, you will meet with the headmaster and the armorer. Tomorrow, your studies shall begin. Simple.”
All Shiloh could do was nod and watch the palace grow ever closer.
Simple.
***
A carriage met them at the king’s private dock. As Silas exchanged words with the driver, Shiloh looked up to see the palace looming above the City, the complex completely covering the tallest hill. She could see the concentric sets of walls and the green of the enormous gardens. The irregular towers jutted up, fingers reaching for the sky. It was the law, she knew, that no building in the City could be constructed that rose higher than the shortest tower of the palace.
Silas helped her into the velvet interior of the carriage, and before she knew it, they were rattling over cobblestoned streets. Hustle and bustle closed in on all sides as soon as they departed the royal wharf. The noise was overwhelming: the clatter of wheels and horses, the cries of vendors, the angry yells of drivers trying to force their way through the traffic, the clanging of the Temples calling people to morning prayers. Shiloh could feel her chest tightening. Another buggy swiped against their own, setting it to rocking on its springs, and she could not stifle her cry of alarm.
Hatch looked up from his letter and set it aside. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“Fine,” she lied, voice cracking. She saw his eyes land upon her lap and looked down to see that she was clutching her skirts hard enough to turn her knuckles bone white. To her surprise, Hatch reached across and took her hand, carefully opened her fingers, and set them back down on her knee.
“I’d forgotten how strange it is the first time,” he said apologetically. “It seems so crowded and dangerous. When I arrived, I had not once been out of the Vine. I was convinced I would never arrive at Greenhill alive. When we travel with the whole court, they clear the street. It is much calmer that way. But I don’t rate that treatment by myself, I’m afraid.”
“Thank you,” Shiloh replied self-consciously. “It’s just so noisy. I’ve never been anywhere so crowded. Obviously.”
“Take deep breaths,” Hatch advised. “Soon we’ll arrive. I’ll hand you off to the Matron and to your maid. She will show you your room and help you get your bearings. This afternoon, you will meet with the headmaster and the armorer. Tomorrow, your studies shall begin. Simple.”
All Shiloh could do was nod and watch the palace grow ever closer.
Simple.
***
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