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  Suddenly a warm voice went through her thoughts. “Seriously? Is that stuff more important than your life?” “Blaming the victim is easy, but it is also very clear who the villain is in these cases.”

  Taja shook her head, trying to clear out the images and any residual feelings. The man hadn’t gotten a look at her, or he wouldn’t have done what he did. He would have kept a hand on her, making sure she could not escape. Anyone who could intimidate a noble the way that man did was in a high position indeed. He would certainly have required payment for what he had done.

  “My life is worth less than that,” the young woman muttered as she walked toward home, “but it doesn’t mean I don’t hope for better.”

  Chapter 2

  An Errand and a Price

  Taja felt a little uneasy as she went home. She was certainly happy that she would get away from work for a bit, but her home life wasn’t exactly something that was enviable. The temptation to just run away and figure things out on her own, if only for a few hours, slowed her steps. Still, there was no way she could go through with it. Her mother needed her. The only person Taja had in the world right now was her mother, and despite everything, she wanted to take care of the woman who had given her life. It was why Taja worked so hard at the stables, and why Taja endured so much even now with Damaris in charge.

  Braylon will be back soon. I just need to wait a little longer. Besides, it’s not like this is the worst I’ve ever had to deal with, so it’ll be fine. Everything is going to be fine. It had become her mantra over the last few months as she tried to give herself the courage to get through everything.

  While she didn’t feel energized enough to speed up, Taja was able to smile as she headed home. After all, dealing with her mom was something the young woman had been doing forever. It was far easier than dealing with a guy like Semaj, and she knew exactly what her mother was thinking.

  Taja was still smiling as she opened the door. The smile vanished as something smashed close to her head. Reflexively Taja ducked, but the shards had already struck her neck and ear. Most of the bottle fell to the floor, and she immediately began to pick them up, ignoring the blood trickling out of the cuts from the rest of the bottle.

  “You are home early.” Her mother’s voice was slurred and threatening. “Don’t tell me you have been fired already.”

  Taja looked up and forced a smile. “No, mother. I was paid this morning, and I finished all of my work early, so Damaris let me come home early.”

  Her mother huffed, “Then the man is a fool. And you are an idiot. You could have stayed and worked more. Gotten more money. How am I supposed to pay for both of us? Do you think that money just comes out of the ground?” Her face was turning redder as she watched her daughter clean up the broken bottle. “What are you smiling about?”

  Taja pressed her lips together. “Because I have a surprise for you, mother.” The young woman threw the glass into the trash, then walked over to her mother. Pulling the money out of her pocket, she held it up. “I was paid extra. See?”

  At first her mother’s eyes went wide. Her hands were much faster than anyone would have believed was possible considering the woman’s state, but Taja knew exactly how quick her mother was when it came to money. “Good, you can buy my alcohol too, then.” The woman pushed the money back at Taja. “Get going. I made a list over on the table of everything we need. Make sure you pick up more of my Montelia while you are out. And don’t try to get any of that cheap, watered-down stuff. Stanglen will know what I want.”

  “But, mother, I thought that-”

  Before she finished talking, her mother’s hand had struck Taja across the face. The blood from the cuts smeared across the young woman’s face all the way to her mouth.

  Her mother snarled at her, “Don’t think that I’m giving you a dime. We are in this situation because you gave up the life that made us rich. If not for your stupidity, I would be living up in one of the manors. Since you like living in filth, you can pay for everything.” Her mother tried to get up to intimidate her daughter, but she only managed to fall off of the couch. By the time the woman hit the floor, she was already asleep.

  Taja looked down at her mother, her heart full of shame. It was her fault they lived like this because she hadn’t wanted to continue to be a toy. Because of that, they had been forced out of a chateau and into this hovel. Taja picked her mother up as gently as possible and set her on the couch. Her mother’s stringy grey hair fell over a face that was too skinny. Once the woman had been beautiful, but alcohol and life had taken that away from her. It was the reason Taja had gotten out when Braylon had offered her a position in the stables. But that selfish decision for something better had forced her mother into poverty during the last years of her life.

  Knowing that she was a terrible daughter, Taja went and cleaned up the blood and cuts. Strategically fixing her hair to hide the worst of it, Taja turned to leave the home.

  “Goodbye, mother. I will be home soon,” she murmured from the door.

  The majority of her errands consisted of paying bills and debt, but a few of the errands were actually pleasant. Taja smiled sweetly as she and the sales girl at the candle and soap shop talked. Taja had known Ione for a couple of years, ever since Braylon had brought her in to have the young woman learn how to live independently from the men who used her. Ione had never judged her. While they weren’t exactly friends, they did chat and giggle whenever Taja stopped by to shop. Too afraid of making friends, Taja had turned Ione down several times to go out together. Ione had taken the hint and stopped asking after the third try. Several years older than Taja, Ione had felt a bit like an older sister, but with no real connection, she thought it best to help whenever Taja allowed it. They rarely talked seriously, but the young woman always left with a sincere smile, and that was enough.

  The two were talking, when a handsome man passed by the window. Ione giggled and tapped Taja’s shoulder. “I know you should never judge them by the way they look, but that is one beautiful specimen right there.” Her long fingers covered her cherry red lips as she giggled. Taja smiled at the way her friend giggled, her brown curls bouncing beside her face. Ione was beautiful, just not in the classic sense. Her hair was very thick, which was why the woman kept it short. She had been able to teach Taja all kinds of tricks for making soap without all of the fancy ingredients, as well as things that could be used as makeup without harming her skin. When she giggled, there was definitely a schoolgirlish quality to her, but it rarely happened over men – it was almost always because of the wild stories Taja told. Excited to see a man who could get Ione’s attention, Taja turned. She didn’t get a good look at the man’s face, but she certainly recognized the clothes. He was looking around the street, clearly searching for something.

  Or someone. Taja immediately hid her face, her eyes wide as she prayed he didn’t look in the shop.

  Ione was tapping her shoulder repeatedly. “Oh, he’s looking this way! He’s definitely looking for something. Let’s go see if we can help him!” She was moving toward the door when Taja’s hand shot out and grabbed Ione’s wrist.

  “No. I-I need to hurry. My mother will be waiting for me, and I didn’t realize the time. I’m sorry, Ione, but could you help me finish up so I can get through with my list of chores?” Taja held up the list her mother had pointed out, one that Taja herself had written just the night before.

  “Of course,” Ione’s head turned back to look at the young man. “Too bad. I don’t usually feel so...” With a shake of her head, her gaze returned to Taja. “Let’s get you back on the road.”

  Taja gave a sigh of relief as she left the shop. The young man had stood there looking around for a while, but by the time she had everything, he was gone. There were only a few things left on the list. Thinking that the rest of her day would be quite easy, Taja headed to the last couple of shops.

  Taja took a deep breath as she looked at the sign over the tavern door – The King’s Bloody Jester. Sh
e hadn’t been here in a while because her mother usually insisted on buying her own alcohol after Taja had failed to bring the right brand a couple of times. It made her uncomfortable going into the tavern because Stanglen had been trying to persuade her to sleep with him ever since she was 15 years old. It was why she had chosen to go to other establishments and angered her mother. There was no way around it this time, though.

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Preview of Taja’s Dragon