Perrin offered Kella his arm. She held her breath and stepped forward to accept his gesture. When her fingers touched the fabric of his overcoat, she did not feel any telltale vibrations from him. She relaxed.

She let him lead her toward the back hallway, where a guard waited for them.

“This is my guardmaster, Tax,” Perrin said. “He will accompany us.”

Tax nodded at her briefly, and then turned to lead the way. He was a tall man but extremely broad muscled in his chest and arms. His torso tapered down to a trim waist but then flared out again into a muscular flank and thighs.

Once, when Kella and her mother were traveling between towns, they had come across a band of traveling performers. Their strongman had a body like Tax. She was curious about him because he w...

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