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HERE'S A SNEAK PEEK OF MY UPCOMING BOOK THE GRAY RANGER: UNFORGIVEN. ENJOY!

"What is it, Za?" Adlis asked.

The simmk was trembling. Even in his oversized black coat, she could see the way his body shook. He raised his arm again and pointed at the building across the street from them.

"There," he answered in a high pitched, wheezy voice.

He was pointing at a narrow two story building. Completely unremarkable, she wouldn't have given it a second glance if Za hadn't pointed it out to her. Its windows were dark and its doors were closed, but Adlis swore that it was radiating an aura of fear.

"And he's still in there?" she asked, breathless.

"I don't smell him comin' back out, Miss Adlis."

Adlis drew herself up confidently, even though the urge to turn and run was back and even stronger than ever. She didn't doubt Za. Quite the opposite, in fact. She could practically feel Kulgan creeping around inside that house, his stinger scratching on the floor and his wings twitching spastically. Her throat closed in on itself, making it hard to breathe.

"Miss Adlis..."

She turned to face him. "Stay outside and keep watch, Za. Warn me if anybody comes this way."

She took a step across the street, but stopped, nearly jumping out of her fur, when Za grabbed her by the elbow.

"With all due respect, Miss Adlis," he said, "I ain't lettin' you go in there with that thing by yourself!"

Adlis hesitated. "Are you sure? You're not my servant, so--"

"But if I'm your friend, that just means I gotta go in there with you even more."

He had a point.

"All right," she consented. "Stay with me, and whatever you do, don't panic."

"Don't worry, Miss Adlis, I think all my panickin' leaked out on the road a ways back."

Adlis wrinkled her nose. "Ew, Za! Don't say things like that!"

"Sorry, Miss Adlis."

Adlis motioned for him to be quiet, and led the way toward the door. Her heart was pounding in her ears as she reached for the knob, praying to Embin that it would be locked. If it was locked, then she could turn around, go back to Mystle's house, and find another way out of Everdry. One that didn't involve asking--

The door opened easily for her.

"D'yargo," she cursed.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Come on."

They stepped inside the house. With the curtains shut and not a single candle lit, it was darker in here than it was outside. The only light came from moonlight streaming in through the door, and that only illuminated a long, narrow rectangle on the floor. She couldn't see Kulgan anywhere.

"He must be upstairs," Adlis whispered, beckoning Za further in. "Follow me, and try not to surprise him."

"You couldn't if you tried."

The rectangle of light vanished as the door slammed shut. Adlis and Za spun around with identical shrieks of terror. Adlis tripped over her own feet in the darkness and fell to the floor with a thud. Za landed beside her a moment later.

A scratching sound came from the other side of the room, and a light flickered into existence. Kulgan stood by the door, a match in one hand... and a gun in the other.

"What the Pit are you two doing here?" he asked. His voice was cool, his expression was calm, and yet when Adlis looked at his hand she could see his trigger finger twitching restlessly.

"We- we- we-" she stammered, her ears as white as snow beneath the bonnet.

"I'm in a bit of a hurry here," Kulgan said, clicking the hammer of his pistol back with his thumb. "So if you don't mind, spit it out!"

The pistol moved a little when Kulgan shifted, and Adlis' eyes followed it like she'd been mesmerized by the tiny black hole at its tip. Her breath was coming in short, shallow gulps. She couldn't speak, she couldn't stand, she couldn't even think. Coming here had been a bad idea, a horrible one. Now she and Za were both going to pay the price for her stupidity. Kulgan's eyes narrowed when she didn't answer, and Adlis closed her own. Hopefully he would be kind enough to grant her a quick death. Would she still hear the bang? Would there be any pain? Would he--

Kulgan sighed and holstered the gun. "D'yargo."

Adlis opened her eyes in surprise. "You- You're not going to kill us?"

Kulgan shrugged and turned away from them. "I really should. I've never been good at this whole bad guy thing, though."

"But--"

"Who knows, though? Maybe all I need is a little encouragement." He turned to face them again with a dark look in his eyes. "You sure want to push me, ma'am?"

Adlis' ears, which had begun to darken from white to gray, immediately turned white again.

"I don't know what you two are doing looking for me," Kulgan said, looking from one of them to the other. "Don't much care, either. I suggest you both get back to whatever kind soul agreed to take care of you during your stay in this lovely little town, go to bed, and forget you ever saw me. Don't worry, I'll be long gone by morning so you won't have to worry about breathing the same air as me anymore."

The match ran out, plunging the room into darkness again. A moment later, the sliver of moonlight appeared again as Kulgan opened the door for them. A cool breeze wafted into the house, and the scent of what Adlis swore must have been freedom filled her nose. Perhaps not freedom from Everdry, but at least freedom from the Twister she had been foolish enough to seek out. What more could she possible ask for?

And yet, she didn't move.

"Mr. Kulgan," she said, her voice still quavering, "we came because we need your help."

Kulgan chuckled, and Adlis jumped when his voice came from somewhere else in the room than where she'd last seen him. "Gee, now doesn't that sound familiar? The last time that happened, I seem to remember you saying that you would rather die than accept help from the likes of me."

A flash of guilt ripped unexpectedly through her chest, and Adlis' ears turned red.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Kulgan's voice came from yet another place. "Now get out. A pretty little lady like yourself shouldn't be consorting with ne'er do wells like me."

Adlis heard that, and the fur on her arms stood up straight. She followed suit, practically springing back to her feet, and rounded on where Kulgan's voice had come from last, even though she knew he probably wasn't there anymore.

"You watch your mouth, Twister!" she hollered. "I came here to ask you for help out of the goodness in my heart, and I do not appreciate being treated in such a way!"

The room was silent for a few seconds, apart from Za's whimpering on the floor. Then Kulgan laughed.

"You're asking for help out of the goodness in your heart? I'll give you credit, I haven't heard that one before."

"Don't mock me," Adlis hissed into the darkness. "I know you're on the run from the church. Why else would you be all the way out here? I would have thought that you'd jump at the chance to earn your redemption, but I guess I was--"

She heard a match strike, and a dull yellow glow lit up the room beside her. She turned to look, and found Kulgan's face less than a foot away from hers.

"Boo," he said.

Adlis screamed and fell over backwards again, this time landing right on top of her simmk friend. The rush of air from her flailing arms blew the match out.

"I can't decide if you're trying to con me," Kulgan said, "or if you're really that ignorant to how all of this works. Giving in to the temptations of Vashiil, becoming a Twister, is the most heinous sin anyone can commit. There is no redemption for me."

She heard him stomping across the floor, toward the back of the room. After the way he'd slunk around the room, as silently as if he'd been riding the wind, Adlis realized he must have been making that noise on purpose.

"Miss Adlis, please!" Za whispered from underneath her. "The door's open. Let's go before he eats us!"

"You should do what your servant says," Kulgan said. "You came here pretending to be doing a good deed. You weren't really, but even if you were it wouldn't matter."

He paused for a second, and when he spoke again Adlis heard real sadness in his voice.

"All we can do is hide and hope Embin lets us live another day."

She heard his feet going up the stairs, and even though she couldn't see him she could feel his presence leaving the room. Her eyes were locked on the place where his footsteps were coming from, unblinking even in the darkness. Za stirred beneath her again.

"Miss Adlis," he grunted.

"Sorry," she muttered, rolling off of him. The simmk leaped to his feet, and she could hear him hurriedly making his way to the door.

"Come on, let's go!" he urged her. "Hurry, before he comes back!"

Adlis hesitated. The doorway was practically pulling on her like a magnet, trying to drag her out of the house and onto the safety of Everdry's dusty streets. She resisted that pull, though. Why? She didn't know herself.

"No," she whispered.

"Miss Adlis?" Za asked in confusion.

"We're not leaving," she said. "Not yet. Come on."

---

THAT'S ALL FOR NOW. IF YOU WANT MORE, BE HERE ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 4TH FOR THE FIRST FREE CHAPTER. OR, YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND BUY THE ENTIRE BOOK NOW ON AMAZON! I'LL LEAVE A LINK IN THE COMMENTS FOR ANYONE WHO'S INTERESTED.