Jennifer Fallon - Treason Keep (The Hythrun Chronicles: Demon Child Trilogy, Book 2)

Harshini 02 - Treason Keep

THE DEMON CHILD TRILOGY BOOK 02

Jennifer Fallon

Also by

Jennifer Fallon

Medalon

Harshini

A DF Books NERDs Release

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the products of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.

TREASON KEEP. Copyright 2001 by Jennifer Fallon. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of PerfectBound.

ILLUSTRATIONS. Copyright 2001 by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law.

EXCERPT FROM HARSHINI. Copyright 2001 by Jennifer Fallon.

Jennifer Fallon asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Print edition first published in February 2001 by Voyager, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Pty Limited.

http://www.voyageronline.com.au

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Additional e-book features

Map

PART 1

POLITICS AND POWER GAMES

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

PART 2

BATTLE LINES

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

PART 3

THE POLITICS OF SEDUCTION

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

PART 4

CONSEQUENCES

Chapter 54

Chapter 55

Chapter 56

Chapter 57

Chapter 58

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapter 64

Chapter 65

Chapter 66

Chapter 67

Glossary

About the Author

About Book Three, Harshini

Excerpt from Book Three, Harshini

Illustrations by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law

Reading Notes

Credits

About Voyager

About the Publisher

For Dace Mikel OBrien,

the original God of Thieves,

and as always, Adele Robinson

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My life is many things, but boring isnt one of them. Despite a wedding, a birth, a book launch, two house moves, a new business and a few other rather traumatic incidents that I would rather not relive, this book was written in considerably less time than Medalon .

As always, there are the usual suspects who deserve my thanks for their unswerving faith and their high tolerance levels in putting up with me during the creation of this work. In particular, I would like to thank my children, Amanda, TJ and David for their support and for filling my life with so many distractions that I have, though sheer necessity, mastered the art of focussing on writing to the exclusion of all else. They will readily attest to this fact, although they may be surprised how often Ive heard them lament to each other dont bother asking her anything, shes writing.

I would like to thank Stephanie Smith, Darian Causby and Midge McCall, and all the other people at HarperCollins who I have never met but who have contributed to this series, along with Lyn Tranter and Cathy Perkins at Australian Literary Management and also Sarah Endacott. Stephanie Pui-Mun Law has once again created an awesome cover and I remain one of her most ardent fans.

With my dying breath, I will be thanking Harshini Bhoola for her never-ending enthusiasm and her constant re-reading of the manuscripts, and it still wont repay her. Thanks also to my good friend Peter Jackson for encouraging me to take a step into the unknown and my favourite sycophants, Toni-Maree and John Elferink MLA for helping me keep my feet on the ground while my head was in the clouds.

PART 1

POLITICS AND POWER GAMES

CHAPTER 1

It took a conscious effort of will for Brak to take the final step across the threshold of Sanctuary.

The gates stood wide open, tall and impossibly white in the thin, chill mountain air. Sanctuarys tall spires reached elegantly for the scudding clouds, shadowing the Gateway and offering him one last moment of anonymity.

He had turned his back on this place more than two decades ago and, despite the loneliness, the guilt, and the hunger for his own kind, he still found it harder than he thought possible to return.

He was not unexpected. That would have been too much to hope for. As he trekked through the mountains he had clung to the idle hope that the demons would not betray his approach. It was the reason he had come on foot this journey of months could have been accomplished in hours had he asked the demons for help.

As he contemplated that final, irrevocable step, a figure appeared on the other side of the Gateway. Tall, white-robed and smiling, Jerandenan had been the Gatekeeper for as long as Brak could remember and that was almost a millennium. The Harshinis totally black eyes were moist, and his whole being radiated the warmth of his welcome.

The Gatekeeper opened his arms wide. Welcome home, Brakandaran.

Still Brak hesitated. You remember me then?

Jerandenan laughed softly. I remember every soul who has entered my Gate, as well you know. And you, more than most, I would not forget. Come, Brakandaran. Your family awaits you. The demons miss you, and The Gatekeepers voice trailed off with a shrug, and he smiled that infuriating, calm smile that was already beginning to annoy Brak. And he had not even crossed Sanctuarys threshold yet.

And Korandellan wants to see me? Brak guessed.

Jerandenan nodded. Did you expect anything less from your King?

Before Brak could answer, several grey missiles launched at him through the tingling barrier of the Gateway. The demons jumped on him gleefully, chattering to each other incomprehensibly, so delighted by his return that they almost knocked him off his feet. He recognised a few of the creatures as he tried to shake free of them, but there were youngsters in the group he did not know. They knew him, though. His blood called to them more clearly than any words were capable of.