Dancer's Lament: Path to Ascendancy Book 1 (59 page)

‘Is what true?’

‘What they say . . . about the killing. The assassination.’

Iko fought to keep her expression light. She nodded. ‘Yes. It is true.’

‘You’ll not let that happen, though, will you?’ And the lad peered up at her with his soft brown eyes, suddenly anxious.

Iko swallowed hard, her throat so tight and hot she was unable to speak for a moment. She put a hand on the lad’s shoulder and brought her face to his. Her voice was low and thick as she managed, ‘I swear upon my life that I will never let any harm come to you, my king.’

The lad scampered off, slashing his stick at the bushes as he ran. All four servants raced after, struggling to light his way as he charged about the many paths of the garden.

Iko straightened. She dabbed her eyes with a sleeve of her royal green jupon. The lad’s route brought him back to her and he jabbed now at the tree trunks. He turned to her, suddenly. ‘Do you know the name the guards at the palace have for you?’

Iko paused, wondering whether she wanted to know it or not. She inclined her head. ‘No, sire, I do not.’

‘Well, you always wear your mail coat. Always. No one’s ever seen you out of it and so they call you Shimmer.’ And the boy raced off again, the servants puffing as they chased after him through the trails, their lanterns bobbing in the darkness.

She arched a brow.
Hunh. Shimmer
. Well, it could’ve been far worse, that was for certain. She started walking after him, hands at her belt, pacing. Chulalorn the Fourth was a handful, that was for certain. But he was her charge. And Mosolan was regent until he reached adulthood.

Until then, she swore to all the gods above and below – that had ever been and would ever be – that no harm should ever come to him under her wardship. She had lost one king and would not lose another.

So did she vow.

Born in Winnipeg in 1962, Ian Cameron Esslemont has studied and worked as an archaeologist, travelled extensively in South-East Asia and lived in Thailand and Japan for several years. He now lives in Fairbanks, Alaska, with his wife and children. He has a creative writing degree and his novels
Night of Knives
,
Return of the Crimson Guard
,
Stonewielder
,
Orb Sceptre Throne
,
Blood and Bone
and
Assail
are all set in the fantasy world of Malaz that he co-created with Steven Erikson.
Dancer’s Lament
marks the beginning of an exciting new series that is set in the same extraordinarily imagined world.

For more information on Ian C. Esslemont and his books, see his website at
www.malazanempire.com

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First published in Great Britain in 2016 by Bantam Press
an imprint of Transworld Publishers
Copyright © Ian Cameron Esslemont 2016
Maps © Neil Gower 2016

Ian Cameron Esslemont has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Every effort has been made to obtain the necessary permissions with reference to copyright material, both illustrative and quoted. We apologize for any omissions in this respect and will be pleased to make the appropriate acknowledgements in any future edition.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Version 1.0 Epub ISBN 9781473509627
ISBNs 9780593074343 (cased)
9780593074350 (tpb)

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