Perymore Hightower rode at a breakneck pace alongside his uncle, swallowing mouthfuls of dust along the way. Though he asked after their destination several times, Maester Velis remained tight-lipped.
Velis had left home at a young age, enduring no end of hardship on account of his bastard birth. Though the current head of the house—his older brother—had eventually acknowledged his status, Velis no longer considered himself capable of returning to that bloated, cumbersome family.
Velis had achieved startling feats at the Citadel, even dabbling in blood magic and ancient sorcery. The Hightowers had failed him in the past, and now he lacked the face to ask to be restored to the family rolls.
Chapter 66