Music started up. The view on the screen shifted to an external aft shot of the Willful Child, sliding forward and getting smaller by the moment. “Classy,” said Hadrian. “But…”
“But what?” Tammy demanded.
“Well, I mean, I’m sitting on the bridge of that ship, so watching it fly away is, well, confusing.”
“Yes, since being on it you can’t see it the way you’re seeing it. That’s a given.”
“Maybe it’s a given to you, Tammy, but I’m getting a headache.”
“At least tell me you like the music.”
Hadrian shrugged. “It’s all right, I suppose. But all those straining strings…”
“What about them?”
“They seem to be viscerally inducing in me the desire to take a dump.” He abruptly stood, looked around. “Anyone else feeling like that? If so, permission granted for potty break.”
Everyone leapt up and ran for the bridge door.
“I hate you,” said Tammy. “I really hate you all.”
Stay tuned
for more adventures,
as the voyage of the Willful Child
continues.
Boldly.
TOR BOOKS BY STEVEN ERIKSON
The Devil Delivered and Other Tales
This River Awakens
Willful Child
The Malazan Book of the Fallen
Gardens of the Moon
Memories of Ice
House of Chains
Midnight Tides
The Bonehunters
Reaper’s Gale
Toll the Hounds
Dust of Dreams
The Crippled God
The Kharkanas Trilogy
Forge of Darkness
Fall of Light
Malazan Novellas
Bauchelain and Korbal Broach
Crack’d Pot Trail
Wurms of Blearmouth
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steven Erikson is an archaeologist and anthropologist and a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. His New York Times bestselling Malazan Book of the Fallen series, including The Crippled God, Dust of Dreams, Toll the Hounds, and Reaper’s Gale, has met with widespread acclaim and established him as a major voice in fantasy fiction. The first book in the series, Gardens of the Moon, was short-listed for a World Fantasy Award. The second novel, Deadhouse Gates, was voted one of the ten best fantasy novels of 2000 by SF Site. He lives in Canada.
Visit him online at www.steven-erikson.com, or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Prologue
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Epilogue
Tor Books by Steven Erikson
About the Author
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
WILLFUL CHILD: WRATH OF BETTY
Copyright © 2016 by Steven Erikson
All rights reserved.
Cover art by Steve Stone
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates
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ISBN 978-0-7653-8390-7 (hardcover)
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First Edition: November 2016
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