Authors: Walter Jon Williams

Conventions of War (75 page)

And then his eyes turned to the child, and they softened in growing wonder. His face began to glow with awe and adoration. He reached out a hand. Terza stepped close and kissed him on the cheek, but his eyes were still on the child.

Sula knew she had lost. She had created a map that Martinez would never follow.

She had rolled the dice, and lost.

She lowered herself back into the car and pressed the stud to roll the doors down. She touched the pad that would open a comm channel to the driver.

“Drive on,” she said.

About the Author

WALTER JON WILLIAMS is a
New York Times
bestselling author who has been nominated repeatedly for every major SF award, including Hugo and Nebula Awards nominations for his novel
City on Fire
. His most recent books are
The Sundering
,
The Praxis
,
Destiny's Way
, and
The Rift
. Mr. Williams lives near Albuquerque, New Mexico, with his wife, Kathleen Hedges.

Don't miss the next book by your favorite author. Sign up now for AuthorTracker by visiting www.AuthorTracker.com.

Praise
New York Times
Bestselling Author

WALTER JON WILLIAMS

“A first-rate writer.”

Washington Post Book World

“One of science fiction's most celebrated names.”

St. Petersburg Times

“A skillfully literate addition to the stylish new generation of science fiction writers.”

Chicago Tribune

DREAD EMPIRE'S FALL

“Space opera isn't deadâ¦Williams weaves the battle scenes, the bureaucratic lunacy, and the emotions of the characters together into a fascinating story.”

Santa Fe New Mexican

“A great read.”

Times of London

Books by
Walter Jon Williams

Dread Empire's Fall

C
ONVENTIONS OF
W
AR

T
HE
S
UNDERING

T
HE
P
RAXIS

T
HE
R
IFT

C
ITY ON
F
IRE

M
ETROPOLITAN

Copyright

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

CONVENTIONS OF WAR:
Dread Empire's Fall
. Copyright Â© 2005 by Walter Jon Williams. 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, downloaded, 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 HarperCollins e-books.

EPub Edition Â© SEPTEMBER 2005 ISBN: 9780061804892

06 07 08 09 10