Chapter 16 #2
Of course they’d have bad trigger discipline. These guards lacked discipline and smarts. The only reason I hadn’t managed to attempt an escape again was because they’d left me down here.
"Move your ass, grave kisser," the guard barked. "Step into the bucket. We're in a hurry."
They hadn’t let me leave this cell since Vad’s visit. Had Colm decided to torture me again? My entire body tensed as I stared up at the imposing silhouettes framed against the light. My wolf snarled, making it clear she agreed that we shouldn’t go anywhere with them. "What's going on?"
"Shut your filthy mouth." The guard holding the rope spat, missing me by inches. "Someone important wants to look the king-killer in the eye. Demanded to see you personally. Now get in the damn bucket before I drag you up by your hair."
My heart skipped a beat. A visitor? Could Vad have come back to share a plan with me? Hope blossomed in my chest, but I forced myself to rein it in.
There was no telling who it might be—friend or foe—and my gut twinged. I doubted it was Vad.
My heart twisted squeezed like it was caught in a vise. I didn’t want to go with them.
“Move, or I will shoot,” the guard warned.
I didn’t have a choice. But at least I’d have another opportunity to learn the layout of the prison...and another chance to try to escape.
I lifted my chin, refusing to allow them to believe they had broken me. My wolf growled but then whimpered, knowing that she couldn’t surge forward to kill them.
Biting the inside of my cheek, I gripped the rope with my raw hands and stepped into the dingy bucket.
It was barely large enough for me to fit one foot inside, and I had to balance the other foot on the rim.
The coarse fibers of the rope scraped against my palms, and I held back a whimper.
I didn’t want them to get any enjoyment from my injuries.
The first guard began hauling me upward, the bucket swaying precariously. My cuts and sores shredded further as the bucket spun like a tilt-a-whirl, and the bread in my stomach lurched into my throat.
"Don't even think about using those teeth." Crossbow Guard pointed the bolt right in my face as my head cleared the opening. "We know what you are, and we won’t allow you to bite off our noses or any other appendages."
“Shut it,” Rope Guard snapped as he secured the rope on a hook in the wall. Then he reached out for me, his rough hands squeezing my arms above my elbows, and lifted me upward.
The wool of my dress cut into my skin, and I bit my cheek harder. I needed to ground myself, and that seemed like the best way.
I scanned the area for something to use as leverage to try to escape, but the closest thing was a rope that hung at Rope Guard’s side, just out of reach.
He placed me on the ground, and the second guard pivoted a mere three feet from me with the bolt still ready.
“One unexpected movement, and I won’t hesitate to kill you.” Crossbow Guard grinned like he’d just offered me a challenge.
These two were being careful, which was problematic for me.
Rope Guard rubbed my arms, causing the wool to grate against my flesh. He removed the rope at his side and bound my wrists, knotting the scratchy rope hard, and I grunted, unable to keep the noise from coming out.
"Move." Rope Guard shoved me down the dimly lit corridor.
“Hey!” I stumbled forward and nearly struck the hall wall.
“Don’t cause trouble,” Crossbow Guard growled.
I placed my bound hands against the wall and stepped back.
“Come on now. Faster.” Rope Guard gave a warning tug.
Stinging pricks shot down my hands, and once again my feet scraped against the rough stone floor. Each step hurt worse than the last. As I limped down the hall, I tried to make myself appear even more pathetic. This wasn’t a time for pride—it was a time for them to underestimate me.
Neither guard touched me, and Rope Guard gave me enough slack to set my own speed.
“Left,” Rope Guard barked when we approached a cross-section in the dark, pockmarked hall.
“And hurry. We don’t want to keep our guest waiting.” Crossbow Guard gestured with his weapon.
They were taking me back to the room where I’d seen Vad, which meant I wouldn’t see any more of the prison. My shoulders sagged. Every time I hoped to get ahead, it seemed I landed in an even more precarious situation. Was it even worth?—
Yes .
I gritted my teeth. I wouldn’t become like Elias. He and I were going to find a way out of here. Ember wouldn’t allow them to break her, and I refused to break as well. We were fighters.
My heart sped faster as we approached the heavy door. No welcoming tug found me, but I caught a faint scent that I couldn’t quite place.
Crossbow Guard shoved the door open, and then Rope Guard struck me between the shoulders and pushed me through. “Don’t keep ‘em waiting.”
My shoulders hunched forward as my back absorbed the blow.
I staggered into the room and narrowly caught myself against the wooden slab table with the oil lamp, jostling it.
The lamp rattled loudly. The scent of jasmine and something like roses fought against the cave’s smell of rot and blood.
I righted myself, standing tall as the door clanged shut.
The guards moved to stand against the wall, hands at their sides but no weapons drawn.
I lifted my head to face the latest potential enemy in the room...and blinked.
There was something about the woman in front of me. Something familiar, though I thought I’d never met her before.
She was frail, her ivory skin thin as paper with numerous cuts and bruises along the veins, as if her own blood was too violent for her body.
Her cheeks were gaunt hollows carved far too sharply, much like her eyes, which had sunken in.
Bloody cracks ran along the corners of her mouth and over her lips, and her black hair, which was pulled into a loose bun, had multiple thin patches, to the point that her skull was visible.
My heart broke. They had to be torturing her as well. But why would they have two prisoners meet? Although... she was clean and dressed nicely in an indigo gown.
She moved toward me, her lips cracking even more.
I’d opened my mouth to urge her to lean against the wall and not strain herself when her delicate floral scent reached me more fully.
Elara?!
My mouth went dry, and a surge of realization had me stiffening in shock.
“Hello, Briar.” Her bony hand slid to the side as she tried to gently rub her bruised wrist without drawing much attention, and her wings—if they could even be called that—fluttered.
They were tattered and practically skeletal, and the right side sagged despite her effort every so often to straighten and tuck them in.
“After I heard what happened, I wanted to speak with you myself. It seemed wise.” She tilted her head to examine me.
My gut twisted and turned over on itself like something rotten had cracked open inside me.
“I offer condolences on your father’s passing, Princess Elara.
” I struggled to form the words around the sour dryness of my mouth.
Even her eyes were glassy with barely a hint of blue, like her life force was almost gone.
Her gaze flicked toward the guards and back to me. Neither guard was looking at us, their focus seemingly on the floor. She turned away from them, angling so that, if someone came through the door, only her back would be seen. Her fingers twitched, indicating for me to move as well.
I took three steps to one side and positioned myself so my expressions couldn’t be seen from the door or by the guards.
Her head inclined forward, and a soft smile spread across her face. “Condolences mean little. What I want is the truth. I came to see you for myself because I thought you were different. Someone I could trust and who would make my brother’s life better. Clearly, I was wrong .”
The words stung as the scent of rotten eggs filled my nostrils.
Her expression did not match her words, and the scent had come at the end, but was I searching for anything that could provide me hope?
This place had a way of messing with my mind.
Her voice had trembled, but I couldn’t tell if that was grief, illness, or both.
She straightened, suddenly seeming every bit the royal, her posture and demeanor almost strong again. Yet, she couldn’t completely mask her ill health. She seemed a mere ghost of what she once was.
My vision blurred, and I desperately blinked back the tears. “I swear I didn’t betray you or your family. I promise on my own life that I would never purposely harm you, your brother, or the king. I care for you all so much and wish I could be there beside you while you grieve.”
Taking a step closer, Elara briefly brushed her cold hand against mine and said, “Even a guilty person would make that claim, but I admire your persistence.”
The corners of my mouth wanted to tip up, but I forced them to remain in place. Her touch had confirmed everything that her words couldn’t. I hoped she believed me, and at least I knew she didn’t hate me.
However, my happiness vanished as quickly as it had come.
Something was definitely not right with her.
I’d already suspected something was going on with her because she never flew like the others.
But if I asked about her health, the guards might listen and pass the information on to someone who might harm her or Vad.
And even if I did ask, I doubted she was in any position to answer.
“I don’t want my visit to be misconstrued.
I'm here to hear directly from you what transpired last night.” She dipped her head, and her right wing sagged again.
Her brow pinched as she straightened the wing, followed by a cracking noises as if it had popped from its socket.
Her expression tightened as she drew the wing back in place.
“Just as you remember it.” The words had a sharper, breathier quality this time.