17. Full Moon
FULL MOON
VERONICA
SEVEN DAYS LATER
R athgar was pacing in our cell, restless. I was not doing any better. I wanted my heart-mate back. Zyloxia had come back with food and the proper prenatal vitamins for the little one inside of me.
“Zyloxia told me while you were asleep that the fight the death is tonight. Soren will know that something is wrong, since he told us to keep in touch.”
“Nobody has come to spring us from this cell.”
“It’s strange to be here without allies. Without the ambush, I would have sent a mayday call back to Soren. It’s good that he stayed back home. I want to help Gairo, but I can’t. Soren can’t help us before the rite happens.”
“I’m sick of waiting here.” There was an old-style lock on the door.
“Have you seen the guards?”
“I can’t smell anyone but us.”
I pulled the hair pins out of my hair and got to work unlocking our cell. Gairo didn’t call me Little Thief for nothing. There wasn’t a computer in it, so after a few minutes, my hair pins did the trick: we were free. Rathgar immediately shoved the door open and said, “Stay behind me.” There was a long dagger hanging on the wall, which Rathgar instantly grabbed.
There were only two guards posted at strategic points, and Rathgar killed them before they had time to react. They had the long daggers, too, and I put one in my hand. Rathgar didn’t tell me that it wasn’t ladylike to fight, which I liked. I might have been pregnant, but I was not helpless.
Right at the end of the hallway was a guard that Rathgar questioned. He gave up the location of the fight immediately, begging for his life. Rathgar killed him, too.
“We need to hurry and get to my heart-mate.”
“If the full moon rite has started, there’s nothing that we can do to stop what they’ve started. It’s an ancient ritual.”
“Fuck honor. If I have to jump in and kill Magdorian myself to save my heart-mate, I will. Honorable or not!” I hoped that it wouldn’t come to that, but Gairo was the father of my child.