9. Chapter Nine
9
CHAPTER NINE
ELODIE
T he mix of exhaustion and sheer relief at the disappearance of our smoky pursuer was enough that I dropped to my knees panting hard, hand pressed against my racing heart.
All this adrenaline wasn’t good for my health.
I was only twenty-eight, I didn’t need to be having a heart attack any time soon.
My chest ached, throbbing heavy under my fingers, I was going to have to see a doctor after all this. Glacial air attacked my skin—hardly surprising considering I was practically naked—burning with its frigid touch, even as the heat generated from our desperate escape coursed through me. Sweat rapidly cooled as I shivered in the dirt, curls of hair plastering my face and neck.
Someone shifted next to me, slumping down onto the grass and laying back, grey eyes trained at the sky as his breaths came short and fast through his mask. Reaching for my hand he squeezed it once before letting go to run his fingers over the sharp daggers lining his chest.
It would seem for now we were safe behind the ward—safe with psycho kidnappers. I still felt exposed out here in the open.
I sat back stretching my tired legs in front of me, uncaring of the wet patch that I would inevitably get on my ass, winding my finger through the tangles of gold bracelets that wrapped around my wrist. My other hand settled in the hollow of my neck, fingers fluttering in the now empty space that should contain my pendant. The familiar comfort of the gem under my touch, gone.
A commotion I had no intention of getting involved with, started behind me. Angry voices mixed with the grinding sound of metal against metal, was followed by the heavy groan of wood. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the gates were now opening, but whether that was a good or bad thing, I had no idea.
The sun had made it over the horizon, sending soft light spilling onto the ground, though the air remained icy on my overheated skin. I looked at the man beside me just as he pulled off the black mask that had been covering his face.
Sighing in relief as the chill touched his skin, I held back my own sigh as I laid eyes on him for the first time. The hair that brushed against the grass in waves was a dark mahogany reminiscent of the rich soil that made up the woods of my home and framed a face that despite only being in profile, surely belonged in a renaissance painting. Eyes that I knew were a storm-grey were closed, framed with thick black lashes that brushed high cheekbones. A dark beard covered the lower half of his face, full plush lips parted slightly as he focused on his breathing. A peek of tattooed skin visible in the gap between his beard and clothing.
He was a gods-damned work of art, and I was helpless as my eyes roamed the rest of him to see what else they had blessed him with when his snapped open, a glint in them as their full focus held my gaze.
A low chuckle escaped his lips as he shut his eyes once again, both hands reaching up to fist in his hair, and my stomach flipped at the noise.
Ergh, why did I have a handsome kidnapper?
“What was that?” I asked quietly, still watching him. I wasn’t sure if I was brave enough to hear the answer, but he was my best bet for information. He took a moment before turning to look at me, grey eyes searching mine. To his credit, his eyes stayed locked on mine instead of dipping to my heaving chest where my cleavage was very much on display. I didn’t want to think about the show they just put on during our wild sprint here.
“We don’t know. But I can tell you we weren’t expecting it.” He looked towards the lightening sky, one arm draped casually over his chest. I noticed the black tattoos wrapping around his fingers before I turned to the fog-drenched expanse beyond the ward.
“You’re not going to run again, are you? I don’t think I’ve got the energy to chase you.”
I huffed a short, bitter laugh as I looked at him, shivering as the ground leeched any amount of warmth I could generate and wrapped my arms around myself. “I think that thing has just made your jobs a little easier.”
Heavy footsteps from behind gave me an excuse to look away, and I groaned as I realised that Big Man had made his way over.
I was a lot happier when I didn’t know where he was.
The dark-haired angel lying next to me jumped up in one swift motion I would never be able to replicate as his friend came to a stop next to us.
Tilting my head back, I looked at them both. Their voices were kept low, but I didn’t miss the urgency in their words, nor did the glances towards the sky go unnoticed. I made no attempt to get up, prompting Big Man to reach down with both hands and hoist me to my feet.
I didn’t resist, because honestly, it wouldn’t have done me much good. Eyeing the bare face and black mask hanging from his friend’s fingers, his mouth thinned in annoyance, but he kept his own in place.
The adrenaline had left my system, and as my heart rate returned to normal, I failed to repress the shivers that wracked my body. With everything I was, I wished I’d put more clothes on before bed; a lace bra and shorts were not suitable outdoor clothing.
I also wished I was still safe in bed, but here we are.
This bralette left nothing to the imagination, and I didn’t need to look down to know there was no denying I was cold. A small smirk tugged at the lips of my unmasked kidnapper as his eyes flicked to my chest. A low growl sounded, followed by the release of a buckle and the rustle of fabric when a very large, very warm black jumper was thrust at me, and I stumbled back a step, clutching it to my chest. Big Man rebuckled his weapons belt over his shoulders without a look my way. I wasn’t going to turn down the warmth, pulling it over my head and watching as it fell to below my knees. I decided against being a polite little girl and thanking him.
My finger poked through one of the small, ripped holes that peppered the too-long sleeves, blood smearing my skin. I glanced over at his arm, and sure enough there were holes in the black top that was plastered tight against his body, muscles straining against the fabric. Blood darkened the edges and I put the pieces together, realising where they had come from as fury burned within me.
Titan had made those.
They must have done something to him in order to gain access to my room and gotten bitten in the process. I had seen Titan moments before he launched himself at the very thing that had chased me here, but that only meant they hadn’t managed to keep him away.
From the looks of it, they had definitely tried.
“What did you do to him?!” The idea of them trying to hurt him turned my vision red as I rounded on him, magik pulsing in my fingers. Sparks flew over my palms with an ease I was unfamiliar with and the fingers on his injured arm twitched in response.
“What did I do? He fucking bit me.” His eyes glowered as he looked down at my hands buzzing with energy, lifting his own as flames swirled his entire forearm.
Gritting my teeth, I dug down deep despite my weariness, calling on more magik than I ever had and sparks shot up my arms, leaping and zapping around me. Big Man’s eyes narrowed and he lifted a second arm now wreathed in flames.
“Will you stop with that shit, Bas?” Angel-face stepped forward, shoving his flaming arm down and the fire faded.
“We’re not safe yet, Goldie.” He turned to me, grey eyes searching mine and I released my hold on the magik I called.
Goldie?
Waves of exhaustion washed over me, taking my anger with it as I reminded myself the last time I’d seen Titan, he’d been strong enough to break down a wooden door. They can’t have done him any serious harm, if any. But what if that thing had?
I jumped as a large hand—inked in tattoos—gripped my chin gently as if I had projected my thoughts. Something within me relaxed a little at his touch. “He’ll be fine.”
He was right; it would take a lot more to take Titan down.
Dropping his hand, the thud of gates echoed around us, I turned towards them, the tops so high I would need to crane my head to see them all. The summit of the wall itself even ten times higher than that. The gates were fully open now and the men turned towards them, walking forward without bothering to check if I was following.
“Let’s go,” came the deep voice from beneath the mask.
Dark tunnels with strange men wasn’t really my thing, but I saw little other choice than to follow, teeth gritted in annoyance and muscles screaming with each step. Dragging myself behind them, my instinct was to be petty and take my time. Instead I ensured I kept up. With effort, I quickened my pace, readying myself for the gloom of the tunnel to swallow me whole.
Lit sconces spewing flames lined the walls, allowing some semblance of visibility as I continued forward. The grinding from the gate behind startled an embarrassing squeak out of me as they sealed me in. Big Man looked back, the smirk on his face at my fright visible under his mask, even in the dim light.
Our footfalls echoed off the walls, and I tried hard not to think of the weight of rock over my head as we walked in silence. We approached the far gate, the sound of it opening reverberating through the tunnel as more light trickled in. Stepping out into the approaching dawn, men in dark uniforms stood aside as we exited; each one stiffened and nodded their heads as we passed.
Guard towers were set either side of the gate connecting to a walkway that ran along the length of the wall, the soldiers manning them dressed similarly to the men I was now trailing behind, all carrying a strange mix of swords and guns.
There were more people here than I was used to seeing in one place, and I couldn’t handle the mental baggage of their life flooding my mind right now, so I kept my eyes moving, never letting them linger on a face for more than a second even as I felt their curiosity boring into me.
Fair play to them, they were probably as confused as I was as to what the fuck was going on .
I probably looked like shit, too.
I definitely felt like shit.
It could also be to do with the extra surprise we brought with our arrival, but who knows?
Four soldiers began following behind, for what reason we needed an armed guard I didn’t know, but I was in no place to question it as we came to a large, square, walled courtyard.
Cobbled paving blanketed the floor in a mix of mismatched greys and browns, worn wonderfully smooth by years of use, so I had no worries of them tearing apart my bare feet as I hugged my arms around me. Several doors and archways lined the walls at random intervals, some larger than others. Dark green ivy clung to the stones in patches, and closed red flowers hung heavily from them, waiting for the sun to awaken their petals.
Huge circle braziers sat in each corner, fire dancing within their confines and bathing the space in a glow that almost chased away the worst of the cold. The smell of burning pine filtered through the air, and as I pulled in a breath, it soothed my overworked lungs.
The sun had lit up the sky enough that the fog had dissipated, and far into the distance I could make out the top of another huge stone wall. And past that, mostly concealed by the surrounding fortification—though there was no mistaking it—was a castle.
A fucking castle, complete with turrets and ramparts, the whole lot. Its grey stone glittered as the sun’s rays brushed the very top of its many facets.
I know something else castles have — dungeons.
And what do kidnappers really like? Also dungeons.
My muscles were starting to seize up from so much exertion, and all I wanted was to sleep. If I was lucky, they were nice kidnappers, and that dungeon would have a soft bed for me to rest my weary body for a while before I made my great escape.
Fingers crossed.
Despite knowing I was in no shape to go anywhere, I couldn’t help taking note of the exits, while also realising there was no way I’d make it more than a few steps before one of them caught me anyway.
The largest archway was set into the wall ahead from us, too far away yet for me to see what lay beyond it. There were two sets of stone stairs rising against opposite walls that led to the walkway ringing the courtyard, allowing you to walk the entire way round while still keeping eyes on what was happening down below.
The walls into which the stairs were set rose high, topped by a slated roof half a dozen crows hopped along, their shrill caws bouncing off the stones. Glass windows glinted from within the stone, and I wondered vaguely if anyone lived in there. If I hadn’t been so bone-tired, I might have found it quite charming.
It was still too early for any sane person to be awake and other than the soldiers and us, it was empty of anyone else. Horses whinnied somewhere off in the distance, the sound carrying far in the silence of dawn.
Will they feed me before I fall into my soft dungeon bed?
Despite the heat from the braziers, the cobbled floor was icy on my feet, flares of pain shooting through the already tender soles with each step across the empty square towards the largest of the archways.
An enormous wisteria grew along its edge, stretching over the arch, its long flowers draping down towards the floor, brushing the top of the opening. Though unlike any I had seen before, the blooms were red.
A thud of hard soles against the stone drew all our eyes to possibly the biggest man I had ever encountered, striding purposefully towards us.
There was no doubt my captors were both large men, but this one was easily nearing seven foot, with the build to match. One of his arms was probably as wide as I was, and that was only a slight exaggeration. We stopped as one as he made his approach, pausing a few steps away.
He wore a heavy black cloak, draped over his shoulder, the hood pulled up to obscure most of his face and fastened with a silver brooch inlaid with a large, shimmering opal. It fell almost to the floor, the fabric covered in strange, iridescent symbols I didn’t understand.
Despite the hood, I could make out the top of four jagged, pink scars that interrupted the black stubble covering his jaw.
A jumper similar to the one I was drowning in was overlaid with what looked like leather armour, and black trousers were tucked into the heavy boots laced up his bulging calves. Dark belts crisscrossed his chest and hips, containing more weapons than I cared to count. How he didn’t sound like a walking brass band with every move he made was a mystery.
The hilt of a large sword—also inlaid with opals—was strapped to his hip, and he rested a large hand on it before sending a barely perceptible nod towards the two men next to me.
Tug.
I winced as I raised my hand to rub my aching chest, and the giant’s eyes flicked towards me as though he only just realised I was there, narrowing slightly for the briefest second before returning his focus to the other two. Big Man nodded curtly, and the giant stepped towards him, his tone low as whatever he whispered caused a deep frown which could be seen through his black mask.
“Take her inside, Marcellus, and then come find us. Kaius, we’re needed,” he demanded, not even looking at me before marching away through a large wooden door.
“What?” I whirled in his direction.
“What the fuck is going on? Why am I here?” I shouted my own demand, but it was clear from his retreating back he wasn’t going to reply. The guards bowed again as he strode past them, the door that slammed behind him also a good indication that he didn’t feel the need for a response.
The scowl on my face matched the one on Marcellus’ as we bristled at his commands, my fists clenching at my sides, not that they would know under the too-large jumper.
Who did this bastard think he was? Only because I desperately needed somewhere to rest was I going to go along with his nonsense, not because I planned on going meekly towards captivity.
I would fight, I would get home. But I wasn’t stupid enough to think I could do that right now.
And why is everyone fucking bowing to him?
Kaius sighed next to me, watching his masked friend storm away. His hand rested gently on my lower back as he urged me forwards, my anger hesitating at his touch, and I almost wished he wasn’t leaving me.
“Go on, you’ll be safe in the palace.” His hand dropped as he turned to follow, leaving me alone in the courtyard with this monster of a man. The soldiers who had been following behind bowed their heads at Marcellus and returned to wherever they had come from in the first place.
I’ll be safe?
As if they weren’t the ones who put me in this situation in the first place.
Marcellus turned, cloak billowing and his large strides creating a considerable gap between us. I hurried to keep up as we walked in silence through the large archway, crimson flowers almost brushing the hood of his robe. It was then I got my first good look at where I was headed.