Chapter 41 #2
The jab riled Chanda, just as she wanted.
The elf lifted her right hand, tufts of bronze magic moving rapidly as she lunged.
Inej knocked Chanda’s arm away as she twisted to the right and brought up the blade.
Chanda screamed in outrage as the weapon cut into her side in a deep groove, spilling blood onto her coat.
Chanda grabbed hold of Inej’s right wrist, and they fell in a tangle of limbs.
Manu saw Inej and Chanda at the end of the hallway and raced toward them. Inej needed to hide, but he couldn’t tell her that. It would alert Chanda that he was there, and he wanted to use every opportunity he could.
His heart lurched in his chest when he saw Chanda go for Inej. Then, the two were on the ground.
“NAY!” he bellowed as he ran, pumping his legs faster.
Somehow, Chanda managed to dislodge the small blade from Inej’s hand. The elf was trying to get on top of her. Inej didn’t have to only prevent that. She also had to keep the elf’s hands away so the magic Chanda kept discharging wouldn’t strike her.
Inej managed to get a knee between them. Chanda was so focused on getting on top of Inej that she didn’t seem aware of anything else. Inej grabbed for the second dagger in her boot. Their wrestling dislodged some snow, causing it to tumble into Inej’s eyes and mouth as they fought.
Inej jerked the weapon up with all the strength she had. The next time Chanda pushed her onto her back, Inej held the blade still. Chanda’s eyes went wide as the knife sank into her chest. For a moment, neither of them moved. Inej dimly heard someone shout.
Chanda looked down at the weapon sticking out of her in bewilderment.
Inej swallowed hard as she, too, glanced at it.
Chanda slowly sat up, struggling for breath as blood bloomed and spread.
Her gaze met Inej’s before she listlessly fell to the side.
Inej scrambled away and staggered to her feet.
Her body trembled as her breath, sharp and shallow, filled her lungs when reality set in.
Against all odds, she was alive. But it felt like a mistake.
A flicker out of the corner of her eye drew Inej’s attention. She looked, shock mixing with adrenaline as Manu stumbled to a halt, his gaze moving from Chanda to her and back to his friend.
“Help,” Chanda whispered, her fingers reaching for him.
A look of disbelief and betrayal contorted Manu’s face.
Inej squeezed her eyes shut to erase the image, but it would be etched into her mind for eternity.
He already held a wealth of animosity toward her for her part in everything.
Any hope she had for absolution evaporated because he would never forgive her for hurting Chanda.
Her eyes flew open at the sound of a grunt to find that Manu had fallen to his knees.
Inej took a hesitant step forward when she saw the bright red spots of blood in the snow and reached for him.
A black-haired woman suddenly appeared beside him.
One moment, they were there, and the next, they were gone.
Inej stared at the spot where Manu had been, dazed and unsure of what came next.
She had gone up against an elf and miraculously survived.
Just because she was alive now didn’t mean she would remain that way.
Manu, Jalall, and the others would likely demand she be punished.
She could argue ignorance, but that wasn’t much of a plea.
She had come to kill Manu. There was no disputing that.
“Inej?”
At the sound of the familiar voice, she looked over and found Jalall standing with three Dark Elves.
“Are you hurt?” he asked gently as if speaking to someone who had lost their mind.
Inej stared into his dark eyes. Had he come to capture her? Kill her? She was shaking so badly.
Jalall took a step forward. “Inej, let us tend to your wounds.”
Inej looked down to see that her coat was splattered in blood. It also covered her hands.
Jalall held out his hands in front of him and took another slow step forward. “You’re losing a lot of blood. We need to tend to you.”
“It isn’t mine,” she said.
Jalall froze, his brows snapping together as confusion filled his gaze.
“It’s Chanda’s. She’s right there,” Inej said as she swallowed and pointed at the elf.
When no one reacted, Inej turned her head to where Chanda’s body had been, but the elf was gone. “She was here. Manu saw her.”
“We need to get you back to the city,” Jalall stated.
Inej jerked away as he reached for her and took two steps back. “Are you the half who joined Chanda?”
“What?” Jalall asked, his surprise obvious.
The female Dark asked, “Explain, please.”
Inej looked between them. She was exhausted from fighting with Chanda, and there was no way she could best four elves.
But she didn’t know who she could trust, either.
If they were with Chanda, her life was over.
If they weren’t, she had an opportunity to defeat Chanda completely.
“Chanda claimed that half the army at Navara was hers to command. She said that if she doesn’t return, they will slaughter the others and take control. ”
“The fuck they will,” Jalall said.
“I’m going now,” the Dark with facial scars said as shadows immediately closed around him.
Jalall motioned to the two remaining elves. “Inej, this is Arya and Jai. They’ve been fighting against the Masters, along with Manu and Dain, who just left.”
Arya walked over and inspected the spot where Chanda had fallen. “I see Manu’s prints here. And it’s obvious where Inej and Chanda fought. But there are no other footprints.”
“We would’ve seen someone coming toward us as we walked up,” Jai added.
Jalall came to stand in front of Inej. “We need to get you somewhere warm. Your lips are blue.”
Inej didn’t have time to ask them to let her leave.
There was no chance to promise that she would disappear and never return.
The moment the words were out of Jalall’s mouth, the two Dark were there, their shadows rising to cover them.
She had never traveled with a Dark Elf before, and though she tried to focus on them, her thoughts were on Chanda—and the shock that had been carved into Manu’s face.
She knew when they reached Navara by the warmth. She had yet to stop shaking. The final dregs of adrenaline were leaving her, and with them, the last of her strength keeping her upright. She reached out for something to hold on to as her knees buckled. She listed to the side as the shadows parted.
“Catch her,” Arya called.
Jai swept her up in his arms.
“I’ll get some herbs,” Jalall said.
Inej let her lids fall shut as she rested her head on his shoulder. “Manu,” she whispered.
No one answered. She didn’t know if they hadn’t heard her or just didn’t want to reply.
Her body demanded rest, but she could still hear everyone moving about as Jai laid her on a bed.
She recognized the sound of Jalall’s feet as he ran into the room.
Someone helped her sit up, while Jalall put the glass to her lips.
“Let me,” said a deep voice she didn’t recognize.
The water was taken away, and they laid her back down.
Inej attempted in vain to open her eyes and see who was there.
Then, someone lightly placed a hand on her arm.
A flush of energy darted through her, taking away all the aches, pains, and lethargy.
Inej’s eyes opened, and she found herself staring up at a human with eyes as black as the night and short, blond hair.
“Hi, lass,” the man said with a smile as he straightened. “My name is Con. Do you feel better?”
Inej nodded. “What did you just do to me?”
“I healed you.”
She frowned at him and pushed herself into a sitting position. “A human with magic?”
He chuckled softly. “I’m no’ human, lass.”
The dark-haired woman who had disappeared with Manu moved to stand next to Con. They linked their hands. The woman smiled at Inej before the couple walked out of the room. Jai and Arya followed, leaving her with Jalall.
Inej swung her gaze to him. “What just happened?”
“You were healed.”
She cleared her throat. “I got that. Who is Con? And who was the woman?”
“Friends. You’ll find out more later.”
“Later,” she repeated, suddenly worried.
Jalall walked to the door. “I have to go now. The house is locked down, so no one will disturb you. Get some rest. I’ll be back soon.”
He was out of the room before the last word had left his mouth.
A moment later, she heard the front door open and close.
Inej blew out a breath and rubbed her temples.
The day had been filled with one shocking blow after another.
She might not be in prison yet, but that didn’t mean they would free her.
She scooted from the bed and threw off the ruined coat before undressing. Thankfully, Jalall hadn’t locked her in the room, which meant she could bathe. She found clothes in the bureau and walked to the bathing room.
There was no enjoying the water, not with her future hanging in the balance.
She thought about what might happen next as she scrubbed her body.
The Mountain Elves did things very differently from the other races.
She didn’t know their rules or how they punished others.
What she knew for sure was that she would have to pay for coming to kill Manu.
She hadn’t carried it out—or even attempted it.
Hopefully, that would count for something.
She had convinced herself that she needed more information from him, but she knew now that she had been searching for an excuse not to hurt him.
His stories and the time she’d spent with him had changed her heart.
Even if her mind had been slower to catch up, that doubtlessly wouldn’t matter.
She had been dishonest with everyone from the beginning, and there were consequences for that.