Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 114925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 575(@200wpm)___ 460(@250wpm)___ 383(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 575(@200wpm)___ 460(@250wpm)___ 383(@300wpm)
“I think you’ll be pleased with your cellmate,” Vyle said, leading me toward a cage smaller than the others and occupied by only one glower.
Another shock. Victors, here. He sat in the far corner, one leg bent at the knee, with an elbow resting at the crest. His bored expression never wavered. He wore torn, dirty clothing, his hair sticking out in spikes. The injuries he’d sustained in captivity hadn’t fully healed, his skin bordering on sallow.
“So good to see you again, Lady Roosa.” His voice lacked substance, but his joy was true. “You’re right on time.”
Vyle unlocked the door and hauled me inside. He pushed me at the cot pressed against a wall. My knees gave out, and I plopped onto the stretched cloth, doing my best to appear bored as well.
A guard rushed in with a medical kit. Vyle claimed it, then tossed it on the cot beside me. “Don’t die,” he commanded before stalking out and confining me inside. “Ask your friend what he’s endured. Soon, you’ll experience the same firsthand.”
He stalked off, and I deflated, air leaking from a part in my lips. “I’m both thrilled and sad to see you again, Victors. Wish it had been under better circumstances.”
“But, my girl,” he said, as brazen as I remembered him. “The real fun is just getting started.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Your war isn’t with flesh and blood but with the spirits within them.
—The Book of Soal 2.8.10.3
“Real fun,” I echoed hollowly. “We’re prisoners, Victors.”
He frowned, as if disappointed. “Don’t be ridiculous, Miss Roosa. We’re nothing of the sort.”
I didn’t have the strength to match wits with him. I tried to catch my breath as I examined my wound. Not a kill shot, exactly as Roman had claimed, but it hurt. Still, his death hurt more. I hated what he’d done, but I hadn’t wanted him dead.
“I’d offer to help you with the doctoring, but my vivisection says no.” With a sunny smile, Victors motioned to the bandage peeking out from the neckline of his shirt. The lightness in his eyes provided a shocking contrast to our miserable dungeon, our abysmal situation, and the barbarity inflicted upon him.
“How were you recaptured?” I asked, opening the first aid kit.
“Oh. That. I turned myself in again.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. “Why would you do such a thing?” Especially after all he’d already suffered.
“For starters, I didn’t want to miss the big finale. Also, I thought it might be nice to take a beat and prepare you. The worst is still to come, my dear.”
I flinched and muttered, “We are living in a horror novel.” I needed as much strength as I could muster, as fast as I could muster it. Hands shaking, I withdrew the disinfectant. No painkiller. Better to maintain my wits right now. As I squirted the cold liquid directly into my wound, I struggled to silence my scream. The sting! I could only breathe through it, waiting for black dots to stop flashing. When I could see again, I applied the healing gel, then a butterfly bandage to seal the sides of broken skin together.
Deep breath in. Out. In, out. Okay, the worst was over, at least.
“Have you forgotten The Book of Arden is a romance?” Victors asked. “Give it time.”
“Romances are supposed to end with the bad guys defeated and the couple headed for a bright future. It’s science. Look it up.” My shoulders rolled in. “I can’t see a way we can recover from this.”
“That’s too bad. The you I see has learned from her mistakes and is making better decisions, heading for a better destination.”
Well, he wasn’t wrong about that. I had learned from my mistakes. If I could go back, I would avoid Cyrus on the battlefield, exactly as ordered, trusting my fellow glowers to aid him.
Where would we be today if I’d listened? Here, now, we’d accomplished our goal, yes. Cyrus wasn’t just king; he was emperor. But at what cost?
Bonding to Domino had been the beginning of the end for my relationship with the high prince. I’d helped save our lives, but I’d also changed both our destinies. While part of me wanted to resent the librarian, I couldn’t bring myself to regret our dealings. But now, we were all on a train speeding along the tracks, no longer able to brake.
“I’d argue the use of the word better,” I muttered.
“And that’s your problem,” Victors said. “You are focusing on the moment rather than the end.”
“This is the end.”
“So shortsighted,” he tsked. “Do you really think I’d be here without a foolproof plan to save you?”
“Why do you even care?” I muttered. “I’m one person.”
“Ah, but you’re our person.”
Anger flared. “Cyrus is—was—our person, too, yet here we are,” I griped. “He’s possessed, and the war is raging.”
“I hear blame in your voice. You know nothing of what we’ve done for him,” Victors snapped with an unexpected anger of his own. “Nothing I’ve done. Did he share with you the messages I brought? The warnings Ember and others delivered? Tell you of his meeting with Soal? Explain the whole story he read?”