Total pages in book: 161
Estimated words: 153795 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 769(@200wpm)___ 615(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 153795 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 769(@200wpm)___ 615(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
With one solid swing, she takes the leader’s head off with the curved blade, then swings around and slices through another one of the men, separating him clear in half.
“Gods. Not again.” I back away as a stunned moment of silence stretches through the inn and blood pools on the floor.
“Get outta here, Torjack. And take the girl with you,” Rynthea orders, disrupting the quiet. That’s enough to send the room into an absolute riot.
Thane zooms past me, joining Rynthea in the slicing and butchering, while Algar throws himself into the brawl with a battle cry. His limp doesn’t hold him back from a damn thing. He’s good at killing—maybe not as talented as Thane and Rynthea, but he damn sure knows how to defend himself.
“Come with me!” Torjack presses a hand to my back and guides me toward the hallway.
As we pass, I spot Penju whipping out a dagger with a sneer. He jumps on the counter and plunges it into the top of a man’s head.
Torjack runs with me through the hallway and makes his way toward the back exit.
“Wait!” I call. “My bag! I need my things.” I don’t know if I’ll ever get the chance to come back for them, especially if the building ends up being set on fire. I have important items in there. Coins to get me through the rest of my travels. A map. Allergy elixirs in case the pollen becomes unbearable.
“Hurry!” Torjack orders.
I dash into the room I woke up in, throw the wardrobe doors open, and retrieve my rucksack and satchel. After I strap them to me, I turn to face Torjack. A sharp gasp escapes me when a masked stranger appears behind him.
This person isn’t dressed like the others in the main area, who wear simple black masks and buffers. This man’s buffers and mask are stitched with red. His hair is as black as ink and slicked back, his skin nearly as white as the snow in Velkana.
With a flick of his hand, the stranger suspends Torjack in the air and throws him into the wall.
“No!” I yell. “Torjack!”
“A friend of yours?” The man cocks his head as he looks me up and down. “You’re the noble one, I see.”
I back away as he inches closer.
With a twist of his hand, a cold, solid grip of power wraps around my throat, and I’m suspended in the air once again. He pins me to the nearest wall, choking and squeezing as I struggle against his magic, desperate for breath.
Darkness seeps in around the edges of my vision as the man watches me with blazing blue eyes. I don’t think I can take it anymore.
Damn it.
I’m going to die afraid, alone, and useless. Choked to death by a man I don’t even know.
I’ll be dead.
Analla will be dead.
All of us will be dead and—
Rynthea appears in the doorway and stomps in, kicking the pale man in the lower back with a hoof.
He grunts as he stumbles forward, and his grip around my throat loosens. I collapse on the ground, landing on my hands and knees and gulping down as much air as physically possible.
Rynthea looks from the man to her brother, who is groaning in the corner of the room, struggling to get up. A growl builds in her throat as she whips her scythesword in a motion way too quick to capture and swings at the man.
The man dodges her strike with ease and kicks at her ankles, but she doesn’t buckle. Instead, she kicks him straight in the chest. His body crashes through the glass windows as I stagger to a stand, watching him land outside and flop a time or two.
“Torjack,” she breathes, rushing to her brother. She taps his cheek as he groans again. “Hey, Tor, you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. I’m fine.”
“I told you to get your ass out of here!”
“She needed her bag!” Torjack retorts.
Rynthea looks back at me with a frustrated huff.
“I’m sorry.” My voice wavers as guilt consumes me. I didn’t mean for Torjack to get hurt. He could’ve died because of me.
Rynthea sighs. “It’s fine. Just get out of here. Both of you. Take the back exit and get to the bunker. I’ll meet you there when this is settled.”
When Torjack is on his hooves again, Rynthea leads the way out. Before we can even reach the middle of the hallway, though, another one of the masked men appears. She doesn’t hesitate taking him out. After cutting through him like warm butter, she storms ahead of us and shoves the back door open.
“Go!” she orders.
I run outside after Torjack but end up tripping over something and falling flat on my stomach. My spectacles slide off the bridge of my nose as I land on the ground. Then an unknown object wraps tightly around my ankle. I look back and see the blur of the masked man with the red stitching again. He holds up a stiff hand and reels me toward him like I’m a fish on a hook.