Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 127722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 639(@200wpm)___ 511(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 639(@200wpm)___ 511(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
I hit him right in the neck, and he fell to his knees.
“Damn, that was a good shot.”
My focus was extraordinary, probably because my brother’s life was on the line. I grabbed another arrow and took down the next guard who ran to the wall.
“You’re going to have to teach me.”
“Be happy to.”
Ryker made it to the top of the wall, out of breath, but that didn’t stop him from tossing the rope to the other side and sliding down, probably burning his hands along the way. “Quick, we’ve got to get moving.” He made it to the bottom and prepared to catch us if we fell.
We both made it to the bottom, and the second my boots hit the earth, the gates started to open.
“Shit, we gotta go.” Ryker took the lead, sprinting straight into the forest outside the city.
I’d never run so fast in my life, but I knew if I were recaptured, I would never escape again. They’d make sure to keep me chained day and night, and they would separate us this time around.
It was even darker in the forest without the moonlight through the canopy, but hopefully that worked in our favor. Ryker kept up the lead, glancing behind him from time to time to make sure we were still with him.
I don’t know how long we ran for, but it felt like a lifetime. All the muscles in my legs screamed from the fatigue, and I had to stop because I couldn’t go on any farther. Effie stopped with me, keeling over like she was just as exhausted as I was.
Ryker came back to us. “We’ve got to keep moving. They’ll have horses.”
I couldn’t even talk I was so out of breath. “I…can’t.”
Ryker peered behind us, checking the trees for company. “You have thirty seconds. But we have to keep moving after that. If you don’t want to be sucked off by a leech again, you won’t stop this time.”
Through the night and the early morning, we ran.
I wasn’t even sure where we were going, and I hoped Ryker did. Without a compass or the sun, there was no way to determine our direction. We had no water or food, so we might have escaped their clutches, but we would probably die out there anyway.
That was fine by me.
We finally stopped under the shade of thick trees, the air colder than it was near the Crags. That must have meant we were going in the right direction. “We just have to follow the cold…” I dropped to the ground and leaned against the tree, sweaty and exhausted, not to mention starving.
Effie lay straight on the grass and curled into a ball like she might sleep right on the spot. “What do we do now? I’d like to keep going, but I don’t think I can.”
“Me neither.” The cold didn’t even bother me because I was that tired.
“I’ll let you guys get some sleep,” Ryker said. “I’ll hunt.” He took my bow and quiver of arrows from the ground. “By the time I’m done cooking, you’ll have had enough rest to keep moving.”
“What about you?” I asked through heavy-lidded eyes.
“I’ll be fine,” he said. “I slept less while I searched the Kingdoms for you.”
My heart tightened into a fist and squeezed.
“I won’t be far, so call if you need help.” Ryker marched into the forest, and his footsteps disappeared.
Effie lay on her side and looked at me. “If we really get out of this, it’ll be because of him.”
“I know.”
14
HUNTLEY
The Teeth knew we were coming.
They already had a cavalry waiting for us, their soldiers on their horses as they barred the way to the Crags. We were evenly matched, only because we couldn’t drain all our forces for this single fight.
Klaus stepped out from his line of men and rode his black horse toward us. It was well-groomed, the dark hair of its tail in a braid. It was also geared with armor to protect its chest as well as its flank. Klaus was dressed similarly, in his armor and weapons, his cape blowing behind him.
Queen Rolfe stepped out from the ranks, riding her pristine white horse.
I did the same, because this was my fault.
She glanced at me but didn’t bother to command me to stay back.
We both knew I wouldn’t have listened.
Klaus stopped and made us come the rest of the way.
In the center, we met, our horses facing one another, each of us armed to the teeth.
Klaus reserved his stare for me, cutting into my flesh with his eyes. The last time we’d seen each other, it had been under the same pretenses. He wanted to kill me and take Ivory, but that blew up in his face.
I should have killed him when I’d had the chance. Should have chased him down like my mother said. My hands squeezed the reins through my gloves because I couldn’t express my anger in any other way. He had my wife trapped, and I knew exactly what he was doing to her. “We didn’t come here for a war. Neither one of us can afford the causalities, not when Necrosis hasn’t struck in months. So, let’s negotiate. Give me what I want, and I’ll give you what you want.”