had sat with Eirik less than an hour ago.
“I smell human blood,” Cephalus said, getting to his feet very quickly considering his size. He had to hunch down to avoid connecting with the ceiling. When he lifted his club, it hit the table and sent it flying.
“Holy light!”
Metis had just realized the cage was empty when the exclamation issued from near the door. She froze in confusion as Cephalus whirled toward the sound of the voice.
“No!” she cried, reaching for the arm that wielded the club. “Do not injure them, you fool!”
He swatted her aside with one of his arms even as he swung his weapon. He aimed for the Kynzesti, scenting the human part of her blood. Tate stayed her ground until the club was less than a foot from her. Then she leaped to the side.
The door splintered with a tremendous crack. Metis felt her plans sliding sideways.
“Tate, get through the door!”
The Lekwuesti produced something with a glow of lavender light. She ran up to Cephalus as he yanked on his club to disconnect it from what remained of the door. When he again brought the weapon up, she flung the contents in her hand at the giant’s eyes.
He reared back with a roar. Metis belatedly tried to figure out where she could teleport to, but it was too late. Her last, panicked thought before Cephalus knocked her senseless was that the females were escaping the room, and they were almost surely going to die.
Chapter 8
“They have escaped the cage,” Zachariah announced.
Ini-herit listened to the murmurs around him and imagined everyone was excited by this news. He nodded in acknowledgement, but his attention was elsewhere.
What was wrong with Clara Kate?
“Bloody hell. The damn door is locked.”
This time, the responses around Ini-herit had a distinctly negative sound.
Uriel asked, “Do they see a key or other method of opening the door?”
“They’re looking.”
Ini-herit’s thoughts again turned inward. Clara Kate really had looked pale. He’d noticed it a few miles before Quincy finally insisted that she land with him. He had been wondering how he could possibly convince her to let him touch her so that he could assess her condition and heal her. After seeing how she reacted when Quincy almost suggested the same thing, he knew she never would have agreed.
Her behavior made no sense to him. If she was unwell, she should allow him to heal her. She was visibly exhausted. His abilities would have renewed her energy and adjusted any imbalances she suffered.
Then she would still be with them.
Instead, she was somewhere else with only three other beings for protection. Eirik and his followers wouldn’t hesitate to capture any of the Kynzesti, especially the daughter of archigos Gabriel and kyria Amber. Her stubbornness had placed her in danger.
Blinking, he realized he was obsessing…something he’d never done before.
“Get down!”
Zachariah’s warning had all of them starting. Ini-herit realized the Mercesti was reacting to something he witnessed through his connection to Tate.
“The door is no longer an obstacle,” Zachariah said. He looked at Tiege. “But we’d better hurry. Judging by the size of the six-armed giant Metis just teleported to their location, they don’t have much time.”
Metis was a dead being.
Eirik stood in the meadow with Friedrich and the five males he had selected to accompany him back to the laboratory. It hadn’t taken him long to realize he had been double-crossed. Now, as the sky lightened for sunrise, he had to decide what to do.
“Perhaps she is merely late,” Friedrich suggested.
“No,” Eirik said, his rage carefully held in check. “She is going to attempt to recover the third scroll piece. I am certain of it.”
“Should we just fly to the location where the females are being kept?”
Now, some of Eirik’s anger seeped into his response. “I have no idea where it is.”
He wanted to kill someone. Instead, he clenched his hands into fists
“I smell human blood,” Cephalus said, getting to his feet very quickly considering his size. He had to hunch down to avoid connecting with the ceiling. When he lifted his club, it hit the table and sent it flying.
“Holy light!”
Metis had just realized the cage was empty when the exclamation issued from near the door. She froze in confusion as Cephalus whirled toward the sound of the voice.
“No!” she cried, reaching for the arm that wielded the club. “Do not injure them, you fool!”
He swatted her aside with one of his arms even as he swung his weapon. He aimed for the Kynzesti, scenting the human part of her blood. Tate stayed her ground until the club was less than a foot from her. Then she leaped to the side.
The door splintered with a tremendous crack. Metis felt her plans sliding sideways.
“Tate, get through the door!”
The Lekwuesti produced something with a glow of lavender light. She ran up to Cephalus as he yanked on his club to disconnect it from what remained of the door. When he again brought the weapon up, she flung the contents in her hand at the giant’s eyes.
He reared back with a roar. Metis belatedly tried to figure out where she could teleport to, but it was too late. Her last, panicked thought before Cephalus knocked her senseless was that the females were escaping the room, and they were almost surely going to die.
Chapter 8
“They have escaped the cage,” Zachariah announced.
Ini-herit listened to the murmurs around him and imagined everyone was excited by this news. He nodded in acknowledgement, but his attention was elsewhere.
What was wrong with Clara Kate?
“Bloody hell. The damn door is locked.”
This time, the responses around Ini-herit had a distinctly negative sound.
Uriel asked, “Do they see a key or other method of opening the door?”
“They’re looking.”
Ini-herit’s thoughts again turned inward. Clara Kate really had looked pale. He’d noticed it a few miles before Quincy finally insisted that she land with him. He had been wondering how he could possibly convince her to let him touch her so that he could assess her condition and heal her. After seeing how she reacted when Quincy almost suggested the same thing, he knew she never would have agreed.
Her behavior made no sense to him. If she was unwell, she should allow him to heal her. She was visibly exhausted. His abilities would have renewed her energy and adjusted any imbalances she suffered.
Then she would still be with them.
Instead, she was somewhere else with only three other beings for protection. Eirik and his followers wouldn’t hesitate to capture any of the Kynzesti, especially the daughter of archigos Gabriel and kyria Amber. Her stubbornness had placed her in danger.
Blinking, he realized he was obsessing…something he’d never done before.
“Get down!”
Zachariah’s warning had all of them starting. Ini-herit realized the Mercesti was reacting to something he witnessed through his connection to Tate.
“The door is no longer an obstacle,” Zachariah said. He looked at Tiege. “But we’d better hurry. Judging by the size of the six-armed giant Metis just teleported to their location, they don’t have much time.”
Metis was a dead being.
Eirik stood in the meadow with Friedrich and the five males he had selected to accompany him back to the laboratory. It hadn’t taken him long to realize he had been double-crossed. Now, as the sky lightened for sunrise, he had to decide what to do.
“Perhaps she is merely late,” Friedrich suggested.
“No,” Eirik said, his rage carefully held in check. “She is going to attempt to recover the third scroll piece. I am certain of it.”
“Should we just fly to the location where the females are being kept?”
Now, some of Eirik’s anger seeped into his response. “I have no idea where it is.”
He wanted to kill someone. Instead, he clenched his hands into fists
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