Page 74 of The Dawn of the Cursed Queen

I glanced at the woman near my feet. The twin puncture marks glared at me, her lifeless eyes staring toward the door as if waiting for help that would never come. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, wishing I didn’t still savor the taste of her blood. I’d found something, all right. I’d found I was just as much a monster as he was.

“Nope,” I lied. “Not a thing.”

“Hmm.” Kaden ran a hand over his face. “She must have gone further north than I thought.”

“Must have.” I absently scratched my head. “I’ll head back now, then.”

“No.” The word was curt, and even without fully seeing him, I could tell he checked around before speaking next. “I need you to keep looking, but also have an ear out.”

“For what?”

“I want to know why Nismera has a vial of Isaiah’s blood and why there is an empty one with my name on it. I want to know what my sister has been up to these last few centuries and what she’s planning.”

I couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up, but I covered it with a cough. “Sorry, but you’re telling me the diabolical Kaden doesn’t trust his equally diabolical evil sister? There’s a joke about karma in there somewhere.”

“Cameron.”

I glared at the blood on my sleeve and rubbed at it as if I could erase it. “Can’t you just fuck the hot witch since you can’t have Dianna right now and get answers?”

“Cameron.”

“Hmm?”

“If you become useless to me, I will kill you. Again.”

The line went silent.

I flipped it off before placing it back in my pocket and rolling my eyes. Well, that went great. Sighing, I looked down at the woman crumpled on the ground. Blood no longer flowed from the twin puncture marks on her throat, and still, my stomach rumbled for more. I took a calming breath, then another, before lifting her into my arms.

“Let’s get you a proper burial, love.”

I turned from the house that was more of a shack and snuck out the back toward the woods. Hunger was at the top of my list of problems. I couldn’t tell Kaden, and even if I did, he wouldn’t help. I needed to find Dianna, beg for forgiveness, and hope she’d help me long enough to find Xavier. She could kill me after that. I just needed to find him.

TWENTY-SEVEN

SAMKIEL

For the first night since I had met Orym, we didn’t eat alone. We were on the outskirts of Pheliie. We’d reach Flagerun tomorrow evening. As soon as we set up camp and the small fires were lit, several other prisoners joined us, pulling large logs over to sit on and sharing the warmth of our flames.

Orym cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck as another joined. “I may have told them about how you saved me and also maybe about releasing the toruk.”

I lowered my spoon, glaring at him.

He snickered. “You are officially the toughest among us, so they will want to be around you for protection. Trust me, it’s all a part of my master plan.”

My jaw clenched, and I shook my head but said nothing as I stirred that damn mush they served us. My stomach didn’t even growl. The aching pit at my center remained, and I was unsure if it was the purple veins spreading from the wound or that I was unsure if the toruk would find Dianna. Quiet conversation flowed around me, the men speaking in hushed tones so as not to draw the attention of the guards.

“So, where did they kidnap you from?”

It wasn’t until Orym nudged me that I realized the question was directed toward me. I wasn’t used to any of the prisoners talking to me, but now when I looked up, damn near twelve of them were staring at me as they ate, the fire crackling between us.

I shook my head at the dwarf who’d asked the question. His beard was matted, but I could see a scar running along his jaw and across his lips. His hands were just as calloused as mine, and I knew how strong he was despite his size. He was not one I would wish to fight.

“Me?” I asked. “What about you? The mountains of Tarnesshe are not that easy to get to, and your people are far too battle-strong to be taken without a fight.”

The dwarf smiled a toothy grin that made his face a fraction softer, as if my words had given him the confidence boost he needed after all that he had lost. He sat a little straighter and prouder at the reminder of where he came from.

“You must not have been in The Eye that long if you’re asking us questions.” The voice was harsh and bordering on challenging. The men grew quiet, and everyone stopped eating, some staring into their bowls.

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