Page 88 of Frosted Torment

We separated and turned back to Vallen. “Since you’re the only one who can tell us how to get out of here, we’ll help you.”

“Honey to my ears,” he moaned with closed eyes, then licked his lips.

“You’re sick,” growled Baz. “If it weren’t for needing to save Noa, I’d rip your throat out.”

“And you should be playing watchdog back in the Veil!” Vallen bellowed, the sound echoing off the stone walls.

“This isn’t helping, Baz,” I complained as the tension in the cave grew. I needed to focus on the most important questions.

“Other than the typical ‘bad guy trying to take over the world’ scenario, why is Maros so damn invested in this?” Lex asked, eyes narrowing.

“It’s personal for him. Noa’s bloodline is old and sacred. He intends to end it and enslave all humans,” Vallen explained, his voice weary. “He’s wanted this for ages.”

“I knew it!” exclaimed Lex with a bittersweet smile.

“Except Maros and your brother bested you. There is no backup plan,” I bit out at Vallen, my irritation bubbling up.

“Concealing you and the bracelet was the backup plan, Noa.” Vallen rolled his neck, his gaze settling on Lex as he mouthed, “Water.”

“Good to know my waterboy skills are coming in handy,” Lex grumbled as he refilled the ladle.

“What makes this bracelet so special?” I asked while rolling my wrist back and forth, feeling the cold metal melded into my skin. “Jewelry doesn’t typically slice through skin and adhere to people’s bones.”

Vallen took a deeper drink than we had previously allowed, then continued. “It’s a nail from the crucifixion.”

My arms fell to my sides as I gazed at him, examining his expression for any trace of dishonesty. “So you’re saying that there’s a real nail from the cross inside my body?” I questioned with doubt.

He nodded, stretching as if to emphasize his point, muscles appearing more defined under the flickering torchlight. “Water,” Vallen requested again.

I touched Lex’s arm for him to wait before allowing Vallen another sip. Walking up to Vallen, I studied him from head to toe. His once gaunt abdomen now showed slight indentations of muscle, and his hair looked thicker and fuller under the flickering torchlight.

Although it was still a tangled mess because his beard was overgrown with knots like twisted vines. Yet, despite everything, he definitely seemed stronger. Lex approached us with a ladle full of the pool’s liquid, and I slapped it out of his hand. The metal clanged against the rocky floor as the contents splattered everywhere.

“What the hell, Noa?” Lex shouted, raising his hands in question.

“You deviant son of a bitch.” I chewed the inside of my cheek as I tapped my foot impatiently. “That water isn’t water at all, is it, Vallen?”

“What are you talking about?” Baz stepped over and dipped his finger into the puddle, then placed it on his tongue after a moment of hesitation. “Holy shit! It’s how they’re draining you to feed the tree.”

Vallen’s face hardened as I stood so close that each breath heexhaled brushed against my eyelids like a whispering breeze every time I blinked.

“I see your backup plan now. You’re using us to help you regain your essence, then kidnap me to fulfill your ceremony.”

Without thinking, my palm connected with Vallen’s cheek in a resounding slap that echoed through the cave like a crack of thunder. He let out a guttural roar, but I didn’t back down. My fury bulldozed any sense of self-preservation with him.

Baz and Lex tried to pull me back, but as their hands closed around my arms, an unexpected surge of electricity erupted from my palms, sending them flying across the damp cave floor.

I raised my hand for another slap—but this time he was ready. His manacled wrist shot up and collided with the bracelet on my wrist in a blinding flash of light. Agony exploded through my arm as bones met unforgiving chains; our connection felt like touching raw nerves drenched in liquid fire.

The force of the impact sent me reeling backward, my body slamming against the rocky ground. I struggled to remain conscious, my head throbbing with each labored breath. A sudden clatter of metal on stone indicated Vallen’s chains had shattered. The ancient wards binding him were finally broken.

He slumped to the ground, no longer supported by the unyielding restraints. Darkness edged into my vision as I struggled to stay awake, clinging desperately to consciousness. It was a futile effort.

A sudden flurry of movement and raised voices pierced through the void. Baz’s worried face appeared above me, his features tight with concern as he cradled my head in his lap.

“Noa? Can you hear me?” Baz pleaded, his voice strained. “Please, stay with me.”

I tried to answer, but my tongue felt leaden and uncooperative. My response came out as little more than a pained groan.

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