Page 130 of Bloodguard

Anger deepens his scowl, but then he looks to Soro—shouldn’t he be at the arena?—and Ugeen, who are standing alongside a wall of stacked bleached femurs. They speak in low whispers, and Ugeen nods at everything Soro says.

I stare at Soro with fury flooding my veins. My lungs sting when my breathing picks up. I try to calm myself by making out the words chiseled into the rock formations.

The one closest to me tells a story in the language of my elven ancestors. It’s of Skyla the Sun, who loved Milagro the Moon. They wanted to be together, but they always remained apart.

From the stone ceiling covered in wine-colored stalactites, moisture rains down along with the sounds of muffled but familiar cheers. We’re below the arena, then, and a match is already in motion. Is it Leith’s? My head sags forward, my body begging for sleep. Even if it is Leith, even if he is already fighting, he could never hear my screams. And if Grandmother was truthful with me, the catacombs are only accessible through the castle, where no one would let him in.

I fight the urge to fall asleep and force myself to focus on my surroundings.

We’re on an incline of soil and rubble. Below, more bones and stones make up a maze that supposedly leads into and out of the catacombs, according to what little was shared with me in my childhood. But that’s not enough information to help me now.

I shift my stiff shoulders, but the ties hold strong.

Vitor takes in how I absorb this unfamiliar place for any speck ofanythingthat could help me escape. “By all of Old Erth,” he says. “You really don’t remember this place, do you?”

It’s an odd thing to ask. Of course I don’t remember this place. Grandmother was always so secretive, as if you had to possess a certain level of clearance and majesty to have the barest inkling the catacombs even existed. I reply with a scowl, hating the idea of speaking to him.

My ears twitch as the muffled sounds of screams and pounding hooves above us grow more pronounced. I think I hear a horn blast. That can’t be right. Didn’t that match just start?

Perhaps not. All I’m certain of is that I’m badly hurt.

My body bellows from the magnitude of injuries I’ve sustained, punishing me with stabbing pains and dull throbbing aches.

It’s hard to focus on anything. I try anyway. After all, I’m not dead yet.

A golden gate to my right separates us from the largest stalactites. They’re immense, stretching from the cavernous ceiling to the hard gravel floor. Should any of these wine-colored monstrosities break, we’d all be crushed.

I peer closer, past the gate. There’s a large mound of soil there but not much more. Could that be another way out? Maybe. The bars look spaced far enough apart for me to squeeze through. I must figure out how to break free.

“Maeve,” Vitor says quietly.

I wish my voice didn’t leak the misery I feel. It kills me just to look at him. “Don’t,” I say. “You’ve done enough.”

“My darling daughter, forgive me for my part in this.”

“I’m not yourfuckingdaughter.” The words tear through my throat. “And nothing you say or do will make me forgive the unforgivable.”

I didn’t think tears were possible in heat this wretched, but they are. I can’t even swallow without coughing. Gone. My family is gone.

“Give her water, Soro,” Vitor orders. “Now.”

“Shut up!”I tell him. That’s it. That’s all that I have for a man I loved and learned from. From the man who threw me into the air as a child and who taught me to throw a spear not long after.

Vitor stares at me for a beat—long enough for me to ponder how to kill him, how to make Soro pay. How to gut Ugeen and the generals.

I jerk my head when the galloping above makes condensation drip onto my forehead. The screams from the arena grow in severity. Leith… Is he fighting for his life above while I’m trapped here, unable to help him? Has he even gone?

Is he dead already?

Soro raises his head from where he’s speaking to Ugeen.

Another drop from above has me shuddering with disgust, which causes pains to shoot through my body. By all the stars, everything hurts like hell. I take slow breaths through my mouth. My nose is broken, and the tissue surrounding it is so swollen I can barely feel my face move even when speaking. I must have been close to joining Father and Neela if it’s taking this long for just my face to heal. Toss in the awful heat, and every breath is grueling.

Father and Neela. I’m so sorry.

Soro looks up as more drips pelt my head. “You hear those screams?” he asks no one in particular. “No one’s getting through today. This was my idea.Mine.”

Leith is still alive. He must be. He’s the main event, and this monster wouldn’t dream of missing his match.

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