Page 165 of A Vow of Wrath and Ruin

Alwin lit a fire in the hearth.

“Yeah, well, excuse me for wanting to escape. I’ve already experienced your hospitality once. I don’t care to experience it again.”

“Oh, but you’ll want to see who else will be here soon.”

My heart lurched into my throat. Tharan? Caiden?

A fist pounded at the door.

“Right on time,” Erissa said, moving gracefully across the cabin, her white robes flowing behind her.

She opened the door, and a panting woman with dark red hair and angled features nearly fell through the door. Behind her led on a chain, was Caiden.

39CAIDEN

Caiden’s heartnearly stopped at the sight of Aelia lying on a cot, arms and legs strapped in chains.

His shoulder ached from where the Folk had sunk its teeth into him, and his movements were slow and clumsy from the poison, but they’d found a healer on the road, and he was slowly healing.

Erissa, with Baylis next to her, had a smug look on her delicate face, her long, red hair braided over her shoulder. “Well, hello, prince.”

“I should’ve known you were behind this.” He ground his jaw as he narrowed his eyes on the mage.

A smile tugged at the corner of the good side of her mouth.

“You underestimate me, prince. I have been biding my time for thousands of years. One little setback was not going to stop me. Now, what in the Trinity happened to you?” She scowled at the two mercenaries. “You two had one job. Bring me them… alive.”

Caiden’s eyes flitted between the mage and the mercs. What was her endgame here? Bleed them dry and use their blood to access the Wells? Would that work? He bit on the inside of his cheek nervously.

“You didn’t say unharmed,” the female mercenary said under her breath. Her sharp features were covered in blood.

Erissa slapped the woman, sending her stumbling backward into Caiden.

“Insolent fool,” she exclaimed. “You are standing in the presence of greatness. I have walked the earth for ten thousand years. Respect your elders.”

The mercenary rubbed her face where Erissa’s hand landed.

“Take your prize, where’s my pay?”

Erissa tapped her thin lips. “Yes, there’s the matter of the third.”

“He is the Alder King. Did you really expect us to take on the Wild Hunt?”

“For what I offered, I expected you to at least try,” Erissa scoffed, throwing her braid over her shoulder. “But that’s over now. He’ll come to us now that we have her.” She pointed at Aelia.

“You’ll regret that,” Aelia spat at the mage.

“That’s enough out of you.” With a snap of Erissa’s fingers, Aelia’s mouth disappeared from her face. Her lips dissolved into a thin flap of skin. She screamed, but the sound barely came out.

Caiden swallowed the fear growing inside him.

Baylis’s eyes went wide, and she backed into the wall of the cabin.

“Have a seat, prince.” Erissa pointed to a chair next to Aelia’s cot, and Caiden sluggishly made his way to it.

“Now, I cannot have you two in this kind of condition. We have a long road ahead of us, and I need you two to be in fighting shape.”

Caiden couldn’t look at Aelia. His heart hurt for her, but there was nothing he could do. His body was bruised and broken, and his magic was depleted by the iron manacles around his wrists.

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