Page 30 of Naga Healer's Mate

The cell reeked of mold and decay.Water dripped somewhere in the darkness, each drop echoing off stone walls.Her healer’s mind kicked in as she assessed her multiple injuries.She had severely bruised ribs, a probable concussion, and multiple lacerations.The Jorvlen soldiers hadn’t held back.

“Nirrn…” The whisper escaped her cracked lips before she could stop it.The image of him lying motionlessly on the cavern floor in Haven flashed through her mind.His orange scales dulled with dirt and blood, those golden eyes closed forever.

Tears slid down her cheeks, mixing with the dried blood there.“I’m so sorry,” she choked out to the empty cell.“This is all my fault.I should have listened to you.Should have left when you said…”

The chains clinked as she slumped against the damp wall.Her shoulders shook with silent sobs.If she’d just swallowed her pride, stopped being so stubborn about staying in Jorvla, he would still be alive right now.They would both be safe on Nirum if she’d only done as he’d suggested.

“I got you killed,” she whispered into the darkness.“You protected me, saved me over and over, and I got you killed in the end.”

Her fingers felt the wall behind her, finding deep gouges in the stone.How many others had been chained here before her?How many humans had suffered in this cell while she’d been hiding away in her clinic, helping so few when she should have done more?

A rat scurried across her feet, making her jump.The sudden movement sent fresh waves of pain through her battered body.She bit back her cry of pain, refusing to give her captors the satisfaction of hearing her suffering.

“I never even told you…” Her voice cracked.She’d never got the chance to tell him how she really felt about him, how his quiet strength had become her anchor in this forsaken world.Now she never would.

The sound of distant footsteps made her tense.They were coming for her.She straightened despite the pain, lifting her chin.They may have taken everything from her—her family, her clinic, her freedom, Nirrn—but they wouldn’t take her dignity.She wouldn’t give them that.

The heavy footsteps grew louder with each passing second, echoing through the stone corridors.Her heart hammered fiercely against her bruised ribs as a beam of harsh light suddenly flooded her cell, making her squint and turn away.

“Well, well.The defiant little human healer.”The Jorvlen lead commander’s gravelly voice carried a note of cruel amusement.His boots scraped against the stone floor as he approached and opened the cell door.“Not so brave right now.Are we?”

Islae forced herself to meet his gaze, though her vision swam slightly.

“Did you really think you could hide from us forever?”He grabbed her chin, his slimy fingers digging into her jaw.“That pathetic little clinic of yours was just the beginning.We had to make an example, you see.Can’t have humans thinking they can operate outside our authority.”

She jerked her face away from his grip.“Go to hell.”

The back of his hand cracked across her face.Stars exploded behind her eyes as her head snapped to the side.

“You have two options,” he continued, pacing before her.“Either we auction you off to the highest bidder—and trust me, many parties are interested in a skilled healer—or we make a public spectacle of your execution.Show everyone what happens to those who defy us.”

The words should have terrified her.But a strange numbness had settled over her mind.What did it matter anymore?Her family was gone.Nirrn… The image of his bloodied body flashed through her thoughts again.Everyone she’d ever loved had been taken from her.

“Nothing to say?”he nodded to his soldiers.“Perhaps we need to loosen her tongue.”

The first blow caught her in the stomach, driving what little air remained from her lungs.She sagged against the chains as fists and boots connected with her body.Each impact sent fresh waves of agony through her, but she barely registered them anymore.

Let them beat her.Let them kill her.What was the point of fighting anymore?Of being strong?She’d failed everyone who ever counted on her.

Blood filled her mouth as another punch landed.Her legs gave out completely, the chains at her wrists now supporting her full weight.The metal cut deeper into her skin, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.

“Not so defiant now?”the commander’s voice came from somewhere above her.“Don’t worry.It will all be over soon enough.”

Islae closed her eyes, letting the darkness creep in around the edges of her consciousness.Maybe it was better this way.Maybe death would finally bring her peace.

The darkness crept in fast as her body sagged against the metal chains.Warm blood dripped from her split lip onto the cold stone floor, each drop echoing in the silence of her dank cell.The Jorvlen commander and his men had finally gone away, leaving her alone with her pain and despair.

Through the haze of approaching unconsciousness, a familiar deep voice whispered in her mind.“Hold on, Islae.I’m coming for you.”

Her heart clenched.“Great,” she muttered through swollen lips.“Now I’m hallucinating.”The beating must have damaged her head worse than she thought.Nirrn was dead.She’d watched him fall, his orange scales dulled with blood pooling under him, his powerful body crumpled under the Jorvlen assault.

“Stay strong.”The voice came again, rich and commanding, exactly as she remembered.“Don’t give up.”

“You’re not real,” she whispered to the empty cell.“You’re dead because of me.”Tears mixed with the blood on her face.

A sudden surge of electricity shot through her veins, making her gasp.The sensation wasn’t painful—more like static dancing across her skin, awakening every nerve ending.Her clouded mind emptied with startling clarity, and with it came an impossible certainty.

Nirrn was alive.

---