Page 88 of Magic Hunted
“You did more than most. We’re proud of you,” Ashir said. I smiled as his soul-light warmed and burrowed against mine.
“I won’t mourn where I came from because without this, I wouldn’t have found you.” I wasn’t good at telling people how I felt. I was more comfortable hiding in the shadows, and that included hiding my feelings but there were no secrets between us. Our bond thrummed with the love and respect from my mates. The time for hiding was over. Thanks to my mates, I would step into the sun and bask in its rays.
“All of us were shaped by our experiences both good and bad. The point is to move to a better place now we have each other,” Ashir said, his voice no more than a gravelly rumble.
A moment passed when I basked in our bond that spoke more than words ever could, leaning into their warm bodies and taking the comfort they offered.
“Do you hear that?” I crouched closer to the hole in the wall. The tiniest of sounds echoed from the tunnel. Sounds undetected as a human and barely there with the aid of my panther.
“Are there more dungeons down there?’ Savvas asked.
“No. The tunnel leads directly out of the castle. There should be nothing down there but rats,” I said.
Dias crouched next to me. “Sounds like some big rats.”
“They could be humans hiding from us. We’ll need to go down and check it out. I’ll have to make the hole bigger for us to fit through.” Ashir extended his lethal black claws and raked them through the mortar. He pulled out more bricks with sheer physical strength. When he’d opened a large enough hole he poked his head through and then disappeared.
I followed next, withdrawing my sword when I’d found my footing on the ledge below the hole. Savvas’ eyes watered when he stepped next to me. Dias coughed and wrinkled his nose.
Ashir motioned to follow him as he stalked down the tunnel. I let my panther rise, using her eyes to see. Dark shadows lightened into shapes I could navigate without slipping into the stream below. The sounds of movement grew louder and led us around a bend that was tucked deep in shadows. We turned into the smaller tunnel, leaving the sewer behind, although the air was no less potent.
“I’ve never seen this before,” I whispered. I knew these tunnels intimately, passing through them hundreds of times, and I’d never seen this tunnel, nor the side-shoot off it.
Dancing flames prickled the darkness. We stepped without sound, the light growing steadily until it lit the outside of a heavy wooden door. Hushed sounds of voices and the chink of chains echoed from behind the unmanned door.
A thick black lock was threaded through iron bars on the door and the wall. Whoever was locked inside was meant to be kept there. My nerves jangled when I pressed my ear to the door and heard distinct, desperate voices. They were too muffled to hear words, but the tone was urgent and reeked of desperation.
“We have to get them out,” I whispered.
Ashir put his hand over mine. “What if there’s a reason they’re locked in there? We’ll come back with reinforcements.”
He was protecting me, but my magic strained inside me and the urge to get to whoever was behind the door was almost overwhelming. I let my magic color the bond so they would understand what I felt. “I don’t think this can wait. I can’t explain, but I have to go in there.”
My magic wouldn’t steer me wrong, and I wasn’t walking in blind. I had my magic. My panther. Taredd’s sword and my mates.
Ashir sent me a terse nod. His eyes glowed as he let his panther rise, as did Dias and Savvas. The bond resonated with readiness. Magic heated my hand, taking the top part of the lock with its power. I caught the base of the lock before it could fall to the floor and lowered it soundlessly to the paving bricks at my feet. Dias pulled the bar off its rungs and Savvas opened the door. It swung silently open, but even then the voices suddenly stopped and a heavy silence made the inky darkness thicker.
“Watch out!” The hoarse cry from a man inside made the adrenaline spike in my bloodstream.
A male melted from the darkness. His sword glinted in the firelight as he rushed at me. Ashir swiped down, his sword flashed and the man cried out as his severed limb flew somewhere into the darkness.
He fell to his knees, clutching his stump. Blood spilled between his fingers and his round eyes stared at his stump in horror.
“Who are you? Why are you down here?” I asked.
Before the male could answer, the tip of a sword appeared in the center of his chest. He grunted and the light in his eyes darkened. As fast as it had appeared, the sword withdrew and the male toppled sideways to reveal another male holding the bloodied sword in his grip.
Dias stepped in front of me, his sword gripped tight with both hands. “You heard my mate’s question. Who are you, and why are you locked down here?”
The male didn’t answer. He lashed out with his sword, swiping it almost too fast to track. Dias jumped backwards, his back scooping and the weapon just missing him. Dias raised his sword over his head, bringing it down with the strength of his panther at the same time Savvas came up on his other side and impaled the male. Both of my mates drove their swords into the male’s sides.
The male’s arms dropped and his sword fell to the ground. The clang of metal hitting the ground echoed into the darkness, followed by his knees. He toppled over the body of the male he’d run through, blood coating them both as it flowed from their bodies.
“Is there anyone else?” I whispered.
“No. They were the only two guards here.” I jumped at the sound of a hoarse voice. “That was all they needed.”
I peered into the darkness, but saw nothing. Not even when I adjusted my sight with my panther.
