Page 39 of Galadon
“You have such a filthy mouth that doesn’t suit your pretty face,” he said, giving her a reproachful look.
She rolled her eyes. “My heart bleeds for you.”
“Ha, ha, it will soon enough.” He turned to me. “And how has your day been? I do hope you’re comfortable and feel you’re getting fair treatment.”
“These chains leave a little to be desired,” I said, attempting to shift on my bare feet, but I couldn’t do more than wiggle my toes.
Astaroth nodded. “Then all is as it should be.” He beckoned at his followers, and one of them handed him a wooden box, opening it so he could pull out something that resembled a large cheese grater. “I think we’ll use this on the slayer since we spent so little time on her last night. Dear Rayna is undoubtedly feeling neglected.”
“No!” I jerked on my chains, knowing how that could be used since I’d seen my mother handle something similar while cooking. She had a few human meals she’d learned in recent years that she liked to prepare. “Leave her and torture me instead.”
The sorcerer chuckled, handing the grater to a female acolyte. “Oh, we’ll work on both of you this evening. Not to worry, shifter.”
I watched as the young woman with red-rimmed eyes moved toward Rayna with malicious intent. “Where should I start first, Master?”
“Her thighs will do.”
She kneeled next to the slayer, adjusting her robe so the front opening revealed a familiar pair of pink pants they’d stolen from the tower. It was one more insult on top of the others. Then she grabbed one of Rayna’s outstretched legs where previous cuts were partially healed. I shook with the need to stop this and yelled obscenities, but no one paid attention to me.
Astaroth and the other two followers watched with an anticipation that infuriated me as the female started on Rayna. I tried to meet the slayer's gaze and give her what comfort I could, but she’d closed her eyes and clenched her mouth shut as her skin was slowly shredded. I pulled and yanked against my chains to no avail, wishing for greater strength as they destroyed her skin.
The older sorcerer let it go on for a few minutes before directing his attention to me. He took another item from the box—a long serrated knife—and moved to block my view of Rayna, where she’d begun to scream. Astaroth stabbed me in the lower stomach and pulled the blade up toward my ribs, slicing me wide open. My pained shouts mingled with the slayer’s.
“Music to my ears,” the Kandoran said, chuckling. “We’re going to have so much fun today.”
What happened next was beyond anything I imagined a human could do to another living being, but these were noordinary people. They lacked souls. The sorcerers took turns inflicting wounds on us, getting more creative as they went. Each time we blacked out, they simply awakened us again before resuming.
It felt like hours passed before he forced a full canteen of water down each of our throats. I gulped it greedily, uncaring that it didn’t taste right. It wet my dry mouth and satiated some of my thirst. In less than a minute, though, my lids grew heavy. He’d drugged the contents to ensure we’d sleep for however long he wished.
Chapter 17
Rayna
It had been nearly three days since Galadon joined her in this hellish place, and both of them were in terrible shape, physically and mentally. Rayna was so angry at him for coming. Suffering torture was bad enough, but watching him endure it was worse. Of course, Astaroth was aware of that and used it against them.
She was surprised by the depths of Galadon’s rage at seeing her harmed. The fierceness in his fiery eyes when he saw her suffering on his first full day said he was ready to lay waste to all the remaining Kandoran if he could get free. He cared more than she had imagined.
When they’d eventually been left alone and awake long enough to speak, they’d agreed to stop watching or responding to each other’s torture. It only served to please the sorcerers. Instead, they did their best to remain silent and endure the pain without responding. Astaroth wasn’t happy about it, but he soon found that his two captives were stubborn, and nothing he did could get a rise out of them. They’d suffered so much agony by that point that their nerves had dulled.
Galadon explained to Rayna that he’d heard of it happening among his kind. If their bodies weren’t allowedto heal properly and kept taking damage, such as during a protracted battle, their minds shut down most of their pain receptors and focused on healing the vital parts. Perhaps that was how Bailey’s father had endured so much before dying.
Still, Rayna felt enough pain to be miserable. She couldn’t bear to look at herself, and when she did turn her attention to Galadon, she focused on his face. The rest of his body—usually smooth, rock-hard muscles—was barely recognizable. She finally found out why Astaroth didn’t damage their visages. He wanted to properly gauge their reactions to his torture, and he also liked leaving one part of them unscathed. That was what he told them, anyway.
“Rayna,” Galadon said, calling her name hoarsely.
She’d been staring at the sky, but at the sound of his voice, she clenched her eyes shut. “What?”
“We will get free.”
She started to laugh, but it hurt too much. “I don’t see how.”
“Just be patient,” he said, and though she still refused to look at him, she felt his heavy gaze on her.
Her body began to tremble. It had been doing that off and on since last night, and it wasn’t entirely related to her injuries. She was nearing the one-week mark since killing a dragon. The urge to hunt was growing, and being near Galadon didn’t help. Even in human form, unable to shift, he still called to her instincts. If, by some miracle, they did get rescued, she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to control herself around him.
“You can’t free me no matter what,” she said, finally turning to give him an emphatic look.
His brows drew together. “Why?”
