Page 47 of Myths and Manuscripts
“Hey, you told Dain to go after the hero first.” I crossed my arms, staring Thorne down. “And besides, kidnap is a strong word.” I turned to Dain, smiling at him. “You didn’t kidnap him, right? You just asked politely and he came here with you of his own free will?”
“Oh, no. I definitely kidnapped him.” Dain grinned proudly. “I threw him over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes and just walked right out of their camp with them none the wiser. Honestly, those humans are far too overconfident. None of them would expect a demon to just walk in and grab their hero. It was easy.”
I shrank in on myself, wishing I could hide in the shadows like Thorne. “You’re joking, right?”
“I never joke about kidnapping.” Dain puffed out his chest. “I just threw a cloak on, pulled the hood up, and said I had an important mission for the hero. They led me right to him.”
Thorne’s shoulders stiffened. “Where is he?”
“The dungeons, My Lord.” Dain’s frown deepened. “Well, at least that’s what I told him. You don’t actually have a dungeon though. I was pretty surprised, so I just stuffed him in the coldest room.”
I let out a breath. “See? It’s fine—”
“Show me.” Thorne’s voice was low and commanding, leaving no room for arguments. This was the side of him the author had envisioned, I bet.
Dain marched towards the end of the hallway where the sconces were barely shining and something suspiciously sword-shaped was leaning against the wall. It was wrapped in a thick blanket secured with a belt, but I still recognized the amber gem in the pommel.
“Is that the holy sword?” The fantasy lover in me wanted to rush forward and unwrap it. “I’d give anything to hold it, just for a minute.”
Dain shook his head. “I wouldn’t advise that. The sword was pretty upset the whole way here because it couldn’t seem to repel me with its magic.”
“Well obviously not,” I said, “that’s only for monsters and dark magic. It’s got a few other spells we probably don’t want to see though.”
The sword rattled against the wall like it had some snappy retort. It was one of my favorite characters in the book, so a big part of me wanted to unwrap it and damn the consequences. It was the holy sword of all things! Excitement rushed through me, but Thorne shook his head and nudged me towards the door.
“We’re here for the hero, remember?”
My shoulders drooped. “Fine, fine. But I get to talk to the sword later.”
“Deal.” Amusement colored his voice as he opened the door to reveal a man with blonde hair pacing the room like he was abeast locked in a cage. His bright white armor and amber eyes signaled he was none other than the hero himself.
“You really did it.” My mouth fell open, staring at Dain. I had assumed he was a bit silly and maybe not very good at his job, but now I was seeing him in a whole new light. “You’re actually pretty skilled, aren’t you?”
“Of course, I am.” His back straightened. “The Demon Lord wouldn’t have appointed me as your bodyguard if I wasn’t.”
I didn’t have the heart to tell him that that was probably a spur of the moment decision without much thought behind it. Thorne wasn’t the type of guy who got to know people easily. Now wasn’t the time to bring that up though, not when Thorne was glowering at the hero like he was a bug he wanted to squash.
“Vile monsters!” The hero reached for a sword that was no longer at his hip, flexing his hand awkwardly before lunging to the other side of the room like he wanted some distance between us. “I’ll defeat you and save this world, once and for all. You never should have brought me here, not unless you’re ready to die!”
Thorne sighed and turned back to Dain. “Take him back.”
“But My Lord, we haven’t even questioned him yet.” Dain motioned for me to get closer. “You said you needed to talk to him, so talk before the Demon Lord, in his infinite mercy, sends him away.”
The hero clenched his hands at his side. “I’ll never talk. Not even if you torture me.”
“Whoa, nobody’s torturing anyone.” I held my hands up. “I just want to ask you a few things. You know, have a friendly conversation.”
“No, he’s going back.” Thorne’s shadows filled the room. “Now.”
“See reason, My Lord,” Dain pleaded.
I nodded. “We already kidnapped him, so we might as wellget something out of it. Just let him stay the night.”
Our conversation devolved into us arguing about the pros and cons of kidnapping a hero. On the pro side, I’d be able to get all the information I wanted for the book. But there was a pretty big con: his people would probably consider this an act of war and would try to get him back by any means necessary. That hadn’t seemed to bother Thorne before, but now that he’d seen how badly the demons were treated here, he probably didn’t want the humans anywhere near them again. Which was fair, but it wouldn’t help me finish the book.
Cinder poked her head inside the room, completely ignoring all the excitement as she hopped over to the hero, who had sat on the stone bed at some point and was staring at us with a blank look on his face.
“Uhhh, do I get a vote?” The hero raised his hand like a school kid.
