Page 146 of The Shadow Fae Rhapsody
I miss the evenings we spent together. I crave for more of it in our future. The world slowly darkens to black the longer I am apart from her. It can’t end this way… There are so many things left unspoken between us.
I can’t lose her.
Chapter 26 Rhianelle
Ashes crumble beneath my feet as I walk with Aelfric into the dungeon over Tavan’s west wing. The rush of battle has not worn off from my veins, and I remain wary. I don’t let the stench of death and rot falter my steps as we move along the dark passage.
I know Blaire is not here, but I have to see.
Movements from behind the bars catch my attention. I feel the eyes tracking my movement in the dark.
Prisoners.
Just as Svenn had informed us days ago, there were no fae and elves in Tavan. Most of the captives in these cells are from Darvan. While the dwarfs are certainly shorter than Aelfric, most of the males are able to look me straight in the eyes. The mighty armor they wear and the heavy muscles suggest that these are warriors among their clan.
My heart crumbles at the sight of fetters on collars around their neck.
“Make sure they are treated for their wounds and injuries right away,” Aelfric directs one of the Hlaryan elves. His sapphire eyes turn to me. “It’s best if we let the healers work now.”
I nod and trail behind him silently to the wide open square outside. Two soldiers are marveling at the macabre remains on an orc splattered on the wall, one of the many victims of Svenn’s rampage.
My husband may be affected by the dagger’s curse, but he will be trialed and judged for the killings of our people. Those unfortunate support line soldiers and Lord Wesley. Sorrow streams in my chest at the memory of Svenn’s shadow swallowing them into the darkness. There is something I have decided in my heart if they choose to execute him. I haven’t told Aelfric yet, but I’m going to run away with Svenn.
He’s my mate. Mine.
Even now the bond is desperately telling me to rush home to him. He’s injured and I need to get to him fast. I will carry the weight of all those deaths for the rest of my life. We both will.
I take one look at the devastation and dead bodies sprawled around us and ask, “How many?”
My knight understands the simple question instantly, but it takes a long moment for him to deliver the final tally. “So far they’ve counted two hundred fifty-seven losses from our side.”
Dread settles in my gut, ominous and heavy. Two hundred fifty-seven souls who will not return home to their families.
“Most are all Lord Raleich’s troops who tried to breech the wall at the beginning of the battle,” Aelfric says, draining his waterskin to wash the blood underneath his nails. “We truly did not expect the rebels to have the heavy amount of Asterdust that they did.”
“What of the people that my husband has killed?” My voice quivers with the question.
Instead of an answer, my knight merely stares back in confusion. “What?”
The word escapes him just as I see Lord Wesley emerging from the stone walled tower. Is that a wraith? I rub my eyes tomake sure I am not seeing things. I expect him to disappear after I clear my vision. Delight overtakes me when he is still there, discussing something to Nemarion and Lady Eilidh’s weary faces.
He is real.
Dirt covers his auburn hair, but other than that, the warrior is unmarred and unharmed.I rush my trembling feet towards him.
Wesley’s attention shifts to me instantly.
“You’re alive… Thank the gods,” I say, staring at him with disbelief. I would have hugged him too if I weren’t wearing my proper High Elf mask.
The lord offers me a broad smile over the prayer. “Thank the vampire too.”
I lift my brows over his strange praise of gratitude. “I saw his shadows engulf you…”
“Your husband saved my life,” he says, his amber eyes flickering. “An orc general stabbed my calf, and I would have fallen from the battlement if it hadn’t been for him.”
“All of my company are alive and well, thanks to him,” Lord Nemarion adds, removing his helm.
All of them? Svenn didn’t kill his soldiers?
