Page 78 of Found at Sea
Only then did Johnny move forward.
“Ya fought well, Cap’n,” he said as he strode toward me. “But it’s the end of the line for ya now.”
I tried to jerk out of William’s hold, but he held my arms tighter. The other man kicked my legs and caused me to stumble forward. My knees hit the dirt and I looked up into the disdainful face of Johnny.
“So much for the demon of the sea,” he said in a mocking tone, grabbing my chin and jerking my face up. “Ya ain’t nothin’ but a child.” He looked down and smiled before grabbing something off the ground. “I’m gonna gut ya with yer own blade. Then, after I kill ya, I’m gonna go after your whore. See if he’s as soft as I thinks he is.”
I stared up into the revolting face of the man who wished to end my life and squared my jaw, showing no fear. Preparing myself for death. But on the inside, I wept. Not for me, but for my songbird.
Gods, watch over him. Protect him.
That’s when it happened.
A roar of uninhibited rage pierced the air right before all three men holding onto me flew backward. No longer restrained, I got to my feet and turned to see Alek standing there. What I saw made my blood run cold.
His eyes were purple—not just a mere flash of the color, but they stayed that way. His hands were fisted at his sides and he glared at the men.
They tried to flee, but all of a sudden, they halted in step as if frozen. Johnny visibly struggled in place as if trying to move from his spot, to no avail. None of them could move. But then they did. Slowly, they brought their blades upward.
Alek’s eyes continued to glow and his stare was unwavering.
“What’s happening?” William shrieked as his hand continued to move toward his own throat. “I can’t stop it! I—”
He was silenced as he slit his own throat.
Johnny screamed right before he did the same. The third man followed suit and collapsed. As the blood poured from his neck, he twitched on the ground.
Silence.
Alek had just made them all kill themselves.
The people standing nearby had seen. They now knew what he was. Some stared with horror while others gaped. But then the whispers started before growing into an outright uproar of voices and shouts.
“He’s one of them!” one man bellowed “A bloody mage!”
Then…chaos.
