Page 143 of Forsaken Secrets

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Jaiel

Lynk was missing! I'd searched everywhere and had seen no sign of him. Where had that damned barbarian gone?

I shifted my vest and looked around outside once more, waving at one of the guards.

Fuck. We were out of time. Hopefully, he'd found a lead of his own and would meet me downstairs.

I turned and went back into the mansion, following the directions the woman had told me. The lever was just where she'd said, and I flipped it, revealing a hidden passage. Stone stairs descended into the dark and I couldn't help smiling.

Someday, I'd have a place of my own and would have hidden rooms everywhere …

I took the steps two at a time until I emerged into a large stone cavern. There were carvings covering two walls … were those Fae runes? I'd love to look closer, but a loud shout drew my attention back to the room.

Saints. There were so many people! What was this place?

I turned around a column, and my stomach plummeted.

At the back, by the person talking, was a tall stone dragon.

This was a cult, and a gods be damned Druid cult, at that! I thought the Rogues had wiped them out decades ago?

The man was talking about how they just needed to be patient. "Lord Ellingsworth will return soon and bring the reward for all our work. It's just a matter of time."

I needed to blend in, and fast.

Moving quietly, I snuck up behind a man in back of the crowd and pressed a spot on his neck. He collapsed into my arms. The woman on his right turned to me, eyes wide.

Damn. I must be losing my touch! Smiling widely, I leaned close to her. "He was feeling sick." Her pupils dilated, and her lips relaxed into a beatific smile before she returned her attention to the front.

I let out a breath and pulled him behind the columns with me.

I quickly removed his cloak and slipped into it, taking his place at the back of the crowd to survey the room.

Was Lynk in here somewhere?

He was tall enough that he should stand out in the crowd, but there was no tall barbarian in the sea of hooded cloaks. Where the saints was he?

There was a slender black-haired man being beaten up front, though, and I shook my head. That Liam was going to be the death of me. I was sure of it.

Why couldn't he have just followed the damn plan?

I pulled my hood tighter and wove my way through the crowd. Hopefully, I could get up there in time, but the damn boy wasn't even fighting!

Why wasn't he fighting?

Beyond him was Kaiya and some other woman strapped in chairs. Damn. This was pretty much the worst-case scenario. I should have followed my instincts, ignored Liam, and called for back-up from Dimiri. What in the realms had I been thinking?

A hand caught my shoulder, and I froze, forcing my face into the blank stare I'd seen on the people around me. The last thing I needed was to be caught and thrown up front with Liam.

"Follow me," a low, raspy voice whispered. Lynk? Thank the saints!

He urged me forward through the crowd, escorting me up the side.

Wait. Why was no one saying anything? He wasn't doing one of those magic disappearing acts to us like he'd done to Kaiya and Liam, was he?

It certainly didn't seem like it …

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