Page 128 of Bound to the Dreadlord

A fool for still standing at his side, for still protecting a man who would have sacrificed me.

I hold my dagger tightly, the blade warm and sticky with blood. My arms ache from the battle, my muscles scream for rest, but I force myself forward. My dress is in tatters, torn from the fight, and there is a gash along my ribs where a blade nearly found its mark.

A dark elf lunges at me, snarling.

I pivot, dodge and slash like routine clockwork.

The blade bites into his throat. Hot blood sprays across my face, but I do not flinch. I do not hesitate.

I am learning.

The battlefield is chaos, but I keep Veylan in my periphery. I rationalize myself, declaring its because I am watching for an opening to run. To escape.

But when an arrow whistles toward his unprotected side, I move without thinking.

I throw my dagger.

The arrow snaps midair. The dark elf who fired it couldn’t react fast enough before my blade buries itself in his skull.

Veylan turns. His eyes find mine.

Shock. Confusion. Something unreadable.

I expect him to ignore it, to return to his slaughter.

But he does not.

He crosses the battlefield in mere seconds, slicing through enemies like paper, and suddenly he is before me, grabbing my wrist in a bruising grip.

“Why did you do that?” His voice is rough, barely heard over the screams of war.

I jerk my arm free, breathing hard. “It was a mistake.”

His eyes flicker, but he does not argue.

Suddenly, a presence.

Cold. Ancient. Wrong.

I turn in time to see him.

A sorcerer, cloaked in flowing black robes, his hands crackling with magic. He raises them toward me, and I do not have time to move.

Power slams into me.

It feels like my body is being pulled apart, my soul being ripped from my flesh. I choke on a scream, falling to my knees.

Veylan is there in an instant, his sword swinging, but the sorcerer throws him back with a flick of his wrist.

The magic intensifies.

My body is on fire. My veins feel like they are boiling.

I am going to die.

No.

Something inside me snaps.

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