Page 65 of Bought to Break
‘They know you’re a witch. So do I. I’ve known since the day Kane pulled you from the river.’
‘How?’ was all she could think to ask as her heart began to pound hard in her chest. What was she going to do? Sorin had told her how dangerous it would be for anyone to suspect, even if it couldn’t be true.
He gave her a small smile. ‘My mother was a … well, let’s just say she was a wise woman. Told me that if I was ever to meet one of your kind, I must make sure she was safe.’ He stepped back and subjected Lana to a slow perusal that made her wonder how secure she really was with him.
‘Would you like some water?’ he asked finally, and she nodded.
He grabbed a waterskin and gave it to her, watching as she drank thirstily.
She handed it back. ‘Please,’ she implored him, ‘my hands and feet are numb. The ropes …’
Still observing her closely as if she were some rare beast in a traveller’s caravan, he took a small knife from his boot and slashed the cords that bound her. They fell away and she immediately began to rub her wrists and ankles, willing the circulation to return quickly as she waited for him to turn his back on her.
‘They were tied too tightly. That was Malkom’s doing. Doesn’t know his own strength. My apologies. I have some salve in my bag.’
His eyes left her and he turned. Without a second thought, she was on her feet and running. She cleared the cave and found herself in the bright sun. She sprinted along a path as her eyes adjusted to the light and she realised she was high up on the hillside. Over the cliffs at the side of her route was the sea, far below. Quin was right. No one would hear her all the way up here.
Already breathing hard from the minor exertion, she slowed her pace and wondered again what was wrong with her and if she even had the strength to make it back down to the town. But as she rounded a corner, she slammed into a solid wall of muscle. She fell back with a cry and looked up to find Quin standing over her.
She gasped. ‘How did you get in front of me?’
He grabbed her wrist, jerked her to her feet without a word and began to lead her back the way she’d come as if she were an errant child. She fought him, pulling and kicking, scratching at his hand and trying to make him let go of her, but he ignored her efforts completely. He dragged her into the cave and threw her onto the blanket still laid out on the ground, pinning her down with his body. Fearing the worst, she struggled and bucked, but all he did was deftly tie her up again with a cold and detached expression.
‘What do you want of me?’
He got to his feet again and viewed his handiwork as she tried to catch her breath.
‘Did you not hear me?’ he suddenly snapped. ‘Greygor knows what you are.’ He shook his head. ‘You little fool. You have no idea what will happen if they find you now, do you?’
He leaned down. ‘They will do terrible things to you that will make your time in Ryon’s tent seem like a stroll in the sun. You will pray for death long before they kill you. And even if you somehow escape, Greygor will ensure you’re hunted. You could flee to the darkest realm you could find and he would still discover you.’
Lana blinked back tears of anger and frustration at her helplessness. ‘What areyougoing to do to me?’
‘When your bloodied tunic washes up, they’ll believe you’re dead and no one will look for you.’
‘And where will I be?’ she asked faintly, wondering if he would try to make her a slave to yet another unit.
‘You can stay here with the priests or you can travel back to the mainland after the Army has gone.’
‘You won’t make me stay with you?’
‘No, Lana.’ He regarded her gravely. ‘We are Dark Brothers still; we are a danger to you and you to us. We will be leaving with the rest once we’re finished here.’ He reached down to cup her cheek. She didn’t move. ‘Make no mistake,’ he said gently, ‘if I had made my pledge to anyone else, I would break it. I’d give you over to Greygor and I’d be first in line to help him destroy you.’
Unsure of how to reply, she was silent for a moment as he continued to caress her cheek in a way that reminded her of just how dangerous he was, how dangerous they all were to her regardless of the fact that she’d been living in their midst for weeks.
‘You must have loved your mother very much,’ she said at last.
She almost sighed with relief as his hand finally dropped away.
‘I did,’ he said, ‘but don’t try to escape again or Iwillgive you to the Commander, promise or no.’
She worried her lip with her teeth, stopping immediately when she saw his sudden interest in what she was doing. He wanted her, she abruptly and very belatedly realised, but he was controlling himself. He was handsome, but she felt nothing when she looked at him. He was not one of the men she loved.
‘What about Kane, Viktor and Sorin?’ she asked, trying to change the subject to remind him that there were Brothers who would protect her – she hoped.
‘What about them?’
‘Are you going to make them believe I’m dead too?’
