Page 107 of Dark Shaman: Love Found
It was horrible. And yet, wasn't her life a different kind of entombment? Conscious, breathing, but trapped?
"How many enhanced soldiers survived?" Sarah asked the guard.
"We don't have the numbers yet," he said.
"Can we at least go upstairs?" a servant asked. "The basement is so oppressive, and if the danger has passed..."
"Soon," the guard promised. "The mansion has to be secured first. There was significant damage to some areas. We need to make sure it's structurally sound."
More waiting.
Tamira leaned against Elias's chest, not caring that the others could see them like that. She needed him.
Her hand closed around his, and as she looked into his eyes, she saw her own thoughts reflected in them. They'd come so close to the edge, so close to the final moment. She'd been prepared to die rather than face whatever the rebelswould do to her. She'd asked him to kill her, and he'd been prepared to do it.
How did you come back from that?
"I need that knife back," she said quietly.
He shifted, carefully extracting the blade from beneath his leg and passing it to her under the cover of her dress.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "For asking that of you."
"Don't apologize," he said, his voice rough. "I understand why. I'm just glad that I didn't have to."
"Me too," she whispered.
"I don't know if I would have been capable of doing it," Elias admitted. "The other solution was indeed easier."
He was talking about the poison, and she understood that he had finally been able to internalize her fear when he'd thought the end was coming and he would have to end her life to save her from a worse fate.
The knife felt wrong in her hands now, a reminder of her desperation. She needed to return it and pretend she'd never taken it.
"Lord Navuh will surely come to see us as soon as he can," Areana said. "He will want to ensure that we're all unharmed."
"I can't wait for things to go back to normal." Beulah wiped sweat from her forehead, smearing dust all over.
"Define normal," Tula said with a bitter laugh. "Back to the harem? Yes, probably. The restoration is almost complete unless it has also suffered damage. However, I can't imagine how. Living in an underground bunker has its advantages."
"It does." Sarah smiled. "I've never thought I would say this, but I'm grateful to Lord Navuh for housing us in the safest structure on the island. He really treasures us."
37
NAVUH
Navuh pulled up the casualty reports. They were significant but not catastrophic. Most of his warriors were already recovering. The enhanced soldiers had been focused on reaching him, not on eliminating his forces permanently. Their greed and arrogance had been their downfall in more ways than one.
"My lord," Vakon said, "the mansion above has sustained some damage. I'm calling for the engineer to inspect the structural integrity."
He nodded. "Make it a priority. We need to know if we can allow the staff and the ladies to come up from the basement."
The collapse of the tunnel with the rebels must have done the most damage, but it was worth it, even if the entire mansion collapsed on top of it.
On the monitors, he could see his forces moving across the island, mopping up the remaining resistance. Some of theenhanced ones surrendered, but the other warriors didn't trust them and surrounded them with overwhelming numbers just to be on the safe side. Some still fought viciously, taking down multiple opponents before being subdued.
"I want the captured enhanced soldiers in solitary confinement," Navuh said.
"Yes, my lord," Vakon said, already relaying the orders.
