Page 202 of Eldritch
The two of them finally reached the stretch of woods and found the two horses tied to a tree, but there was no sign of Dravien. A plant at the base of the tree captured Kazhimyr’s attention—more specifically, a dark substance, which looked an awful lot like blood, dripping from its leaves. He smeared his finger over it, picked up a red fluid. Definitely blood.
A bellow of agony echoed through the forest, and Kazhimyr shot Ravezio a frown. As Ravezio stepped in the direction of the noise, Kazhimyr gripped his arm.
“Wait.”
Ravezio’s brows came together. “I’m going after him.”
“We have two horses. The Solassions don’t give a damn who we are. We could be at the Umbravale by tomorrow evening, if we go now.”
Wrenching his arm free, Ravezio shook his head. “He saved your life. A few times. Literally sucked the venom out of your wound. Personally? I wouldn’t have put my lips anywhere near your hairy fucking leg, but he did it, and he saved your life. You owe him, friend.Weowe him.”
Kazhimyr groaned and rubbed the back of his neck. “Fuck. We do this, it won’t just be Captain Zivant after us. It’ll be the whole Solassion army.”
“We’re highly sought out men. What else is new?” Ravezio strode off in the direction of the outcries, and shaking his head, Kazhimyr reluctantly followed.
Crouched behind shrubs, Kazhimyr surveyed the three guards only a few yards away, who stood with their backs to General Loyce, watching the surrounding trees. The general and another Bellatryx, given her muscular features that suggested she was half-Zephromyte, stared back at Dravien, who’d been secured by barbed bindings to a tree. His shirt had been removed, revealing fresh cuts to his flesh.
Clutching a dagger behind her back, General Loyce paced in front of him. “Imagine my surprise finding you here. Where are my stones?”
“Dolion…is dead. You sent me…chasing after…a ghost.”
Dravien’s lie caught Kazhimyr by surprise. He could’ve given her any number of excuses—the stones had been stolen from him, the mage had overpowered him with the stones. Instead, he gave her a finality that she likely wouldn’t have believed.
Confirmed, when she said, “You’re lying.”
She dragged her blade down the length of his shoulder to his bicep, and Dravien let out no more than a grunt through clenched teeth. “What are you doing here? And before you respond, consider that, when I administer Nilmirth, if your answer differs, you will be properly punished. None of this foreplay.”
The barbs seemed to bite deep into Dravien’s neck, the way he winced and shifted his head slightly. “I found…something better. Something…you want…more than those damned stones.”
“And what do you presume to think I want more than those stones?”
“Zevander Rydainn.”
Kazhimyr’s muscles tensed. “I say we leave him,” he whispered to Ravezio
“No. She’ll kill him.”
“I no longer care.” As Kazhimyr turned to leave, Ravezio gripped his arm, staring back with the most unyielding look he’d ever seen in his friend.
“Wait.”
“And where is Zevander, hmmm?” General Loyce kept on with her taunting.
“He was sent…to kill Zivant…for treason. By order…of King Sagaerin.”
Another lie. How easily they poured out of him.
“So odd.” She tapped her finger against her chin. “I might be inclined to believe you, but we managed to apprehend a Magestroli apprentice who claims that he fled to the mortal lands.”
“And leave…his family? Only a fool…would venture…to the deadlands.”
She drew the tip of her blade over Dravien’s exposed nipple. “And where exactly did you come by your information?”
“In my travels…I happened upon two…other Letalisz.”
“Of course. And they justhappenedto offer up this incredibly useful information to you?”
Kazhimyr’s patience had finally snapped. “Enough of this. We’re wasting time. Follow my lead.” He shoved his hand into the shrubs, held his palm toward the guard, and sent a blast of cold to the soldier’s boots.
