Page 40 of Stone
He looked at where the turning stone had been set in the wall. With the stone gone, a small door had swung open to reveal a gaping hole in the wall.
Garenthgot to his feet and returned to thewall. The man didn’t try to hurt him again, probably becauseGarenthhadn’t charged him in answer to being struck.
The uniformed man spoke again. His voice still reflected his anxiety, butGarenthalso heard impatience and anger. He knew an angry man was a formable foe, and if he persisted in not doing as the man requested, he knew the man would use his weapon again.
And this time it might cause more damage and perhaps injury to him.
But the idol’s call to him was inescapable. He shoved his hand into the hole and dragged out several pieces of what appeared to be paper…
And a black bag.
Garenthturned to leave when the man used his weapon again. It impacted against his upper arm and sent shockwaves through him. Therewas pain. Real pain. His fingers went numb, and the bag fell onto the floor.
The man aimed his strange sword atGarenth’slegs. It was clear the man didn’t want to kill him, only incapacitate him. To wound him to prevent him from leaving with the vial. To debilitate him long enough to take him down into another dark dungeon and put more chains on him.
Garenthrealizedhe could either take out the man, or take off.
Scooping up the bag with his other hand, he ran for the broken wall and threw himself out into the air. He heard another popping sound, and he tensed, waiting for the fire to slice into him. Something struck the back of his calf, but that pain was minimal.
Giving a hard stroke of his wings, he flew off into the night,clutching the black bag to his chest.
