Page 28 of A Light So Blinding
“Bjorn,” she said, and his name jolted through him like an electric shock. “This is our only chance. I need you to get my sister back.”
Her sister. Of course, this was about her sister. For a moment he’d thought that maybe she just wanted him to come with her because she would miss him. That all of his care and effort had proven he wasn’t the monster that this place had made him.
But of course it wasn’t that. She needed a protector, a shield between her and this world. After all, she was a priestess. She had been delicate her entire life. Someone needed to be hard for her.
He did not take her hand. Instead, he stalked through the door and out into the hallway. Eyes darting from side to side, he took in their surroundings. The guards usually came from the right, so they would go to the left. The labyrinth had many passages that connected with each other, and if they could avoid some of the guards, then that would be best for them. He’d still kill anyone who got in their way, but the fewer people who knew they were out, the better.
Heading to the left, he left the torch where it was. He didn’t need it to see.
“Wait!” Astrid hissed. “Rabbit!”
“Leave him.”
“We can’t just leave him here! He’s been so helpful, and he saved both of us in the arena.” Her tiny hands grabbed onto Bjorn’s arm, trying to tug him back.
But he knew they didn’t have time. Just finding the right key from that ring would take enough time for the guards to find them. His neighbor poked his hand out of the window and waved his fingers. Rabbit said nothing, but he gestured for them to go. The less commotion, the better.
He knew there would be a commotion. The moment someone in a cell recognized they were out, the floodgates were going to burst open.
Rabbit knew. He had always known that if anyone was going to get out of here, it likely wasn’t him. And as much as that broke something important inside of Bjorn, he knew that Rabbit would be uninterested in him sacrificing this chance.
“Guards,” Rabbit hissed. “Get going.”
“We can’t,” Astrid said, tugging his arm again.
But the choice had already been made. He looked back one last time at the yellowed hand reaching through the bars of his cell before wrapping an arm around Astrid’s waist and heading in the opposite direction. They rushed through the halls, faster and faster until he swore he could almost feel the fresh air on his face.
Until he found the first group of guards. Already he bristled, knowing that this would be a difficult fight. He had hoped not to get bloody. It was easier to carry her without worrying about dripping through the silver dress, but it would have to be done.
He put her down, readying himself for a fight. He’d have to get a weapon first. That was the safest choice. The guards were carrying their own weapons, so if he could take one…
“Gentlemen,” Astrid called out, her voice a lashing whip in the darkness. “Good, I need you to direct me how to get out of this dastardly place.”
“What are you doing?” Bjorn snarled, trying to grab her arm, but she stepped out of his reach and into the torchlight of the guards.
They had all turned to look at her. Too late for talking now. But she spread her hand behind her back, clearly signaling him to stay where he was.
The man in the front hesitated before saying, “Priestess. He’s not allowed out of his cell.”
“In this case, he is. Lady Faraway has requested an evening with him. We have the king’s approval, and the beast has proved docile thus far. However, I was meant to have a contingent of guards assist me in bringing him out of the labyrinth.” Astrid’s voice got sharper and sharper as she spoke. “I have yet to see that provided to me. And while I am a patient woman, the longer I am standing in these halls with the keys in my hand, the longer I am realizing this place is not safe for a priestess alone. I will bespeaking to your superiors about the lack of safety for one such as myself.”
The guard wasn’t quite convinced yet, but a few of the others had already stood at attention. The man asked, “Who do you serve?”
“Lord Faraway, you imbecile,” Astrid snapped. “Now get out of my way, or bring me to the exit.”
The guards didn’t even convene about the matter. They all just pointed swords at Bjorn’s neck in warning and then... turned away from the cells. He was shocked. Was it going to be this easy? Really?
Astrid walked ahead of them, her hips swaying in a way that was clearly calculated. Every guard around him was distracted by her looks, by the pristine silver clinging to her beautiful body.
But then they paused, the same guard speaking up one last time. “There was a priestess in the room with him, now that I think about it...”
He could almost sense the unease that ran through the group. The realization that they had perhaps done something wrong.
Except Astrid turned toward the man and without any question in her voice stated, “Dead. He’d killed her last night, by my guess. He was eating when I arrived. Her body was mangled, neck snapped and face bloated, but I recognized her. The high priestess who served Lord Tolly was renowned among our ranks. It is a shame she had to die like that. You will not speak of her until her soul has been laid to rest.”
A rumble went up, but Bjorn was just shocked at the detail she had conjured. How did she know that was how he had killed the others? How did she know that he had been horrified by the sight of their features slowly turning purple even though he knew they were already dead?
She sniffed and then pointed to the right. “That’s the way out, isn’t it? I can take it from here.”
