Page 71 of The Eyes of Tamburah
She jerked to her feet in surprise, but soon figured it was just another trick. Her captors had not vanished. They remained in place. She was unable to see them.
Concentrating, she followed the low sounds smothering her senses. They clung to her like sand grains to a damp hand. Shyla swept them away with her will, but they returned thicker than before no matter how quickly she moved. Her head ached with frustration. She needed a new tactic. A way to unstick the sounds. If they really acted like grains of sand, then once the surface dried, it would be easily brushed off.
Shyla imagined a wind. But not one that gusted past her. No. This explosion of air burst from inside of her and blew all the sand—sounds—away in one mighty whoosh. The three people popped into view. Ximen smiled with approval, but Bazia crossed her arms.
The other straightened, pulled a short sword and charged her.
Without thought, Shyla side-stepped him. By the time he checked his forward momentum and turned to face her, she’d scooped up the chain—her only weapon. He paused. She kept the eagerness that flowed through her body from showing on her face. Finally, a direct attack. None of that crazy chanting nonsense. Plus she’d been training hard, learning how to use the chain to her advantage.
He lunged, stabbing the blade at her stomach. Shyla blocked with the chain, causing a screechy metallic scrape to echo off the walls. Undaunted, he continued his assault. Her pulse kept up a quick tempo as she countered his thrusts and slashes. Sparks flew as metal scraped along metal.
The links of the chain dulled and nicked his blade with each loud clash. Sweat glistened on his brow as his breath puffed. While not yet fatigued, her palms and wrists stung from the impacts. He executed a quick flurry of strikes, pressing forward. Too late she realized that maneuver wasn’t to stab her, but to shorten her strike zone. While she’d countered, a part of the chain snagged on the heavy stone table, limiting her range of motion. A smile broke through his intense expression.
Scorching hells. A thread of fear knotted in her stomach. She only had one option left and the timing had to be perfect. When he sprang with his sword extended, she stepped toward him and twisted her torso to the side. The blade cut along her stomach. Ignoring the burning pain, Shyla wrapped the chain around the hilt. Then yanked. Hard.
The sword flew from his grasp. Before he recovered, she looped the chain around his neck. And tightened it, cutting off his air. His brown eyes bulged as his fingers clawed at the links. She glanced at Ximen and Bazia, bracing for their interference, but they remained in place.
After a few heartbeats, Shyla loosened the chain. “Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you?”
“Because I’m…the one,” he gasped.
She waited.
“…with the…key.”
If he was telling the truth. A big if. Both her hands were occupied. “Show it to me.”
He fumbled in his tunic and removed a small silver key.
“Unlock the cuff,” she ordered.
Allowing him to bend forward, she watched him insert the key into the small hole. A vibration ringed her ankle and the damn cuff fell to the ground. A combination of sensations swept through her. Relief dominated. Too bad it lasted a mere moment.
Her prisoner surged upward. Elbowing her in the nose, he knocked her to the ground. She lost her grip on the chain on impact.
“You need more practice,” he said in a rough voice as he removed the links from his neck.
Just the thought of being cuffed again energized her. She leapt to her feet ready to fight despite the blood running from her throbbing nose.
“Relax,” Ximen said to her. “Payatt’s just mad you caught him in a choke hold even though we warned him you were pretty good with that chain.”
Payatt actually growled at Ximen. Perhaps he was Rendor’s brother. They had the same dark coloring and almond-shaped eyes. Reminding herself that these peoplekilledthe captain, she refused to relax.
“Was that another test?” she asked.
“She catches on quick,” Bazia snarked.
“Ximen said you’d explain everything,” Shyla said to Payatt. “Start talking.”
“We are members of the Invisible Sword,” he said as if it explained everything.
It didn’t. Except maybe the comments about using magic. A delusion that had apparently lasted five hundred thousand sun jumps. Just her luck. “Did you steal The Eyes?”
“No. They are ours. We simply reclaimed them.”
Her pulse quickened. “So you’re in possession of them?”
“Yes, but we won’t be giving them to the Water Prince or the Heliacal Priestess. They do not belong to either of them.”
