Page 181 of The Kingdom's Reckoning
Graeson smirked and wiggled his fingers. "Depends."
Her groan only made him smile wider.
She handed him the second scimitar, and he slid it into its sheath. "I am fine, though. Honestly. Flyboy over there, on the other hand…"
Moris grumbled, clutching his stomach as he bent over a shrub. "Flying myself is one thing; being carried through the air is another entirely. I—" He pressed a fist to his mouth. "I don’t like it."
"I told you he should have ridden on your back with me," Kallie mumbled, elbowing Graeson in the side.
Graeson snorted. "I am not a pack mule."
Kallie rolled her eyes and hiked the bag onto her shoulders.
"All right," Moris breathed out, straightening. "I-I think I’m good."
Kallie pursed her lips and observed him. "Are you sure?"
Graeson didn’t wait for Moris to respond, though. Instead, he headed toward the forest. They didn’t have time to cater to Moris’ needs.
"Hey!" Moris called out. "Not so fast."
"If you can’t keep up, then that’s your problem," Graeson said over his shoulder.
"By the gods, nothing ever changes with you, does it?"
Graeson rolled his eyes. When Kallie caught up with him, she nudged him in the side, and he chuckled.
They hurriedthrough the forest as fast as they dared. The smoke from the distant fire crept over the ground, and the smog obscured the glow of the moon.
Moris hissed out as a branch caught his wing, and he swatted it away with a sneer. Graeson shot a glare over his shoulder when the thin branch snapped in half and fell atop the fallen leaves.
Moris raised his hands as if to suggest the tree was to blame.
Shaking his head, Graeson made to move forward when the crack of a branch sounded up ahead. He snatched Kallie by the waist and pulled her against him as he slid behind a tree. Hearing it too, Moris dove behind the tree next to them.
Graeson held up a finger.
Keeping Kallie tucked against his chest, Graeson shifted and peered around the tree. Several yards away, he saw a flicker of movement. Then he heard them.
The sobs and hisses of pain.
He pressed his mouth against Kallie’s ear. "Stay here."
Slipping out from behind the tree, he crouched and weaved his way toward the voices with careful, silent footsteps.
Looking around a tree, Graeson could make out a figure as the voices intensified. Scattered across the forest was a large group of people. Cries of pain, sorrow, and grief filled the air.
Beyond the trees, he spotted the watchtowers on the capital’s walls, but the distance made it impossible to tell if they were manned. In the far distance, screams echoed, and a rumble shook the earth. Graeson’s attention snapped back to the people huddled before him. As he scanned the area, he realized there wasn’t just one group but dozens scattered throughout the forest outside the city.
Nearby, a man cradled a woman’s leg in his lap as she leaned against a tree. Even in the dim light, Graeson could see the gruesome wound. Her calf was nearly torn apart, the skinappearing to sizzle as if burned. He couldn’t tell if it was from the fire engulfing the capital or the explosives that had rocked the earth. But one thing was abundantly clear.
"They’re civilians," Kallie breathed out.
Graeson snapped his head in her direction. He hadn’t even heard her approach, too focused on the atrocities in front of him. "You were supposed to stay," he hissed.
She scoffed. "I am not a dog." She shooed him away.
"Neither am I for the record," Moris said on Graeson’s other side.
