A distant sound—a rock tumbling or the distant cry of another beast—caught the beast's attention. Its head jerked forward and with a ferocious leap, the creature bolted into the tunnel, the sound of its claws against the ground echoing like a screeching wail through the passageway.
I exhaled slowly, my hand slipping from her mouth, but I didn’t dare speak. I grabbed her hand again and tugged her into motion.
We sprinted across the open space and through the opposite tunnel. As we turned a corner, the faint glow of the cave’s mouth appeared up ahead. Relief surged through me as the azure sky came into view, the cool air stinging my lungs as we stumbled out onto the ledge.
We were breathing erratically, but I didn’t want us to linger, not here. Not so close to that thing.
I shadowed us to the nearby tree line and only then did either of us dare to speak.
“What was that thing?” Zara said shakily, her wet clothes clinging to her body. Her fear hung heavy in the air, and I raked a hand through my hair, my expression turning grim as I tried to process what had just happened.
“I think it was a Vorrak.”
“What the fuck is a Vorrak?” she stammered, her voice tight.
My jaw clenched in response. “I believed they were just stories, myths to scare children.” I stopped speaking, the words catching in my throat.
As a child, I remembered my mother telling us about them, seeing drawings. She would always threaten us that she wouldfind one if we misbehaved. I shuttered again. The creature was much worse in real life and way more menacing than those drawings.
“They paralyze their prey with their fangs and feed off your fear. They make you see things—horrors so vivid you can’t tell what’s real. You’re trapped in your own worst nightmares as it tears into you, devouring your body one agonizing piece at a time. And you feel it all—your skin, your bones, your life slipping away, helpless to stop it. It's not a quick death. They can feed on you for years, centuries even if the myths are true.”
Zara shuttered at my words and my hands curled into fists at my side. Her face was pale and a low growl rumbled in my chest as my eyes fixed on the blood matted in her hair. The sight sent a jolt of anger through me.
“Your head,” I snarled, yanking her closer to me, my hand instinctively moving to her skull to gauge the severity of her injury. My other arm encircling her waist and holding her firmly against me, making it impossible for her to break free. She gasped at the motion, and she narrowed her eyes up at me, her hands pushing against my chest futilely as she tried to get away.
“Stop moving,” I growled, my eyes scanning the shallow cut on her scalp.
“Let go of me, I feel fine,” Zara spat, continuing her attempts to escape my grasp. I let her go, seeing enough.
“There is a gash on your skull. You are not fine.” I said, glaring at her. “Did she do that to you?”
“Yes,” Zara said in a huff, and her eyes seemed to scan over my body. She swallowed, but lifted her chin. “I take it that blood isn’t yours?” she added hotly.
“Worried about me?” I said, lifting my mouth into a half grin and raising an eyebrow.
“No,” Zara said sharply, but she seemed to scan my body again.
“My shoulder was hit pretty badly, but the majority of the blood isn’t mine,” I admitted, and her eyes went straight to my shoulder. “I'm fine,” I reassured her. “Your head, however, is not; we need to get you to a healer.”
“My head is fine. I don’t even feel it,” Zara scoffed and turned away from me, crossing her arms. I stared at the back of her stubborn head, but she spoke before I could argue again. “Did you kill her?” she asked, looking over her shoulder at me.
“No,” I said, letting out a breath. “She escaped, but her male friend and another female were dealt with.” I paused. “Dedra, she—” I swallowed, and Zara spun around to face me again. “She was badly injured. Jaxon took her back to the village to find a healer.”
I couldn’t bring myself to say more. The reality of her injuries weighing on me.
Zara stepped closer to me, seeming like she wanted to comfort me but didn't know how. I met her gaze, and her eyes seemed to search mine in question, but I didn’t know what she was asking.
“It's my fault…” Zara whispered.
“It's not,” I rumbled, reaching out and tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. Zara’s cheeks reddened, and my arm prickled with that same strange sensation. She remained quiet, and I lowered my arm to my side.
“We should go.”
Chapter 29
Zara
As we approached the village, I couldn’t bring myself to tell Xavier what had truly happened in the cave. Fate. That was what that creature had been, a god, and it had spoken to me. It had invaded my mind and had shown me so many things.
