Page 26 of Wraithwound

Lena struggled and failed to place the man. Did he know who she was or had he gone too heavy on the pints?

“—demon,” he finished.

Her heart raced as her mind arranged the pieces for her.

“Who are you?” she said, keeping her voice even.

“More importantly, what are you?” he retorted.

Before she had a moment to react, he shoved a damp cloth over her face. A sweet smell filled her lungs before her body went limp.

Chapter

Twenty

She had a vague sense of being carried. The view of the darkened streets soon shifted, giving way to brightly lit homes and cleaner air. The pounding footsteps on cobblestones ceased abruptly and were replaced by the hushed rustle of boots against the browning grass of an empty field.

Lena’s head struck the ground with a crack as she was dumped inside a cell. The loud click of a lock and jangle of keys seemed to strike the correct chords to trigger the return of her awareness. By the time the black cleared from the edges of her vision, she realized she was not in a cell but a prison wagon. As she lay there, she took stock of her injuries.

Her throat ached fiercely, and her lungs burned, but she couldn’t figure out what type of sedative he’d used. There was something odd about the heaviness in her muscles. Beyond that, her chest prickled intensely, and her fingertips itched. She sat up slowly when she heard voices nearing the wagon.

“You’re going to be promoted, Vince. First the beast in the forest and now her!” said a young, eager voice.

“Her beheading will probably earn me a private residence and any moon maiden I want.”

Recognition wormed its way into her mind as she studied the rope binding her hands. Vince? Hadn’t his men thought him to be dead? The memory of those terrifying moments leaked in slowly, fighting the effects of the drug. He hadn’t been the one to fell that beast. That had been a different man . . . one whose still-beating heart she had held in her hand.

“How did you find her?” asked the younger voice.

“I, uh, tracked her. Figured she’d come to the city, ya know,” Vince said.

“I didn’t know you were so good at tracking. Can you teach me?”

“Maybe, if you keep your mouth shut about what you’ve seen tonight,” said Vince.

“Of course, I will. Where are you going to take her?”

“Out with the High Priest’s chosen. I’m not about to put her in the dungeons here and have someone else take the credit I deserve.”

“But wouldn’t the Commander want to know about her now?” the young voice added cautiously.

Panic began to wake the rest of her senses. She was being taken out of the city. To where? She’d never heard that the High Priest had a separate residence.

“He isn’t in the city tonight.”

“Oh, did he tell you where he was going?”

“No, I heard some of the Firsts talking about it.”

Recollection pricked the edge of her mind. Firsts were what they called the men closest to the Commander, those who’d pledged their loyalty first.

“Is that what you’re going to ask for? To be moved into the Commander’s personal guard?”

“I haven’t decided yet. I know there are some vacancies in Third. Next time you see me, I might be running my own unit,” he boasted.

Footsteps approached the wagon, and a slight shift in its positioning alerted Lena that it’d be moving soon. She leaned forward and caught a glimpse of the city lights above the fortifying wall through the small, barred window.

The wagon jerked, and they were off, the city lights fading into the distance, framed by the metal bars that stood between her and the freedom to pursue a cure for Henry.