Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Lucien growled under his breath making Whisper join in. The energy he’d borrowed from me percolated like a churning cyclone in his belly.
“Look at me!” the leader roared.
Lucien glowered at the man, his hate blaring in my mind and almost drowning out the pain in my hip. “You’re all dead men.”
“I don’t listen to empty promises.” Pulling out a black device from his utility belt, he waggled it. “I was warned you were different. I was also told what to do if you misbehaved. This is your last chance.”
I choked as I recognised the weapon from the mountain. A frequency emitter that tore through body and mind.
When Lucien continued to glower—his own thoughts filling with memories of how savage the frequency pain had been—the leader shrugged.
“Here’s what is going to happen.” He held up the emitter. “I’m going to give you one more chance to walk out of here on your own. To come with us...obediently. In return, these people will live. However, if you refuse or if you play any more tricks, I’ll press this little button and knock you unconscious, and when you wake up, everyone on this clifftop will be dead.” His thumb stabbed the button, sending a current of excruciating agony through us.
We stumbled together, breaking under a volt of skull-splitting noise.
The frequency stopped, leaving my ears ringing.
“Well?” the leader snapped.
The bond snarled with Lucien’s rage. I wanted him to burn all of them, but...the math wasn’t in our favour.
Even if he could kill a few...could he kill them all?
What if the rest opened fire?
Dillon would die.
Uncle Wen. Auntie Mei.
Whisper.
And...we’d be taken away anyway because—
We need to leave. Lucien’s voice slid into my mind, low and deadly. I agree with you. If it looks like we’re doing what we’re told, at least we can get them away from this courtyard.
I nodded weakly, cursing the throbbing pain in my hip.
Are you alright? His thoughts nudged mine in a soft caress. Can you walk?
I’m fine.
I’m going to fucking slaughter every single one of them for hurting you. Clutching me closer, he supported most of my weight and glowered at the man still pointing his gun at me. Just stay with me and I’ll figure this out, I promise.
I tried to offer encouragement, but another needle of agony made me gasp.
Sucking in a furious breath, Lucien raised his voice. “Hold your fire. We’ll come with you.”
The leader gave a satisfied grunt. “Finally.” Swinging the handle of the emitter around his finger, he grinned. “Took you long enough. Let’s go then. The sooner we leave, the sooner the others can get treatment.”
Lucien didn’t answer. He simply started walking, half-carrying me as we headed for the gate. A storm raged beneath his skin as he arrowed in on the thud-thud of echoing heartbeats, counting each one, memorising them, trying to figure out how to stop them.
Whisper chirped and chased after us, his large paws silent and heavy.
The panther pressed against Lucien, wrenching his master to a stop. A flash of despair as he dropped his eyes and studied his best friend. “You can’t come.”
Whisper snarled and strode toward the exit.
“Whisper,” Lucien snapped. “You’re staying.”
The panther roared with feisty defiance.
“Fuck’s sake.” Whirling around, Lucien glowered at the leader above us. “We’ll behave...but you need to let me deal with my cat first.”
Almost as if he was bored now that he’d won, the leader nodded with a roll of his eyes. “Fine. Just be quick about it.” As an afterthought, he added, “If you try anything though, the next shot will kill someone you care about, you have my word.”
Lucien didn’t reply as the massive panther padded back toward us, growling all the way. His golden eyes gleamed with protest and denial as if he already knew what was about to happen.
Dillon cursed under his breath, blood dripping from his wounded arm as Lucien snapped his fingers at Whisper to follow, then half-carried me toward the gnarly tree where Auntie Mei and Uncle Wen huddled beside Lanlan’s body.
“Don’t go with them,” Dillon hissed, his eyes tracking us. “You can’t.”
Lucien flat out ignored him as he gave a quick smile to his head steward and housekeeper—two people he’d known since birth. “Send someone to get a doctor the moment we’ve gone, alright?”
Auntie Mei sniffed back her constantly pouring tears. “You can’t leave, Xiao Lu. You can’t. We’ll never see you again.”
“Never is a long time.” Lucien shrugged. “We’ll see you before then.”
Uncle Wen’s face was grey with pain, but his eyes met Lucien’s with fatherly pride. “You’ll come back. I know you will. We’ll be here waiting for you, just like before.”
Lucien just nodded, let me go, and headed straight for the tree.
The bullet graze on my hip stung with wildfire.
“I’m getting bored, Ashfall,” the leader taunted from the wall. “You’re walking but not in the direction I want.”