Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Kaelan reacted instantly, shoving Bria quickly behind him while drawing his sword in one swift motion.
To Bria’s surprise, the men laughed with amusement.
Kaelan swore softly beneath his breath and that more than anything sent fear tightening sharply through her.
She cautiously peered around him and immediately understood why.
None of the men carried a single weapon. Yet they faced Kaelan’s drawn blade with complete confidence. That could mean only one thing… magic.
Bria heard movement before she saw it. The vines suddenly came alive and she cried out when thick lengths twisted violently off nearby trees and whipped at her, wrapping tightly around her ankles and wrists before she fully understood what was happening. More shot toward Kaelan, binding his sword arm and legs so quickly that his weapon slipped from his grasp and landed heavily upon the forest floor.
Kaelan fought, muscles straining violently against the vines tightening around him, but the more he struggled the tighter they wrapped themselves around his arms and chest.
The men laughed harder.
One of them stepped forward and lifted Bria easily over his shoulder despite her furious struggling, while another did the same to Kaelan, vines still binding him tightly as he fought to break free.
“Put me down!” Bria shouted, pounding against the man’s broad back.
The large warrior only laughed again.
Kaelan twisted violently, fury blazing across his face as he fought with all his strength to get to her.
She did the same, though knew it was futile, and yet she had to try. She had to fight, touch him, and feel his love for her as if somehow that would make a difference.
The large men continued to laugh at their useless efforts. They carried both Bria and Kaelan deeper into the dark forest.
Chapter Eighteen
A Surprising Rescue
And the Heart of the Beast
The strange men did not carry them far before the forest finally began to thin around them.
Bria lifted her head enough to see sunlight glimmering faintly through the trees ahead, along with the sound of rushing water growing steadily louder. Moments later the men emerged into a narrow clearing where a wide stream cut through thick moss-covered rocks before disappearing once more into the forest beyond.
Without warning, Bria was tossed unceremoniously to the ground.
Pain shot through her shoulder and hip as she landed hard amongst damp leaves and stone. Nearby Kaelan hit the ground just as roughly, the vines still wrapped tightly around his arms and chest.
Before the men could notice, Kaelan rolled quickly toward her.
“Trust me,” he whispered urgently, his voice low enough that only she could hear. “I will see us safe.”
Bria stared at him in disbelief.
The vines binding him had tightened so viciously around his arms and chest that she could already see bruising darkening beneath them. His wrists bled where the rough vines cut into his skin each time he struggled.
How could he possibly protect either of them like this?
Yet despite the fear clawing inside her, she found herself nodding.
The large men wandered toward the stream, crouching beside the rushing water to drink deeply while speaking amongst themselves in rough amused voices.
“What do we do with them?” one asked. “Sell them?”
“Aye,” another answered with a grin. “Witches pay well for outsiders.”
One snorted loudly. “Trolls would pay better.”
That earned a round of laughter.
“The lass especially,” another added while glancing toward Bria. “Pretty thing like that would bring good coin.”
Kaelan went utterly still beside her.
Bria felt the dangerous change in him instantly.
Then one of the larger men spoke again. “What about the outsider? The one paying good coin for information.”
Several nodded thoughtfully.
“Aye. He might want them.”
Kaelan suddenly laughed.
The sound startled even Bria.
It carried pure mockery.
The men turned toward him immediately.
“I expected stronger warriors in Driochmor,” Kaelan said loudly. “Not cowards hiding behind vines because they fear an honest fight.”
The men scowled instantly.
Kaelan smiled despite the blood running down one side of his face where he had struck the ground.
“You call yourselves warriors?” he continued with deliberate contempt. “You are nothing but oversized fools too frightened to fight a bound man properly.”
One of the men cursed angrily.
Another grabbed Kaelan roughly by the front of his tunic and hauled him upright.
Kaelan only laughed harder.
“Aye,” he said. “Big dumb cowards.”
Bria’s eyes widened.
Even she knew he was provoking them intentionally.
“You want to fight?” one snarled.
Kaelan spat blood at the man’s feet. “If you know how.”
The vines released him instantly.
Bria sucked in a sharp breath.
Kaelan attacked without hesitation the moment his arms came free, driving his fist hard into the nearest man’s jaw. Another swung at him immediately, while a third slammed into his ribs before he could fully turn.
The beating became brutal almost instantly.
There were simply too many of them.
Kaelan fought viciously despite it, landing blows when he could, but fists and boots struck him from every direction until blood ran freely from his mouth and brow.
Bria struggled wildly against the vines binding her wrists.