Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 112416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 562(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 562(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
“Teitei—”
“Do it, Tyche!” The hand that had gripped his shirt shifted to his arm and slid down so she could grab his wrist in a painfully powerful hold. She pulled his hand from her back to press it to her stomach. Blood rose, and she cried out as she forced his hand against a long stab wound. Power pulsed up under his trembling, sticky fingers, singing a song of temptation and destruction. “Don’t let them steal this from me. Take it and put it in my shrine in Brightspire for Cirina.”
He could do terrible things with this power. But he wouldn’t.
These monsters who had killed Yesuntei and countless others undoubtedly would do horrible things with her power if he didn’t steal it first.
“I’m sorry.”
The words were a poor balm for the pain that followed as he plunged his hand through the slice in her abdomen. Hot blood gushed over her flesh and into his lap as she writhed, screaming in agony. Hard bone and squishy, soft organs brushed his fingers, but he ignored the stomach-churning sensations as he sought the pulse of power. After only a couple of seconds, he pinched between his fingers a small, hot orb no bigger than a marble and pulled it out.
He lifted it from her body and stared at the bright-white glow through the blood and gore.
“Thank—”
Tyche jerked his gaze to Yesuntei, but her face had gone slack, her eyes unfocused. She was gone.
“I’ll make sure this gets to Brightspire,” he whispered, closing his hand around the orb.
To do that, he and Shawn needed to get the fuck out of there now. As much as he hated leaving Yesuntei there, he had no choice. They were going to be lucky to get themselves out alive.
Tyche shifted Yesuntei to lie on the floor and shoved the orb deep inside his pocket before climbing to his feet.
“Tyche? What’s going on? Is she…?” Shawn fired questions at him the second Tyche began moving.
“She’s gone. And we need to get out of here now.”
Shawn’s eyes widened as they flew along Tyche’s body, and he retreated a couple of steps from the bars. Tyche didn’t want to peek down. He knew his clothes were soaked through with Yesuntei’s blood and it dripped from his fingers. As much as he wanted to clean off and mourn his friend, there wasn’t time.
“But…we don’t have the key card. That was the plan. How did you get out?”
Tyche grabbed a bar at the front of Shawn’s cell and pressed his face into the space between two of them so he could meet Shawn’s gaze unobstructed. “Look, I can’t waste what power I’ve got left on your cell. We’re going to need it. We’re escaping. So, I’m going to need you to drop the act, get in contact with Kaes, or however your shit works. But the magic happens now.”
CHAPTER 20
Shey Thrudesh-Vo
What?
Shey stood frozen, feeling as if someone had hit him with a bucket of ice water.
What did Ty say?
He knew. He knew about Kaes. But how?
Except Tyche had powers. The man had magic, and he knew Yesuntei had magic. Was it possible that they’d made similar deals with gods?
Or…were they gods?
“Shawn!” Tyche shouted. Panic was palpable in his voice and in the tension of his body. “You need to freak out later. Escape now!”
“Yeah, sorry,” he muttered, mentally shaking out of his paralysis. He was right. They needed to escape now. If they survived this clusterfuck, he was going to get all his answers out of Ty, even if it meant threatening him with magic or sharp objects.
Shey rushed to the cell door and waved a hand at Tyche. “Move away. I don’t have great control over this.”
“That’s wonderfully reassuring,” Ty grumbled, but the man moved down the corridor, putting as much distance between himself and the metal bars as he could.
Shey drew in a deep breath through his nose and held it as he reached inside for his connection with the God of Storms. Kaes had never visited him—at least he hadn’t as far as he knew—but sometimes, he swore he could hear whispers urging him to let go, to embrace all the rage that swirled within his chest. It was so tempting to let his control slip from his fingers and wash the entire world away. Especially the evil monsters running this facility.
The energy grew, building like pressure weighing on his shoulders and on the top of his head, trying to shove him into the ground. An electric current crackled and sparked along his skin, flowing to his fingertips. Shey exhaled the air he’d been holding and grabbed the bars of the cell. It was like a bolt of lightning shot out of his body and raced through all the metal. Sparks flew and all the lights flickered. Bulbs exploded in Shey’s cell and in a few of the others, leaving the entire block cloaked in heavy shadows. The scent of blood and burned ozone hung thick in the air.