Chapter Thirty-four

Ravi held his patience as Arya took him to two places, then a third and a fourth before the shadows dissipated. He found himself back in the same room where they had begun. He spun around, his hands clenched into fists as rage coursed through him.

“You’d better have a good explanation for returning here,” he said.

Arya’s breathing was labored as she put a hand on the wall. Her gray skin had a sickly pallor to it. She shot him a heated glance. “In case you needed reminding, traveling with someone is exhausting.”

“That doesn’t explain why you didn’t take me to Yaz.” He was ready to fight, he ~needed~ a battle to release the tension building inside him. He had witnessed too much brutality within Shaldorn against those who couldn’t protect themselves.

And he knew more was being doled out to Yaz.

Because the DIA had forced her to return.

Arya rested her back against the wall. “I went to the places I thought Yasmin would be, but she wasn’t there.”

“She’s somewhere. You rest. I’m going to find her.”

“Ravi, wait,” Arya called when he turned and walked away.

He paused and looked at her over her shoulder. “What? I’m aware they’re looking for me. I’ll be careful.”

“I came back here to rest because…”

Ravi pushed when she didn’t continue. “Because?”

“I know where Gita took Yaz. I had hoped we wouldn’t have to go there. It’s why I looked everywhere else first.”

He took a step to her. “Why don’t you want to go there?”

“Some view Shaldorn as a hedonist paradise where any form of pleasure can be found. The truth is much more complicated. There is as much pain committed as pleasure. There are those who come here to hurt others. And sometimes even kill.”

“Yaz told me as much.”

Arya slowly shook her head. “The depravity I’ve witnessed left a lasting mark. Indulgence and agony ensue in every room at Shaldorn. But there is one where you can feel the pain, the utter misery, seeping from the very chamber before you reach it. It’s a place used for those who have truly enraged Gita.”

“Take me there. Now.”

“You should prepare yourself.”

Ravi sliced his hand through the air to halt her words. “Yaz doesn’t have time for an argument.”

She pushed from the wall and held out her arms as shadows gathered once more. Ravi walked to her as the darkness closed in around them.

~ ~ ~

Yasmin was jarred from her memories. Pain ratcheted up in her body as someone kicked the box. Her jaw was locked from the anguish. Otherwise, she would’ve screamed. She opened her eyes to see the Dark Elf flashing a menacing smile at her. He would be standing watch until she expired. No doubt he would be the one to toss her body outside for the animals to finish off.

Her nose brushed the box’s door as her breath fogged it. Strands of hair lay over her face, unable to be moved. One of them poked her in the eye. She blinked to dislodge it but knew from experience that it wouldn’t go anywhere. It didn’t matter that her arms were broken. She wouldn’t have been able to move them anyway. The box was barely big enough to hold her.

The guard kicked the box again, jolting her battered body so badly she nearly passed out. She could probably get him to do it again. If she was lucky, she’d die while passed out and not have to endure any more torture.

Yasmin glared at him through her good eye and then forced her cut lip to curve into a smile. The Dark’s nostrils flared, and he pulled back his leg to kick again when his gaze whipped to the side. Yasmin turned her head as far as it would go to the left but couldn’t see anything on that side because of her swollen eye.

She shut out the stones, trying to hear the muffled voices. Yasmin was able to hear Gita’s, but she couldn’t make out any words. The Moon Elf moved into her line of vision, the device in her hand. Yasmin could only stare at it while hoping Ravi was nearby, ready to snatch it away. Gita handed the device off before facing Yasmin.

That’s when she realized that Gita had made sure Yasmin saw all of it. She tried to see who had taken it, but they were already gone. She couldn’t do anything about it. The stones knew, though. They had been trying to talk to Ravi for some time, but he couldn’t hear them. Every mountain around them could shout at him, but he was deaf to their words.

The Dark kicked the box again. Yasmin closed her eyes and sought her memories once more. She could feel her body failing. It wouldn’t be long now. She wished she could say goodbye to the kids. And Ravi.

~ ~ ~

Ravi heard a male laugh through the shadows. He met Arya’s troubled gaze.

She put her finger to her lips before mouthing, “~Wait~.”

He nodded, then faced forward and waited for the shadows to withdraw. Ravi focused on the voices in hopes of hearing Yaz. He picked up at least three different males and one woman. That must be Gita. His hands clenched into fists.

“The Sun Elf will come for her,” Gita said. “I want only a few guards in the corridor. I want him to think he got to her before we capture him.”

Ravi leaned forward, prepared to push through the shadows, but Arya’s hands latched onto him, holding him in place. Her grip was tighter than expected, and she didn’t allow him to budge an inch. He looked at her over his shoulder. However, her attention was directed outward. Ravi realized when he followed her gaze that she had opened the shadows enough for them to see into the room.

He took in the various torture apparatuses, and his heart sank. Murals of victims were on the walls. He spotted a female with her back to him, giving orders to her three henchmen. As ploys went, her plan to trap him was a good one. Not that he would’ve fallen for it. He narrowed his gaze on Gita. Her ruse was obvious. She must have something else up her sleeve. A second trap waiting, no doubt.

It’s what he would do.

None of that mattered because he was already in the room. He leaned to the side to take in more of the chamber. Only more torture machines met his gaze. The Trinity left, but Gita continued to speak. Arya widened the shadows a bit more. Ravi tracked Gita to a hulking Dark Elf in a guard’s uniform.

Arya nudged Ravi’s side. He glanced at her to see her raise her brows in question. He nodded. He was more than ready to attack.

“Good luck,” she whispered.

The shadows fell away. Ravi’s gaze quickly scanned the entirety of the room. There were two other guards besides the one Gita spoke with. Then Ravi spotted the clear box and Yaz inside it with her eyes closed.

Arya moved to the two guards at the door, shadows billowing angrily around her. Ravi released magic, aimed like an arrow at the Dark’s neck. Ravi gathered more as Gita turned to him.

“There you are,” she said as she faced him. Her gaze skittered to the side, where Arya effortlessly killed the other guards. “I see you have help. Not that it will do you any good.”

Ravi didn’t want to hear anything she had to say. He brought his hands together and then spread them apart, yellow magic filling the space between them. “You’re finished.”

“You think I got this far alone? Think again.”

He widened his arms as his magic grew stronger, drawing from the amulet against his chest. He felt the power swirling around his hands. He stepped forward, ready to unleash it to strike Gita. The Moon Elf didn’t bother trying to protect herself as he released his magic. But she vanished before it reached her.

Ravi spun in a circle, his eyes darting about the room, waiting for the next attack. But there was none. Gita was gone.

“Where is she?” Arya asked, the shadows drifting behind her as if they couldn’t stand not being near her.

Ravi glanced at the dead guard at the door. “Gone.”

He raced to Yaz. His stomach churned at the sight of the blood covering her and the white gown. He swung opened the door. Gently, he moved aside her hair and saw her swollen, battered face. His hands shook as he brought it beneath her nose.

“She’s alive,” he said when he felt her breath. “Barely.”

“We need to get her out before they return.”

Ravi looked down and saw Yaz’s fingers were in all directions, clearly broken. His heart cracked in two at what had been done to her. “Yaz?” he called. “Can you hear me? I’m getting you out.”

He had to shift her to get his hands beneath her to lift her. The ragged moan that fell from her lips nearly brought him to his knees. It took both him and Arya to carefully lift her out. Even then, her pain was evident by her pinched lips. His stomach turned when he saw what had been done to her feet and lower legs, not to mention her arms and hands. He was going to kill every last person who had dared to hurt Yaz. The first to feel his wrath would be Gita.

The door to the room flew open, and four guards entered. Ravi and Arya exchanged a glance. They laid Yaz down as quickly and gently as possible before facing off against the newcomers, each taking two.

Ravi took his pair down quickly. He was turning to help Arya when he heard something behind him and spotted more guards pouring in from a door in the back that he hadn’t noticed. He and Arya moved back to back as the guards surrounded them.

Magic came from every direction and had both of them dodging and using their own to shield. When an opponent got close enough, Ravi struck with his hands. He also snagged any weapons he could. He took two down with daggers before the guards got smart enough to back up.

Arya’s gray magic swirled around them, striking quickly and ruthlessly. Ravi used his sparingly since he didn’t know how much he could draw from the amulet. He spotted a discarded sword and lunged to the side to grasp it. The moment it was in his hand, he swung the blade, slicing bodies.

With every guard they killed, another came. He had no idea how long they fought. His magic was getting harder to use, and they still had to get Yaz to safety. He beheaded his last guard and turned to see Arya finishing hers off. Ravi’s attention went to the door as Two walked into the room.

“Take Yaz,” Ravi told Arya.

“Come with us.”

He never took his eyes off Two as he stalked toward him. “Go. Now.”