Page 84 of Whispers of Ruin
The silver netting encasing them felt like it sliced through his flesh, carved into his muscles, and embedded itself in his bones, but when he looked down, he didn’t see any blood. The small movement of trying to explore injuries that didn’t exist caused more agony to explode through him as the net swayed.
A scream echoed in his head, but he clenched his teeth against it and kept Kaylia nestled securely against him. He didn’t know what the silver netting was made of or bespelled with, but everywhere it touched, it felt like it flayed off his skin.
Breathing through his nose in a useless attempt to calm the feeling of multiple knives shredding his flesh, he concentrated on opening a portal, but nothing happened.
He didn’t try to teleport as he wouldn’t leave Kaylia alone, but Brokk doubted he could do that either. Whatever this net was, it not only hurt like a motherfucker, but it also stopped him from using his abilities.
“Shit. Can… you… use… yo… yo… your… powers?” The words came from between his gritted teeth.
Kaylia’s hands waved before her as she murmured some words. “No.”
When she lowered her hands, she touched the silver netting.
“Don’t,” he warned.
But he was already too late. She hissed in a breath, and her hand trembled as she cradled it against her belly. “Oh, Hecate, Brokk. That’s… that’s… brutal. Are you okay?”
Tears choked her tremulous voice, and she tried to move again but stopped when the net dug deeper into his flesh and he sucked in a breath.
“Brokk?”
“I’m… fine.”
When she stilled against him, the net swayed back and forth above the clearing. Below, the sounds of the fight from those who had remained free dwindled.
The hush that followed sounded louder than any battle as they helplessly waited to see what horror awaited them next.
CHAPTERSEVENTY-EIGHT
Kaylia tried notto move as the net swayed back and forth while the ophidians carried it deeper into the jungle. Every time she shifted, Brokk sucked in a breath and his body spasmed against hers.
Tears clogged her eyes at the reminder of his suffering while he kept her away from the net. Everyone else suffered because of the magic used to weave this trap, but she remained protected by Brokk’s arms.
She’d only touched the net once but could still feel the brutal shock of it all the way to her toes. If it wouldn’t harm Brokk, she’d lift her hand to ensure her flesh wasn’t flayed from her fingertips, but she couldn’t move, and no blood marred her clothes.
No, her skin was still there; it just felt like someone had stripped it from her. She couldn’t imagine how Brokk felt as this vile shit encompassed him.
Whatever or whoever weaved these nets, they’d used a fierce spell to keep them bound inside and their power leashed. Brokk was suffering because of it.
Closing her eyes, she tried to suppress the emotion rising inside her. It wasn’t love she felt for this man, but it was something so close it was nearly as painful and beautiful as love.
Her fingers found Brokk’s, and she rested them against her belly. He squeezed her hand before a fresh tremor wracked him.
She craved more from him than this brief connection, but it was all they could experience while trapped inside this horrible thing. She’d give anything to be nestled against him, somewhere safe, but feared they might never get that chance again.
Moving only her eyes, she tried to see the ophidian behind them but could only see the one ahead. After the ophidians lowered them from the trees, they’d placed a pole through the netting, and the one in front of them held it propped on his shoulder.
His dark brown hair flowed nearly to his waist as he held on to the pole with both hands. The muscles in his bare back glistened in the sun while his tail slithered beneath them on the ground.
Kaylia swallowed the lump of apprehension lodged in her throat while watching the reptilian man. There was a reason these things had kept them alive, and it couldn’t be good.
She didn’t ask for that reason; they wouldn’t tell her. The creatures didn’t speak while slithering forward with easy grace through the realm they ruled.
The jungle that had clung to and restricted their movements seemed to part for these monsters. Either that or the ones ahead of them were carving a much better path through the foliage than they ever did.
Her back and legs ached from her cramped position, but she didn’t try to ease the stress on them. If she did, it would only hurt Brokk. This discomfort was nothing compared to what Brokk endured to protect her.
He hadn’t wavered in his determination to keep her sheltered from the net, which only made her feelings for him grow. This powerful man contained the DNA of the two species she’d always disliked the most, yet somehow, in him, they’d made for one of the kindest, most protective, and unwavering men she’d ever encountered.
