Page 113 of A Tempest of Revelation
The ones on the ground would have a tougher time escaping. Getting the prisoners free of the pillories and away from here would be difficult. We had swords and hatchets for the locks, but we’d have to move fast to free everyone.
I glanced up at where Ellery lay, looking down at me. With her hair tucked away and her breasts strapped down, it wasdifficult to differentiate her gender, but I didn’t like the idea of leaving her up there.
She’d agreed to stay on the roof, which put her in a much safer position, and she had Ianto to look out for her, but if something went wrong, she wouldn’t stay there. She’d try to help.
I had to make sure we moved fast because I couldn’t take the risk of that happening. I’d debated having Ianto drag her from here no matter what; I’d face her wrath afterward, but we’d promised no more secrets and lies. I couldn’t go behind her back to plot with the giant when, if she ever did such a thing to me, it would destroy our relationship.
No, no matter how badly I wanted to rein Ellery in, I couldn’t. She’d lost too much already, and I wouldn’t take her choices from her too… even if they were often reckless.
But then, she would tell me the decision to do this was reckless. I had to reassure myself that Ianto would help keep her safe as I prepared to move. If I didn’t, I’d pull her away from here and ruin everything.
When I looked at Ellery again, I lifted my hand and made a fist. She rose a little from her prone position, lifted her bow, and nocked three arrows against it.
As I lowered my arm, Ellery fired. I knew how good she was with a bow and arrow, but even I was impressed when all three arrows found their targets in the first three guards’ throats.
The wounded men didn’t make a sound; it was impossible for them to do so with arrows embedded in their windpipes, but their hands clawed at the weapons as they staggered back a few steps.
As the other guards shifted their attention to the injured ones, more arrows flew from rooftops around the town green. More guards fell as arrows pierced through their hearts, but the others shouted for help as they scrambled for safety.
When the guards sought to take shelter behind the prisoners, those of us on the ground sprinted toward the pillories, converging from all different directions. Only twenty of us were on the ground, but those on the roofs provided plenty of cover. We’d decided to go with fewer on the ground to lessen our chances of someone getting caught.
Some captives lifted their heads to see what was happening, but most remained hanging limply on the pillories. I pulled my sword free as I ran toward the prisoners. The blade I held wasn’t my normal sword, as I wouldn’t dare use that tonight. It could be recognized, but this was a good weapon, and it would make these fuckers bleed.
For this mission, I’d donned some extra shirts and pants and shoved leaves in to stuff the area around my stomach to make myself look bigger. The additional padding didn’t hinder my movement; I’d ensured that before coming here.
When we robbed Ivan’s caravan, I knew there would be too much going on for anyone to really notice me. We’d also planned not to get too close to the guards… that wasn’t an option here.
I doubted they’d ever consider theduke’sson could be a part of this, but I couldn’t take the chance.
The crackle of the torchlight grew louder, and arrows whistled in the air, but the night remained eerily hushed. That wouldn’t last.
CHAPTER NINETY-SEVEN
Ryker
As they recoveredfrom the unexpected attack, the remaining guards freed their swords. They rushed out from behind the prisoners to engage with the enemy approaching them.
One ran at me with his sword raised as he bellowed. Before we reached each other, an arrow pierced the center of his head, knocked him off his feet, and sent him flying backward.
I didn’t have to look back to know Ellery had taken him out. While the arrow through his brain wasn’t lethal, it would keep him incapacitated until someone removed it. Unwilling to let that happen, I severed his head from his shoulders.
The man’s feet still kicked against the ground when I ran past him. Around the green, lanterns started lighting the windows of the nearby homes as shouts of pain and fury mingled with the clash of blades and the thud of arrows hitting flesh.
Tucker’s followers on the rooftops had gotten so good with bows and arrows that they only took down the guards. As far as I could tell, they hadn’t accidentally hit anyone on their side.
However, the town was waking far faster than I’d hoped. I got to the first pillory as Tucker and the siblings arrived with more of Tucker’s followers.
Raising my sword, I brought it down on the lock. It cracked with a loud pop before springing open and falling to the ground.
I ripped the top off the pillory and tossed it aside. The prisoner I’d freed hit the ground as his legs refused to support him.
I had no doubt the weakened man couldn’t open a portal to free himself. If I opened one for him, I’d have to close it after, as we couldn’t risk any guards going through it.
That meant I would have to keep opening and closing portals to turn them loose and to free myself, which was impossible. We had to get most of the prisoners out simultaneously, so this man had tomove.
Grabbing the man by the arm, I ignored his cry as I dragged him toward the second prisoner. His hands remained bound by chains before him, but he had some ability to maneuver them.
When I released the man’s arm, he fell to the ground, and I lifted my sword to bring it down on the next lock.
