She can take care of herself.She’s the most powerful amsirah in the realm.
While this was true, and I trusted her ability to defend herself, how could she stand against something that had destroyed all these amsirah where they stood?
Fuck, this is a mess.
“We need answers,” Ellery said.
We did, and we couldn’t leave here with those answers possibly at our fingertips.I was frightened those fingers would turn to ash before we discovered anything.
CHAPTERFIFTY
Ellery
With our weapons in hand,we bypassed the remaining homes as we headed toward the castle.I didn’t know what good our arrows and blades would do against whatever happened here.
This seemed more mystical than flesh and bone, but I still felt better with a dagger in hand and my bow on my back.If anything, maybe lightning could be a defense against it.
The cart in the middle of the road had a large pile of ash and four iron shoes where a horse would have stood.I stared at those shoes for far longer than I should have as I resisted my impulse to run back through the town and away from this place.
However, I wasn’t a coward who would leave others behind to deal with this.Still, those shoes somehow made what happened here more real than all the piles of clothes.
Placing one foot in front of the other, I walked away from the wagon.Scarlet and Callan loitered before hurrying to catch up with me.
No one spoke.What was there to say?
We all had a million questions, andnoneof us had the answers.But someone did… or something.
As we walked, we encountered more ashes in the streets with remnants of clothes over top of them.I could almost hear the laughter and chatter probably occurring when these amsirah were wiped out in an instant.
And it had to be an instant as there were no weapons or obvious signs of distress.I didn’t know how the piles could tell us if they were distressed, but I was sure they wouldn’t have been playing the piano if shit was hitting the fan.
“It’s the city of the dead,” Ianto murmured.
The name unnerved me, but it was an apt description.I had no idea what could have happened here, but as red flashed again, I became increasingly certain that light had something to do with it.
When we passed a tavern, I stopped to peer through the thick glass.Unable to see through the dim glow, I cupped my hands to my face for a better view.It didn’t help much, but curiosity drew me from the window to the door.
“What are you doing?”Ryker asked.
Tension emanated from him as his mercury-colored eyes burned into me before darting around the street.Something had destroyed all these immortals, but I sensed no imminent danger.
Maybe I was a fool for thinking we were safe… for now… but I was certain we were alone here.“I have to see.”
“See what?”
He didn’t like that I’d stayed, but I was glad he didn’t fight me too much on it.We were a team, and while he sought to protect me, I was as deep into this as he was and wouldn’t be deterred.
“I don’t know,” I admitted.
With that, I opened the door and entered the dimly lit room.Shades were drawn over the windows, which was why I couldn’t see inside.A small amount of light still filtered through the small holes in the screen-like coverings, but they kept most of it out and set the mood for all those who’d once been within.
“I think it happened during the daytime,” I said.“Why else would they have shades over the windows?”
“To keep others from seeing what was happening inside,” Ianto said as he nudged a flimsy red negligee with his toe.“I’m pretty sure this was a bordello.”
I took in the large space with numerous tables and chairs spread around the scarred, hardwood floor.The bar, a circular structure in the middle of the room, blocked much of the other side from view.
Dozens of stools sat around the bar.More than half had a pile of clothes on them or nearby.
