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Stone fired his battle energy, hitting the vampire square in the chest. He flew backward several feet, landed on his back and didn’t move.
The second Guardsman had come in low from the west, exchanging fire with the wraith. But she’d dropped from the air at the same moment Stone’s battle energy struck her mate.
Both pairs were dead.
Cole and the other Guard flew down to Stone’s position. He ordered them to stand watch outside the mine and to only engage the Invictus enemy if necessary. He wanted to get Delia’s husband to safety first.
Aralynn, I’m coming in. Is the situation secure?
It is. Tell Cole that was some awesome shooting and you didn’t look so bad yourself wrestling that first wraith to the next life.
Stone smiled as he walked inside the mine opening. It was clear it had been a cave at one time well before gold fever had struck.
He found Aralynn blocking Elias protectively, though she stepped out of the way as soon as she saw he was alone.
He addressed the troll who looked weak from stress, hunger and thirst. “My men will get you back to Rutland. Delia’s waiting for you there. First, though, what happened? What can you tell me?”
Elias rubbed his forehead. His hands and nails were dirty from being in the mine. “I didn’t see anything. I was with a friend who wanted me to have a look at the mine. We’d been exploring for a couple of hours when a wooden plank gave way and I fell maybe eight feet. I hit my head. When I woke up, my
arm hurt like hell and my friend was gone. Hearing some wraiths shriek, I stayed put until I knew it was daylight, then I made my way back up here.”
“So, there were wraith-pairs here last night?”
“Yes. I don’t know if they got my friend, or not.”
He shook his head. “Sweet Goddess, they’ve had free range of the village for a full night and now a second.”
But Elias cut in. “I remember a warning siren. Mastyr, you’ve trained your citizens well. I’ll wager a lot of the villagers took shelter before the attack.”
“I’m going to hold to that thought.” He glanced behind him. “Cole, have you got some water?”
“I do.”
Cole moved forward and handed a small flask to Elias. He drank too fast and came up sputtering.
Stone took the metal flask. “Take it easy or you’ll lose it all. Been there.”
Elias laughed, then tears filled his eyes. “Thank you for finding me, Mastyr. Is Delia okay?”
“She’s fine. Cole, let her know that we have her husband.”
“I’m on it.” Cole turned away and spoke quietly into his com.
“I felt sure there’d be fighting in the village,” Elias said, his gaze stricken. “But I hid out here like a damn coward.”
Aralynn touched him on the shoulder. “But you had a broken arm and no weapons. What could you have done?”
“Something. Anything.”
Stone could see his suffering and he knew the feeling well. “Elias, every man worth his salt has felt the kind of guilt you’re experiencing when he holds back from battle. In this situation, I would have done the same thing you did. In fact, over the course of my years of service, I’ve done exactly that, probably hundreds of times. You did the right thing staying put.”
Elias stared at him, his eyes taking on a hard look. “That’s bullshit. You’ve never run from anything in your life. You’re the Mastyr of Tannisford.”
“Wish that were true. But it’s not. I’ve chosen plenty of times to live to fight another day. There’s no shame in it. A couple of months ago, I watched one of my Guardsmen hauled into the sky by a powerful wraith-pair, while I battled three on the ground. I could have gone after him and part of me still wishes I had. But I would have been slaughtered in the air.
“Yes, I fought off the three that were coming at me. Even then, I quit the field as more wraith-pairs moved in. I would have been killed by not retreating or by trying to save the one I lost. We make hard choices in war and I’m telling you right now, you did the right thing. You survived.”
Elias nodded.
