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Everyone murmured in agreement, the final details of the plan hashed out as quickly as possible among the group. We then broke off into teams to collect our weapons and wits, our tense silence speaking volumes about how we really expected this infiltration to end.
As long as we saved even one of them, it would be somewhat of a success. We would get answers and save lives.
My group was almost ready when a tug on my arm pulled my attention away from them.
“You should sit this out.” Nolan’s eyes scanned over the top of my head before returning to me. “It’s personal, and that will make it more difficult for you to focus.”
“No way.” I ripped my arm from his grip, straightening my spine. “I’m not abandoning my friend. She needs my help.”
“It’s not protocol.” He narrowed his eyes.
“I don’t care, you need me in there.” I took a step toward him, our chests barely grazing. “I have some of the best aim and I’m one of three archers in this group, which we need for long-range dangers. And even with all of that, you’re not stupid enough to actually believe that I’ll listen to you.”
He stood up a bit straighter, jaw tensing.
“Don’t act like you would sit this out if you were in my position,” I challenged, my chest tightening even as I held my strong stance.
He huffed, shaking his head in defeat. “If you get hurt, I will never forgive you.”
“I don’t need your forgiveness.” I took a step back, tightening the strap of my quiver across my chest. “I need you to fight.”
Chapter Twenty-One
My team was assigned to enter first through the back door that let into the kitchens. I took the lead with Nolan right beside me, followed by Lucas, Greyson, and Eden along with Rylan and another Dairchta, Beth. We made it inside without incident, the oven still aflame, abandoned pots overboiling with liquid, and chopped vegetables and herbs scattered across the counters.
“Two entrances to the front.”Nolan pointed to two doors, one to the left of the kitchen and the other at the front.
“One probably leads behind the bar, the other directly into the dining area,”Eden theorized.
“We should split up,”I said.“I’ll take the left door, hopefully that leads to the dining entrance. If I’m lucky, it will give me a clear shot so I can injure them before attacking.”
“Good point.”Nolan nodded, Eden and Greyson already moving behind him, angled to the door in the front.
“Rylan, go with Nolan, just in case,”I directed my other archer, the Dairchta nodding as he pulled an arrow from his quiver.
“Do not act unless you have a clear shot,”Nolan instructed. “If you don’t, tell me, and I’ll give the command when to ambush.”
I bit the inside of my cheek; it was the smartest choice for this mission, making it easier for me to quell the need to rebel.“Alright.”
He gave me one last sharp nod, his hardened gaze letting me know once again that I’d better stay safe, or else. I wasn’t sure when he’d felt the need to start protecting me, but a little pang in my stomach told me I didn’t mind it as much as I thought I would. I ignored that fact, focusing on the mission at hand. We had people to save, suspects to apprehend. This wasn’t the time for over-analyzing my random emotional responses.
Lucas, Beth, and I moved to the side door, Lucas pushing it open a crack to get a look.“It’s a hallway.”He peeked out a little farther.“Right around the corner is the dining room. You should be able to get a shot.”
“Perfect.”I soundlessly snuck out, using the corner to hide myself, getting a better view.
My first instinct was to find Lea, pulling in a deep breath to catch a whiff of her bergamot aroma mixed in with all of the spilled blood and other scents swirling through the space. I found her huddled in a corner with two other women, her arms around both of them, holding them tight to her chest. Of course, even in a dangerous situation, she was protecting and soothing others.
After confirming that she was alright, I put my attention back to the three men. A tall skinny one, with long blond hair down the length of his back, sat at a table with his back to me, his fangs deeply embedded into the neck of the squirming man. His whispering pleas for mercy showed that he only had a few moments left before he passed out and eventually died from blood loss. The second was strutting around in front of the bar, his hands grazing over the few people that were cowering there, all of them shuddering each time he touched them.
“None of you understand right now, but oh, you will.” His words were rushed, his brown and green tunic completely drenched in a mixture of blood and sweat, his olive-tan skin flushed red, black veins protruding from his thick neck. “You will join us, revel with us! Celebrate your freedom!”
The third was huddled in the corner, rocking back and forth, his curly red hair sticking up and plastered to his sweaty forehead. He didn’t blink, arm wrapped around his legs, two people sitting in front of him like a barrier. From here, I could see that he had a knife in one hand, pointed at both of them, so I could only assume he was forcing them to sit in front of him. He kept repeating the same phrase over and over. “Chu Fui na Déithe. Chu Fui na Déithe.”
“Do any of you know what the redhead is saying?”I asked the group inside, all of them whispering their no’s. The words were Ancient Kazalonian, but the old language had all but died out. Besides a few phrases and curses, most words had been lost to common society. Maybe he was a scholar of some kind?
“Status?”Beckett connected to Nolan and me, his team close by and ready to attack from the front.
“I have clean shots of two of them.”I made note of the pacing brute and the skinny one feeding.“I’m going after the blond first so I can maybe save the man with him.”
