AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Em, my dignity is intact—”
“It was fantastic,” the giant said, stunning them both—even more so that those eyes were on Emerald. “And my name’s Lily.”
“Emerald,” she replied in a daze.
“Rick,” Rick called out enthusiastically. “You have a lovely name, Lily. It’s as beautiful as you are.”
Emerald rolled her eyes and then stopped, but Lily didn’t seem to mind as a small smile finally appeared on her crusty lips. A hand reached up and Emerald’s cage was unlocked. She hesitantly opened it and peered at the boiling cauldron, then just as hesitantly lowered herself to the table. Rick was ready, catching her waist and steadying her on her feet…not letting go, his hand a hot brand on her skin.
“It’s not for you to swim in,” Lily assured. “Partly because Rick did make me smile, but mostly because I don’t eat meat anymore. I read that vegetables are healthier for the body.”
Giants can read and speak fluently,Emerald’s mind jotted down, filing it for later dissection. It was distracting to think with Rick’s fingers moving to soothe, so she gave up and let him do the talking.
“They are, but you do need meat from time to time. Not from captured sources like us, I hope. You are kinder and better than that.”
There was a short laugh. “Kind isn’t exactly a word used to describe us.”
“Beautiful? Breathtaking?”
“Menacing. Deadly.” Lily bared her teeth, chipped and sharp but ivory white. “We prefer it that way so others wouldn’t bother us in our territory. Frankly, those who still come here while knowing we exist get what’s coming to them.”
The pointed look wasn’t missed, but Rick waved it off. “And yet you choose not to do it. As I said, you are kind and there’s a good soul inside you.”
“Hmm.”
“And we didn’t come here to bother you. We are just passing by, and your tower just happens to be the best spot for us to get to where we need to be. After that, we will be out of your hair for good.”
“Hmm.” A pause. “Is there something wrong, Emerald?”
Emerald jerked her head, focus flying back to the giant guiltily. But there was only open curiosity in those eyes now. “You said you don’t eat meat anymore.”
“Yes.”
“And those bones are…”
“Old,” Lily confirmed. “Not mine. You’re lucky I caught you. Because if my brother did…”
An ominous feeling came seconds before another figure entered the room. The quiet footsteps became loud as the larger, taller figure stomped once, let out a growl, and zoned in on them. Rick sucked in a breath and pulled her backward—a mistake as the figure anticipated the move and blocked the exit window with a large hand. Before either of them could evade, two hands wrapped around their bodies while a giant, grotesquely broken nose bent to sniff them.
“You finally became useful and caught something.” Another sniff and a tongue licked her hair, coating her with stickiness and an unbearable stench.
“Wilson! They’re not for eating!”
“Not for you—stay back! Finders keepers,” the giant named Wilson snapped, voice rougher than Lily’s. “I’m hungry.”
“Wilson—”
There was a sickening crunch as Lily’s body was slammed back toward the nearest wall before the unconscious female giant slumped to the ground. Rick called out Lily’s name, but the sound faded. Emerald watched in horror as Rick slumped, too, leaving her the only one still conscious but starting to lose air with how tightly the giant held her.
Her brain worked overtime, panic thumping hard before common sense kicked in and willed her to calm down. She fought the panic back as she stayed perfectly still, not daring to move a muscle and prompt Wilson to crush her. Just as she was assessing where to bite, the hand loosened. She dove—and was slapped toward a cage, where she landed on her butt once more and caught a blur headed toward her.
“Be good and cook well for me,” Wilson sang, “I’ll be back when you’re deliciously infused in the soup my sister made.”
Emerald caught the weight that would have hit the iron bars, grunting at Rick’s heaviness. When he remained unconscious, she patted his cheeks and squeezed his neck until he joggled and shot up. She held him steady, watching confused features turn sharp.
“We’re trapped,” she said.
“No, we’re not,” he argued, already moving to kick the door. He stopped when he saw a chain outside connected to the wall, then another chain on the opposite end connected to another wall. Wilson worked fast.
