Blood and Breath (Of Myth and Man Book 3) by Jill Ramsower

Author:Jill Ramsower [Ramsower, Jill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Jill Ramsower LLC
Published: 2022-05-22T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter

Sixteen

CAT

Stabbing hunger pangs radiated from my stomach, drawing me yet again from sleep. As if that wasn’t bad enough, I needed to pee again, too. I tried to tell myself it was a good thing—urine meant my organs were working—but adding to the stench in my cell sounded revolting.

After much deliberation, I decided that maybe emptying my bladder would help ease the ache in my belly. It would be a distraction at the very least.

I dragged myself to the yellow bucket and squatted as best as I could on shaking legs. Unable to hold myself, my legs slowly lowered me until I balanced precariously on top of the bucket. There was still no toilet paper, so I dabbed myself dry and returned to my spot against the wall.

The room was eerily silent and notably warmer than it had been, but I wasn’t about to question my good fortune. I closed my eyes and quickly began to drift until the opening door caught my attention.

Daeglan had returned.

He carried a wood chair to the center of my room and sat. He wore different clothes, yet again, and I wondered if it was a new day or if he was playing with my mind.

Could I tell the difference? Does it matter?

I made no move to acknowledge him. He was only a few feet away, holding a ball in his fist.

Wait—not a ball.

My stomach growled out ravenously at the heavenly scent of bread. Daeglan had a dinner roll in his hand.

My muddled thoughts sharpened with laser-like focus. Saliva pooled in my mouth, and I lifted myself up to sit cross-legged before him, eyes glued to the roll.

“Come just a bit closer, Cat.” He motioned with the roll, and like a dog on a leash, I scooted myself to sit just inches from his legs. “That’s good. First, we need to clean up your arm.”

I placed my arm with the truth rune carving into his outstretched hand. I tried to behave so as not to risk being denied, but I was so desperate that sitting still was a challenge.

Daeglan pulled a tube of ointment from his pocket.

A hiss slipped passed my lips at the sting from the cream, but I didn’t pull away. If I did exactly as he asked, I’d get to eat. My body felt hollow and weak, and I was ashamed to think of what I would be willing to do for that roll.

When he was done, Daeglan pinched off a piece of bread and held it just out of my reach. “Family is everything,” he said clearly before giving me an expectant look.

Family is everything.

Where had I heard that before? And then it hit me … Aileen. She hadn’t wanted me to lie to my mother, but when I said that we were family, she agreed and commented that family was everything. Such a benign statement, but taken together with her odd behavior in recent years, I had to wonder if I wasn’t Daeglan’s first victim.

How many others had there been?

My

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