Lengthening Shadows: The Last with Immortal Blood by Bates Jared

Author:Bates, Jared
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-11-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Five

T

he escort of Anora set camp a few miles away from the river, at an old graveyard. The bars at the entrance were bent and the wall surrounding it was cracked, entangled with roots, which twisted their way out of the moist ground. Scattered and unearthed graves littered the open fields of the cemetery where grave worms and smaller insects canvassed the muddy ground. Most of the graves contained the skeletal remains of their occupants, others were nailed shut.

The Cathedral Guards had set a perimeter around camp while the handmaidens fed the horses. Kaedmon was busy planning the escort’s next route, and the Viempire had taken seclusion. Arcalane seized the moment to sneak off. He went to the place where he had last seen Anora, next to the ruins of a mausoleum. She was cleaning the clothes she’d worn in the river.

The care and patience she put into it calmed Arcalane, it was a gentle and somber feeling. He made sure to stay out of sight of the escort. They were not far from her. Kaedmon had given leeway to how far she strayed from the others. Anora had convinced him that she’d gone overboard on accident. But, Arcalane knew different.

“How long have you been watching me?” Anora asked loud enough for Arcalane to hear.

He stepped out of his hiding spot and sighed. “You caught me.”

“You’re not hard to track,” she said.

“Were you keeping an eye out for me?” he asked jokingly.

“I don’t trust you,” she told him.

“Why? Because I’m not as easily fooled as Kaedmon or the others?” he asked. “He’s either an idiot or you’re very good at persuasion.”

She rolled her eyes. “I have no idea what you’re referring too, and I don’t care.”

“They’d never let you venture this far from them, if they knew that you tried to run.”

“I fell from the boat, if that’s what you’re getting at,” she argued harshly. “And this whole act, pretending to be interested. Great work.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. “Are you alright?”

“Why the sudden show of concern?” she scoffed.

“What do you mean?” he asked again.

She sneered, “Don’t pretend that you don’t know. You’re just like any other man. You think that if you show concern toward a woman and act brave that you will take her to her bed.”

“I’m flattered, but I promise you that is not my intention,” he said reassuring her.

She stopped, hesitating to say anything more. “Just leave me alone,” she said with an unsettled voice. “I’d rather have the dead here keep me company.”

“They should not be a substitute for the living, one would think,” he remarked.

“At least with them, I know where I stand,” she said.

“Are you so certain of that?”

“As certain as I need to be,” she told him.

“Tell me then,” he urged. “Tell me about the dead.”

“Why do you care?”

He was delaying things. But, just talking with her made him feel normal. “No reason…I suppose.”

“Something draws me to them,” she said reflecting. “Ever since I was little, I have always felt a connection with things departed.

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