The Myatheira Chronicles: Volume Two: Beyond the Veil by Melissa Collins

Author:Melissa Collins [Collins, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Published: 2014-01-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

The herbs were strong. In the first stages of wakefulness Aiva found her eyes heavy, unable to open them, left to lie there on the table, conscious and immobile. Her senses were dulled. Vaguely aware of a pressure at her left hand. The taste in her mouth was atrocious. It did nothing to ease her unsettled stomach, only adding to the nagging sensation in her throat that made her want to gag. To rid herself of whatever remnants of the strange drink might still be in her system.

All around she could hear the woman’s soft chanting from before. Incense hung thick on the air. Aiva cringed at the scent, afraid to discover it was the same mixture which had left her so vulnerable and helpless. A single smell had rendered her body useless. Such things were unheard of in Tanispa. She prayed their enemies never learn of the ingredients used. To have it manipulated as a weapon would be dangerous without some way of countering the effects. Or somehow building an immunity. Uttae said something when discussing the venom about her body not being adapted to the jungle. Perhaps their medicine didn’t have the same effect on them?

As feeling gradually started to return, Aiva tried to move, her arms and legs twitching with every attempt, responding to her commands, though only a little. When her left hand moved, the pressure there increased. Warm. Gentle.

It took significant effort to lift the lids of her eyes, greeted instantly by the dancing torchlight that had been there before she fell into her slumber. To her right the woman was seated, uttering her quiet incantation, hands waving along the line of Aiva’s body. The words of her chant were muffled, the woman’s lips covered by the fabric which constructed the wrap over her head and neck, blending with the rich material of a long, seamless dress. Her eyes were closed. With an occasional rise of inflection they would open, staring absently over Aiva before closing again.

Slowly she turned her head to the left, expectant of Uttae’s strong form standing there, arms folded across his chest. To her surprise it wasn’t Uttae’s face at her side. Her lips fought to form a smile at Callum’s drawn features, gazing down on her with concern. At the sight of her eyes opening he straightened his shoulders, lifting her hand to kiss the back of it. “Aiva,” he whispered.

Her voice was lost to her. She wanted to say something. To acknowledge her gratitude at his presence. He looked pale even through the bronze tone lingering on his skin from the desert. A bandage of whitened gauze wrapped around the top of his head, covering the crown down to an angle along the left side, just above the sharp tip of his ear. He was battered. Bruised from the impact of the divastru. His right eye was swollen, a sliver of the umber glow visible through the small crack of his lid, locked on Aiva as if afraid to look away.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.