Wind Reapers by Raquel Byrnes

Author:Raquel Byrnes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christian fiction
ISBN: 9781611169430
Publisher: Pelican Book Group
Published: 2018-01-18T00:00:00+00:00

20

Whispers and movement and pain. Light flared outside of my closed eyes every few feet, and I thought I was passing under street lamps while riding in my father’s carriage. “Papa,” I moaned, throat aching with the shame of what I had done. I had killed him and very nearly done the same to someone else tonight. I am truly a monster. I am a hurtful, menacing beast. How can You let me live like this? An abomination. A sob bubbled up from my chest. “I should have died in that cavern…with the rest of the m-monsters.”

“Keep it together, Blackburn,” Riley’s voice pulled me from my torture. “Don’t get all ‘delicate flower’ on me now.”

I cracked my eyelids open, and the glare of an upcoming corridor lantern sent shards of pain through my head. “Ahh,” I cried and clamped a hand over my eyes. The light so incredibly bright, I could barely tolerate it.

“Yeah, your eyes are…” Riley’s voice trailed off.

“Sensitive,” Tesla finished and by the look on his face in the passing light of the corridor I knew what he meant.

My stomach tumbled. Were they as black as the Tremblers? Was I finally as hideous as those creatures I feared? I fought to keep my head from lolling against Riley as he hauled me with him. My arm around his shoulder, his grip holding me at the waist, I went along, boots dragging, as if I weighed no more than a sack of rice.

The tap and shuffle of Tesla’s steps as he struggled to keep up was the only other sound in the darkness.

I tried to speak and my words came out in a gargled moan. “How much further?”

Tesla’s haggard breaths came from my side.

“We tethered the dirigible just underneath the aft maintenance hatch on the port side.”

“Odds are it is not there still,” Tesla said.

I lifted my head once more, this time catching the wince of pain on Tesla’s face as he hurried next to Riley. He could walk with a cane, but only short distances before his broken body started to give out.

“What are we doing?” I croaked, my throat horribly raw.

Riley tensed against me. He pulled away enough to glance at me from the side. “You’re not getting all chompy on me are you?”

A chortle escaped my lips. Only he could make this situation sound ridiculous instead of terrifying.

“No, I’ve had my fill of villains today.” I put more weight on my own feet, walking with him and we picked up speed. “The dirigible, it will be guarded.”

“It might not be,” Riley said back. “Ever think of that, naysayers?”

“If it is?” Tesla wheezed.

Riley stopped. Leaning me against the wall, he stepped over to Tesla.

Bent over, Tesla’s normally perfectly parted hair looked as if he’d tumbled down a hill.

“Then we deal with that possibility when we get to it.” Riley put a hand on Tesla’s shoulder. “Can you make it there?”

“I can, yes,” Tesla groaned as he rose, grimacing.

We continued down the pathway, stopping every few seconds at the sound of boot steps overhead in the main floor.

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.