The Way of Mortals by Blake Carpenter

Author:Blake Carpenter [Blake Carpenter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Livro Publishing
Published: 2023-10-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter eleven

Questions Asked, Questions Answered

A bus was waiting for them by the bridge on the nearest side of the river, dark red with a gold star painted on the side; the engine was already humming and hot. The three sisters climbed on board along with Kurien; the injured Narsi; Gomati, still bound and blinded, and three more of the Guard, including both women. It started to get cramped inside by that point, so the rest of the squad headed back to the prop-boat to return to the Palace by that route. As soon as the bus’ door closed, the engine’s purr turned to a raucous roar and the vehicle started moving.

Pranay rolled her shirt sleeves up as high as she could and knelt on the floor beside Narsi’s seat. “How long has it been since her injury?”

“Not long, thankfully,” said one of the men whose name Prem hadn’t caught. “It happened before the false wall cut off our advance.”

“I think we heard your gunfire around that time,” the mantrik said. “Anash, help me.”

“Yes, Mistress.” Together the mage and her jinn began tending to Narsi’s wounds, which meant Pranay couldn’t keep watching Prem as though waiting for her to attack Gomati again.

That suited Prem just fine, and she hugged Pranay’s borrowed coat tighter around herself. The burning sensation in her throat was fainter now, but her chest still ached. Her stomach began bouncing and turning in on itself as the vehicle started moving, so she had to turn away and rest her head against the window, which was blessedly cool and dark. She still felt cold, unable to warm herself, so much so that her quivering stomach offered less of a distraction than normal. She was cold from more than from a lack of proper clothing: she felt like a child again, fresh from her first kill—aloof, distant, looking down at herself through another pair of eyes. Gomati was still alive, which meant she’d succeeded in resisting Vati, but she’d also failed to get the kill. It left Prem feeling conflicted, caught between the pleasure of having a stronger will than the demon’s, and the displeasure of Pranay stopping her in the first place. It also reminded Prem of what her life in Vati’s sway was like, and what she’d freed herself from after breaking his control.

The moon hung high in a clear sky as they left the Grays. On the other side of the bridge, the way ahead was paved with old, cracked stones, but once they entered the Industrial District the streets became narrow and straighter, boxing them in amongst the brightly-lit foundries and tall factories. At that hour the streets would be mostly free of traffic, and the glow of the street lamps combined with the moonlight would make them easier to be spotted.

“The Police are looking for us,” Prem said. She swallowed and coughed around a foul-tasting lump in her throat.

Preet stood at the front of the bus next to the driver, arms crossed, swaying slightly as they rode along.

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.