If anything, it felt right. And how the Hel was she supposed to explain that to either of them?
48
Herrick felt like cotton had been stuffed into his ears by the time the sun rose on the new day. Perhaps he should've put something in his ears to block the screams from deafening him, but it was too late for that now.
Throughout the night, Herrick remained in the grotto with the sergeant they had captured until he revealed some of Helvig's plans. He wasn't sure how he knew, but the man was holding back important information. He'd been left alone to interrogate him after Hakon had gone around two in the morning, his face pale despite how he tried to hide how disturbed he was.
It hadn't bothered Herrick to stay all night, repeatedly questioning him. It hadn't bothered him when he untied him from the post and instead hung him from his ankles from vines he'd conjured up from thin air. It hadn't bothered him when he'd made the sergeant choke on dirt and then water in quick succession until it had thickened into a sludge that Herrick had needed to remove before the sergeant succumbed to his injuries.
None of it had bothered him. Not even the fact that he remained untroubled remembering all he'd done.
Maybe it should have, but the only thing keeping him going was the continued reminder that he was protecting his city. He was protecting his brother. He was protectingMaude.
That, it seemed, was enough for Herrick.
So he continued in his questioning until the man's screams echoed off the walls with ear-splitting frequency.
Sometime after the sun had crested over the highest point in the sky, he heard footsteps coming from down the hall. Herrick conjured up water in the empty pitcher he'd brought with him and took a long drink from the spout as Maude joined him in the cave, a cloak pulled over her head.
The sergeant was unconscious as he hung from the ceiling, but it did not take long for Maude to notice him. Her moss green eyes were raised to the vines that held him over the water.
Her face was unreadable as she brought her gaze to him. She took in his appearance: the rumpled clothing, the tunic sleeves rolled up to his forearms, the sweat that beaded on his brow.
"You've been here all night."
Always a statement, never a question with her.
"Yes," he said simply.
She nodded as she brought her focus back to the man. "Has he told you anything?"
"A bit," he replied, putting the pitcher down and wiping his face on his tunic. "I know how many soldiers Helvig has marched with, and I know he doesn't plan to attack until dawn tomorrow."
Maude nodded absently, her eyes glazing over. Something was bothering her.
"I just spoke with Hakon," she offered, wrapping her arms around her chest. "They did a roll call this morning to make sure our numbers were the same as before Helvig arrived."
Ournumbers, he thought. He liked how it sounded when she said it.
"It seems some of the families from the outskirts are missing this morning," she went on. "Some of them had young children. They all seemed to have vanished overnight."
That got his attention. Children?
"Any pattern to these missing families?" he asked, his focus zeroing in on what was making her anxious.
She nodded again. "All the children had shown signs ofgalderalready."
Her eyes flashed to his, and he could see the rage that burned there now behind the green— children who disappeared with their families all gifted withgalderright when the Kingdom of Flame stood on their doorstep. It couldn't be a coincidence. Ice, frigid and unforgiving, spread from his chest to the rest of his body the more he thought about it. That family from the people's court with the young boy who developed firegalderpopped into Herrick's mind.
"That's why I came here," she said, pulling him from his memories. "To see if this pathetic excuse of a warrior knew anything about it."
A dark chuckle came from the man Herrick was holding prisoner, the sound unsettling as it raked across his skin. He could see Maude's jaw clench from where he stood and could feel the air grow hotter by the second.
"May I?" she asked, keeping her focus on the man still chuckling.
Herrick inclined his head, letting Maude take the reins.
Maude tried to swallow the fury that was building in her chest at the laughter that this soldier threw at them. Children were missing, entire families vanished with no clue as to what happened, and this man waslaughing.
