I looked over to where the captain had kept me prisoner to see his limp body on the floor. And Dahr, covered with blood. Hacking away at something.
No, not something.
The captain.
The warrior kept pushing a dagger into meat and bone while blood spurted on his face and torso again and again to create a puddle of rouge-like texture around them.
A puddle of blood.
“Is he…” I couldn’t say it. I shook my head as, on their own accord, my hands moved up to my neck. Where muscles and tendons throbbed in pain. Where the lingering grasp of the captain’s hand still remained.
“He knew what he was doing when he came here,” Dahr rasped as his dagger cut through the final layers of tissue until Xadom’s head parted from his body. “When he touched you,” his eyes darted to mine for a moment, letting me see the sheer revenge burning into them. The ire of a man possessed.
Dahr stood then, holding Xadom’s head by the hair, letting it spurt the final remnants of blood on the furry carpet.
“No one touches you,” he said it as an order, as a command that needed to be shot into the sky for all to obey.
“I’m fine…” I barely mumbled. My stomach twisted at the sight. At the vision of Dahr, covered in blood. At the knowledge that he did all this for me. At the love I felt for this man.
“What have you done?” Markos’ voice sliced through the connection Dahr and I had built, drawing our attention to the entrance, where the tribe lord made his way in.
“What I should have done a while ago. Take back our freedom,” Dahr replied with the calmness of someone who had spent their life planning this very moment.
“But…” Markos’ eyes moved from Dahr towards me and stayed longer than they were used to. Analysing my heavy breaths and the hands that still wrapped around my neck, a reassurance to my body that air was allowed to freely flow through me.
“What did he do to her?” the tribe lord’s expression hardened.
“He tried to kill her. In my home,” Dahr’s breath hitched. “In my camp!” He made his hardened voice reverberate through the entire tent. Rage exploded through him, filling up the entire world as Dahr started pacing like a tiger in a cage, the head he still gripped tightly splashing the echo of his steps. Until he stopped. Back straight and head high, fixed on a sudden decision.
“Take the best warriors and go clear out the town. We’re going to plan C. Evacuate everyone,” he ordered as my heart jumped out of his chest.
Did he meanmytown?
Did he mean Enderflagg?
“Make sure you destroy all their comms, I don’t want any reinforcements to get within reach.” he took another step, then fixed his fire-raged gaze to Markos. “And make sure they know that we will hunt them down to the very edge of the earth if they don’t keep their mouths shut and try to alert any of the other villages. Get the town records as insurance.”
My bones shivered with the threat, but Markos nodded grimly. A cape of sadness fell over the tribe lord and, no matter how hard I tried, I failed to understand the reason. After all, this is what we wanted. And, if I were to believe their promises, this is what they had been collectively working towards. I doubted hecared much about the captain, so that wouldn’t be too much of a reason for his features to become so grim.
Until Dahr clarified it for me.
“Give us a few minutes to say goodbye, you can prepare the ride in the meanwhile and assemble the warriors.”
Goodbye?
Why would this be a goodbye?
With the corner of my eye, I watched Markos dip his chin and make his way out, the same sorrowful expression that was starting to draw itself on my features following him out.
“Dahr?” I hoped this was some sort of joke, some sort of sick twisted lie, because there was no way in hell Dahr and I had any reason to say goodbye to one another.
“Nora,” he finally dropped the severed head and rushed towards me, as though time had become of essence. “My little flame,” the warrior pressed his lips together as he blinked sadness away, then forced a smile. His hands gripped my face on either side and started caressing my skin softly, just like he’d done so hundreds of times before.
“Dahr?” I barely dared to question, tears rapidly filling my eyes to make his expression blurry. The warrior lowered his head to level me and pressed his forehead to mine for a few moments, allowing the both of us to breathe the same air.
“Take life into your own hands, my sweet. I am sure you will do wonderful things,” he whispered to me with a plea, his voice breaking with every syllable.
“No!” I shook my head to get away from his grasp. “Wherever you think I’m going, I am not.”
