The Consort (MalexMale) 《COMPLETE》

Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Bogdan sets me on my feet, glancing behind him to make sure Kelly is following. My best friend joins in a blur of moment, his red eyes cutting through the darkness of the night. I huddle into myself and squint. It makes perfect sense why immortals choose to travel at night; it's at a time when mortals are at our weakest.

I glance around the area with hesitant curiosity. I can still see the forest we cleared just minutes ago. Its billowing trees stand tall, their branches dancing to the whispers of the wind. It almost sounds like a gentle whistle that beckons us back into their safety.

A handful of houses surround the three of us. They all look worn down and abandoned, the type of unkempt appearance that tells me they were vacated long before the war began. Most of the windows are broken, and what little is left of the curtains are shred to pieces.

Bogdan leans into Kelly and whispers. The two exchange an almost inaudible conversation, one I'm sure even the best of human ears couldn't decipher. I don't bother interrupting them. I made that mistake last night when I woke up to get a glass of water. It ended with Bogdan telling me to go back to sleep, because 'I needed my strength' followed by a look of pity from Kelly.

"Human?"

Bogdan opens his arms for me, and I readily climb into his embrace.

"Are we going somewhere different?" I whisper close to his ear.

"No, we're staying here," he replies evenly. "You just walk too loudly and we need to go undetected."

I suppress an eye roll. Bogdan follows Kelly's lead this time, navigating us into the furthest house on the left. The various shards of glass glisten against the spotted moonlight. I shouldn't be surprised that both Kelly and Bogdan manage to side-step every single piece, but I'm still left in awe. Had I been the one navigating, all three of us would have to spend the rest of the night plucking out pieces of glass from our shoes.

We pass through the living room and walk down a short hallway. Kelly pushes through the door at the end, nodding for us to enter after him. The smell of musty, old books is overpowering. The room is small – nothing but a bed and a night stand. Then I notice a pair of fancy binoculars balancing on the corner of the windowsill.

As if reading my mind, Kelly picks them up and stares off into the distance. Bogdan shifts me to only one of his arms. I expect him to set me down but he doesn't. After a moment of stilled silence, Kelly passes them off to Bogdan.

"Let him see when you're done," Kelly whispers to Bogdan.

Bogdan takes his turn, and I watch his features carefully, trying to gauge his reaction to whatever he's witnessing. His lips thin into a mulish line. This his jaw tightens. The combination makes me nervous. When he finally hands the binoculars to me, his expression almost looks...worried.

I swallow hard and press the cool cylinders to my eyes.

At first I don't see anything. I move them slowly to the side and stop when I see a small bit of light. Then bile rises to my throat and I start to tremble.

It's Fiona.

Her head lolls to the side, her beautiful red tendrils now knotted and matted together with patches of sweat. There's a purple bruise that shines against her upper cheek. Her eyes are puffy with fatigue, and her bottom lip is swollen.

I move the binoculars down an inch and see she is tied to a sturdy, wooden chair. There's another chair only a foot or two away from her but it's empty.