Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 101336 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 507(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 338(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 101336 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 507(@200wpm)___ 405(@250wpm)___ 338(@300wpm)
After a while, the strain of the climb had his arm and leg muscles burning like they were on fire, but he did not slow or stop to rest. He needed to find out what happened to his wife.
Once he reached the bottom, he retrieved his sword, slipping it in the sheath on his back, then he hurried to make certain Iver was dead before surveying the area. He would find the others who made Clyde suffer, especially the evil man Iver mentioned, and see that each one of them paid the price for killing his friend.
He turned away from Iver, glancing over the area and spotted a fallen pine tree, its branches crushed, and he hurried to it. He squatted down beside it looking for any signs of blood or pieces of garment but saw none. Yet something told him that this was where Sky had landed and if so that meant there was a good chance she survived the fall. The question was, did she walk out of here on her own, or did someone take her out of here? He rejected the thought that the wolves could have gotten to her. If that were so, there would be some evidence of it, and he saw none. So, what had happened to her? Or was she still here?
He surveyed the area with a fine eye finding paw prints—the wolves—then he spotted a strange pattern in the dirt. Someone had covered tracks, and he carefully brushed the soil away in rutted parts of the terrain and discovered hoof prints. Horses had been here. Someone had taken Sky.
Slayer was ready to kill, to rip off limbs and tear out hearts to find his wife, but he tempered his rage, saving it for when he found the person who took her. He set his own tracking skills to work, following a trail he was able to find. Unfortunately, they were on horses, and he was on foot. He feared they had already outdistanced him. He had dismissed the thought that he would find her dead along the way. If they intended on killing her, they could have already done so. But they had not. They had taken her with them.
The tracks took him into the forest, and he kept following them. He could not take the chance and wait for his warriors. Every moment mattered and he had no doubt his warriors would find his tracks and follow.
Slayer kept a good pace, the horses’ tracks showing a slower one. He wondered if it had anything to do with Sky and if her injuries required a slower pace. He kept alert to his surroundings as he hurried along.
He almost roared with anger when the tracks divided, and he stood at the crossroads of a decision that could mean life or death for his wife. He turned his head from side to side as if each path might reveal something to him when suddenly a small red squirrel appeared on the path to the right. He released a piercing chirp and titled his head at the path as if telling him to go that way.
If his wife trusted the animals, then so could he. He looked at the squirrel and ordered, “Lead the way.”
He followed the squirrel for a good distance until he suddenly stopped not far ahead of him. He went up on his hind legs and sniffed the air, then the little fellow barked and scurried off. He remembered Sky saying that squirrels communicated by the different sounds they made. What was it she had said about a bark? Threatened. That’s what it was. The squirrel felt threatened.
Slayer tempered his steps, keeping them light and cautious, making as little sound as he could. He was about to return to his fast pace, hearing or seeing nothing, when he heard voices ahead. He crouched down, keeping out of sight until he found an area thick with foliage where he could keep himself hidden and peered carefully through the branches.
His eyes narrowed and his heart slammed in his chest, seeing at least six bodies on the ground. Only one moved and a warrior stood over him, a bloody sword in his hand and Slayer counted five more with swords in hand and there was no telling if more warriors lingered nearby.
“Where is she?” the thick warrior demanded.
“Don’t know.”
The warrior prodded the wounded man with his foot. “Lie. Where did you hide her? We know you made it to the bottom of the cliff before us.”
“She was gone,” the man said, struggling to speak.
The warrior spit on him. “Another lie. She fell off the cliff. She could not have gotten up and walked off on her own.”
Another warrior spoke up, “If he’s telling the truth then he could be leading us away from wherever she’s hiding.”