Soul Relenter (Soul Saga #3) (32 page)

Laura was confident in Accacia’s abilities, which surpassed even her own, but her heart began to cloud with doubt the longer they took to reach her. Accacia was up against the entire nation of soldiers—alone. How can anyon
e expect to survive?

The progression of soldiers
continued to thwart their advancement through the city, and Aleco was growing irritated with the constant barrier. He stabbed his sword mercilessly through anyone who got in his way. He hadn’t expected them to take so long to reach Accacia. Her safety was growing more compromised the longer they took. Zyle sped through the crowd, ignoring the soldiers altogether and decided to reach Accacia on his own, but when he broke through the throng of people on the street he saw another group of soldiers approach them. Zyle felt his heart drop. They were outnumbered by fifty-to-one.

Zyle knew they couldn’t defeat this army with their small numbers, and even if they did, he woul
d lose most of subjects to the void, and more importantly, he would never reach Accacia. The idea was more than he could stand.

Aleco caught up to him. He shared the same thought
. He stopped when he saw the soldiers head their way. “If they’re attacking us then they aren’t attacking Accacia. That is something to be thankful for.”

“If t
hey didn’t already kill her,” Zyle said miserably.

Both men wa
tched the soldiers march toward them through the narrow street, wondering how long it will take to kill them all or if they would survive. A man ran to them and was addressing the general of the group, speaking with his hands, and the army suddenly stopped in the street. Aleco and Zyle watched the incident with confusion. Aleco didn’t know if it was for good or ill. The army broke their ranks and dispersed in the street, running in various directions throughout Paso Robles.

“What the hell is happening?” Aleco asked.

Zyle didn’t know what to say. He didn’t have a single guess.

A soldier
ran toward them with no weapons drawn. A glass horn hung around his neck and he grabbed the instrument and brought it to his lips, blowing into the tube. The fighting ceased for a moment. Everyone stopped their swords in mid-air, unsure what the sound meant. “The war is over. The commander has surrendered Paso Robles to the aggressors. Lower your weapons. They will not harm us.”

Aleco was even more confused. They were cornered in the street like pigs ready to be slaughtered. They were outnumbered and exhausted. Aleco didn’t think they were going to survive the siege at all. The only reason he had
n’t retreated was because he wasn’t going to leave without Accacia. Now the soldiers were surrendering to them?

“We’
re missing something,” Zyle said. He shared the same thoughts with Aleco. Their behavior was inexplicable.

The soldier with the horn shouted over the shouts of the confusion.
“The leader of your organization needs to speak to the commander in the palace. He has requested your presence.” Zyle looked at Aleco, and Aleco nodded. Both men followed behind the soldier toward the palace in the distance. Now that the battle was over they knew Accacia was safe—if she was still alive. If she wasn’t, then it didn’t matter. Instead of looking for her, they knew they should wait for her to come to them. They were never going to find her in this province.

They came to the grounds of the palace and entered the doorway. The soldiers were attending to their wounded and tossing the corpses into piles near the wall, making a pyre to convert their bodies to ash.

“You’ll find the commander upstairs.” The soldier walked away and disappeared into the crowd. Zyle walked through the door first and Aleco followed behind. The palace was dark with dim lighting. The torches along the walls burned low, like a great wind had almost extinguished them. When they walked up the stairs they looked around, unsure where to do. Zyle spotted Accacia first.

“ACCACIA!” He sprinted to her and fell to his knees, grabbing her face in his hands. Aleco dashed over as soon as he hear
d her name. He fell to the floor and looked at Accacia. She looked dead. Her blood had soiled the bandage on her arm and her head had smeared blood on the tile. Her pale face was white and lifeless. Even her lips were fair. Neither of them noticed the unconscious man tied to the railing.

Aleco grabbed her wrist and felt the faint pulse beneath the skin. “She’s alive—but barely.” Her breathing was deep and shallow, like she couldn’t expand her lungs to their full potential. Aleco knew there was something wrong. He took off her cloak and saw th
e armor embedded into her chest. It had been crushed inwards. “We need to get this off her—now.”

Zyle unclasped the locks on the armor and unhinged the breast plate, pulling it from her sternum. Zyle’s eyes
flooded with tears at the sight. Her chest was black and blue. It looked like her chest had caved in, impaling her body. Now Aleco knew why she couldn’t breathe. Aleco forced himself to remain calm and not give into the emotion of the moment. Unless he got his act together and focused, she was going to die. Aleco blinked back the tears. “This is beyond my skills. She needs blood and her sternum needs to be reconstructed—we need a healer.”

“There has to be one in the city,” Zyle said.

Aleco nodded. Neither one of the men wanted to move from her side, waiting for the other man to make the first move. Aleco sighed and rose to his feet. “Don’t let her die.”

“Go to Mirron in the southern part of the district,” the man whispered from the rail. “He is the best healer we have. You can find him nex
t to Robles Pub.” Mitan breathed through the pain spreading through his limbs. The medication Accacia gave him had worn off. “I am in need of his assistance as well.”

Aleco stared at him. “If you’
re the one who did this to her, Mirron won’t be able to help you.” Aleco pulled down his hood and locked his threatening gaze onto the commander. “Healers can’t bring men back from the dead.” Mitan met his gaze but said nothing. Aleco ran down the stairs and dashed into the street, sprinting through the city until he found the man he sought. He returned a few minutes later with the elderly healer.

Zyle was holding her in his arms, burying his face into her neck as he let himself become overcome with grief. He couldn’t go on if she didn’t survive. Mirron looked at Accacia’s body and studied her injuries. “Let’s take her into a bedroom where she will be more comfortable.” Zyle grabbed her body before Aleco could even touch her. He carried her into the nearest bedchamber, not checking who was in it or who it belonged to. Zyle undressed her and tucked her into the sheets before he let Mirron and Aleco enter the room. Aleco was annoyed by his protection of her privacy. Aleco had already seen her naked—plenty of times. And Mirron was going to have to see her as well
in order to treat her. Aleco walked to the opposite side of the bed, and Zyle stood next to Mirron.

“Please save her,” Zyle said through his tears. “I’ll give you whatever you want in return.”

Mirron stared at him. “I can’t promise that I can, but I vow I will do everything I can to save her.” The healer felt the broken sternum of her chest and assessed the color of the bruises. He listened to her heart beat under her chest and monitored the limited expansion of his lungs. “I may need your assistance.”

Zyle hovered over him
, wanting to do something to help. “I am completely at your disposal.”

Aleco spoke from the other side
of the room. “As am I.”

Mirron looked
at both of the men in confusion. He decided not to question it. He opened his bag on the bed and removed a small vial that contained a clear liquid. It looked like water but more viscous. “I need a sample of your blood—both of you.”

Without hesitation, Aleco removed his dagger and cut his hand while he walked to the healer. Zyle cut his own hand
and held it out. The elderly man poured a drop of clear liquid onto each cut, which burned both men painfully. Aleco’s blood turned green while Zyle’s remained unaffected. The man sprinkled the liquid into Accacia’s cut and it also turned green.

Mirron turned to Aleco. “You blood is compatible.”

“Take whatever you need—take it all if you must. I don’t care if it kills me.”

Mirron took a tube from his back and slid
it into Accacia’s vein. He inserted the other end into Aleco’s arm. “That won’t be necessary.” The healer turned to Zyle. “I’m going to have to open her chest to flatten out her sternum. The reason why she is having difficulty breathing is because the bone is pressing against her lungs, inhibiting their expansion.” Zyle nodded at his words. “She may die during the surgery but there is no other option. I don’t know what her relationship is to both of you but I would like to have the permission of her family before I continue.”

“
We are both her family,” Aleco said before Zyle could speak.

Mirron nodded. “Very well,” he said. “May I proceed?”

Zyle and Aleco were silent for a moment. They both knew what Accacia would want. Zyle nodded. “Do it,” he said. “Is there anything I can do?”

Mirren rolled up his sleeves and pulled down the covers, revealing her bruised chest that was slightly caved in. “Actually, there is,” he said. “But
I understand if you choose not to do it.”

“If he won’t, I will,” Aleco said. “I don’t care what it is.”

Mirron turned to him. “You are already saving her life by doing that,” he said as he looked at the blood draining from his body. “You can’t do both.”

“Yes,” Zyle said. “Of course I will. What is it?”

Mirron pulled his blade and other tools from his pack and set them on the bed. “It isn’t necessary but it will help her.”

“He’ll
do
it,” Aleco said. “Now get on with it.”

Mirron ignored him. “I can
transfer some of the pain to you, not the infliction, and you can carry it yourself. She will be unaware of the pain, but the agony itself can inhibit the healing process. You would relieve a lot of stress on her body.”

“Can you transfer all of it?”

Mirron was quiet for a moment. “Yes, but I don’t recommend it. Splitting it between the two of you should be sufficient.”

“Why don’t you recommend it?”

Mirron looked at her wounds then looked back at Zyle. “The pain will be agonizing. You may not be able to concentrate on anything but the pain. It could even make you bed-ridden.”

Zyle shook his head. “Give me all of it.”

Mirron sighed. “Are you sure?”

“Do it.” His eyes were clear blue. Mirron could see the absenc
e of any hesitation or doubt. Zyle turned to Aleco. “I may be indisposed. Will you lead the Asquithians along with your own men?”

“Yes.”

Zyle nodded his gratitude then turned back to the healer. “I’m ready.”

Mirron nodded. “After I atte
nd to her, I will attend to the commander. He looks like he needs more attention than Accacia does.”

“You will not touch him,” Aleco said. “If you heal him without my consent
, I will kill you, Mirron.” The threat in his voice was deadly.

“Tis’ not very wise to threaten the man who is healing the woman you love.”

Aleco said nothing.

“We think he is the one responsible for her injuries,” Zyle said.

“I have no doubt that he is.”

Mirron grabbed his
blade from the bed and began the procedure. “I suggest the pair of you look away. The sight can make even the strongest man faint.”

Zyl
e took a seat and looked toward the door, avoiding the sight of Accacia’s broken body and Aleco’s cloaked face. Zyle recognized the sound of Laura’s voice in the hallway.

“We’
re in here,” he called to her.

Laura walked into the room and her gaze fell on Accacia’s fragile state. She covered her face with her hands and immediately began to cry. Z
yle stood and hugged her. “She’s alive,” he whispered. “It’s okay.”

“Is she going to stay that way?”

Zyle nodded. “I hope so. We are doing everything we can for her. Aleco is giving her his blood and I am burdening the pain of her recovery.

“Is there anything I can do?”

“Yes,” he said. “I need to stay here with her. I need both you and Aleco to continue with the plans. Gather the slaves and prepare them in the wagons. We need to leave as soon as possible.”

“What of my niece?”

“We will let her recover as long as we can,” he said. “We can lay her in one of the wagons so she can rest on the way back.”

Laura walked to the bedside and held Accacia’s hand. She didn’t look at what the healer was doing. I
nstead, she concentrated her sight on Accacia’s face. Laura leaned in and kissed her brow. “You’re going to be alright,” she whispered. Laura kneeled at the bedside and said nothing for several moments, crying to herself quietly. Zyle felt himself lose his hold on his emotions. He had never felt worse—not even when Cassandra died. Aleco said nothing as he felt the blood leave his body and drain into Accacia, weakening him with every beat of his heart.

Mirron nodded to Aleco. “That’s plenty,” he said. “Take the tube out of your skin and wrap up the wound.”