Chapter 34 - 32- Kidnapped

Neria woke up to the sound of deep male voices speaking in accented whispers. She felt like she knew them, but with her head spinning and the horrible smell of something she wasn’t even sure of filling the air, she couldn’t think straight.

Rot.

That was what it smelled like.

Her eyes slowly opened, but there was almost nothing to see. Where ever she was dark, and without her spectacles everything around her was nothing more than blurry shapes.

She immediately brought a hand to her face.

Her spectacles were gone.

Panic settled in her chest as she tried to remember what had happened. She could remember being put in a cage with Ryver. She could remember Darian leaving them behind while he went inside the market.

After that...

Nothing.

Beside her came a low groan, followed by the sound of chains shifting against the floor.

"Ryver?"

She reached toward him, her hands finding his face despite the weight of the chains around her wrists.

"Neria," he groaned, his voice rough with sleep. His head shifted beneath her hands as he slowly woke. "What.... Where..?" he trailed.

"I don’t know."

She pulled her hands back and listened.

The voices outside were still there. They were closer now, and she could hear the occasional clink of metal and the muffled movement of something heavy being dragged across the floor.

Before either of them could say anything else, a familiar voice drifted in from outside.

"That Zeke was too greedy."

Neria froze.

She knew that voice.

It was the merchant from the market. The same man who had tried to buy her from Darian.

Another voice answered him, rough and familiar. "Now I get to have her."

Neria’s stomach dropped.

This wasn’t part of what Darian had said. She wasn’t supposed to be with these people. This wasn’t part of the plan.

She didn’t like this.

Neria looked back at Ryver, though she could barely see him through the blur. His head had tilted slightly in her hands, and he seemed barely aware of what was happening around him. She shook his shoulder gently.

"Ryver?" she called, her voice quieter this time. "Ryver?"

The elf’s head snapped up.

"What... when..." He trailed off, his eyes struggling to focus before his head dropped again.

Neria frowned.

What was wrong with him?

She shook him a little harder, the chains around his wrists making a dull metallic sound against the floor.

"Ry—"

The door opened.

"Oh, she’s awake!"

The merchant’s voice came from the doorway, and there was something in the way he said it that made a shudder of fear and disgust run down her spine.

She turned her head toward the sound. A blur of light entered the dark space before the figure stepped inside, his boots scraping against the floor as he approached.

Neria barely had time to move before his hand closed around her arm.

"No. No, let me go!" she pulled back immediately, but his grip tightened. "Ryver!" she shouted. "Ryver!"

The elf moved, reaching out to her, but he was too slow. His movements were sluggish, almost like he was fighting to stay awake.

The merchant laughed.

"Your friend is going to be out for a while."

Neria struggled harder, twisting her arm in his grip, but the chains made it difficult to move properly. The merchant only tightened his hold before pulling her toward the doorway.

"Let me go!"

He ignored her.

With one hard yank, he dragged her out of the wagon and into the cold evening air.

The sudden chill hit her skin, raising goosebumps along her arms. The smell of the cave and the damp stone was replaced by something colder and sharper, and somewhere nearby she could hear horses neighing and the creak of wagon wheels.

Neria’s heart raced.

"Aye! She’s awake..." the merchant said as he pulled her along.

Neria’s bare feet sank into the dirt as they walked, twigs scratching against her skin and small stones pressing painfully into her soles. She stumbled more than once, but every time she tried to slow down, the man’s grip only tightened around her arm.

"She’s prettier awake," the guard said from somewhere in front of them. His voice made her stomach twist. "Look at those legs."

Neria stepped back, trying to get away from them, but the merchant shoved her forward before she could.

"I can’t wait to break in tonight," the guard continued, his voice full of anticipation. "How much is she again?"

Neria’s heart lurched.

She barely had time to steady herself before the merchant pushed her again, sending her stumbling straight into the other man’s arms.

The guard caught her around the shoulders. Neria immediately struggled against him, panic rising sharply in her chest as she tried to push herself away.

"Let me go!"

The merchant only laughed, watching her struggle. "She’ll fetch plenty. But I’ll give you a pouch for helping me."

The guard’s grip tightened slightly as he looked at her.

"A pouch?"

"A full one."

Neria stopped struggling for a second, her breathing uneven.

"Always so greedy" the guard laughed and the other man laughed with him.

Neria felt the man move as he searches his pockets, soon he pulled out a pouch of coins and threw towards the merchant.

"Oh wait! Let me get my tools to see if I can take the old collar off" he said as if suddenly remembering.

The guard wasn’t listening, his hands had started to roam her body squeezing her in ways she didn’t like. Neria tried to struggle but the man’s hand had started to trail up her thighs.

"Lat me go" she yelled but he just laughed, squeezing her inner thighs.

"Hamis I will be busy for a while" He yelled.

The next second he lifted Neria and threw her over his shoulder, slapping her backside crudely.

The man carried her further into the forest, and the blurred figures of trees surrounded them on every side. The sound of the horses was becoming more distant than she would have liked, and soon all she could hear was the rustling leaves and the crunch of his boots against the damp ground.

Neria struggled on his shoulder, hitting his back with her chained hands. "Let me go!"

"Quiet now," he muttered. "We’re going to have so much fun."

"No! I don’t want to!"

She kicked hard, but the movement only made him tighten his hold around her legs. Neria twisted again, trying to slip free, but she was already exhausted from fighting him and the chains around her wrists made everything harder.

Then out of pure desperation she bit down on his shoulder.

The man immediately cursed and dropped her.

"You little bitch!"

Neria hit the ground hard, the impact knocking the breath from her. Dirt stuck to her palms as she scrambled away, but the man caught her ankle before she could get far.

She screamed and kicked at him.

"Get off me!"

He grabbed her leg and pulled her back toward him.

Neria clawed at the ground, her fingers digging through damp soil and dead leaves as she desperately searched for anything she could use. She could barely see him, only his blurred shape moving above her, but she could hear his breathing and feel the panic rising higher in her own hest.

"Stop fighting me."

"No!"

She twisted violently, managing to pull one leg free for a second before he caught her again.

Neria kicked him in the knee then another kick went between his legs forcing him to double over immediately.

He stumbled.

It was only for a moment, but it was enough.

She rolled onto her side and tried to crawl away, her chained hands scraping against the ground as she dragged herself through the leaves.

Her fingers brushed against something hard.

She froze.

A stone— rock.

She closed her hand around it and held it tightly, keeping her body low as the man came toward her again.

"When I get my hands on you..."

She heard him grab for her.

She turned and swung the stone with everything she had. The stone struck his head with a dull crack.

He staggered backward, his hand immediately going to the side of his head. Neria stared at him, breathing hard, the stone still clenched in her trembling hand.

She swung again, hitting him harder before he could recover. The man fell to the ground, but Neria didn’t stop.

Shw crawled to him.

She hit him again.

And again.

The sickening crack of the stone against bone filled the quiet forest, and every sound seemed to push the next swing out of her. Her arms hurt, her breathing was ragged, but she kept going until the man beneath her stopped moving.

Then she stopped.

Neria sat there, staring down at him through the blur of her vision. Her chest rose and fell heavily as the adrenaline slowly began to leave her body.

The rock slipped from her fingers. It landed beside her with a soft thud.

For a moment, she couldn’t move.

She had killed him.

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Hello there thanks for making it this far even after everything.. please share your thoughts. Thank you and and have a nice day