Page 96 of Liar Witch

They’ve pulled her scales.

Goddess. No.

I want to leap off the catwalk and take out the bastards, but Opal’s claws in my shoulders remind me of what’s at stake. There are too many guards here for me to take on at once.

I don’t know the layout of this place well enough to start my rescue mission. My original plan was to take out the Mage, then work my way through the remaining guards.

I need to stick to that plan.

The female guard who yelled originally is the one pushing my mate’s sister across the room. Her uniform is more decorated than the others’ and I’m pretty sure that she’s of much higher rank. Possibly a Captain.

She grins as Cassie is hefted up by her bound arms and plunged into the small pool, then slams the grate over her head before she’s even fully submerged. The woman wastes no time in locking the hatch down, securing it with a key attached to a large ring of others on her belt.

I’m willing to bet any key that I might need is on that ring. I just have to get it.

Cassie’s hands cling to the metal, fingers clawing to get out. Water sloshes as she struggles to free herself, but the humans don’t care. The smirk on the Captain’s face as she stands makes it clear she thinks it’s funny to watch someone fight. Her boot rises, only to come down in a punishing blow to the fragile digits desperately clasping the hatch.

Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. She delivers endless hits, until Cassie’s fingers retreat beneath the surface, just as bloody and broken as the rest of her.

The bitch isstillsmiling.

I make a note of which pool Cassie’s in, taking in all the details on her grate. But most of my focus is consumed by the captain holding the key. The one who stomped on Cassie’s fingers.

She dies slowly. I’ll make certain of it.

The other guards salute her as she spits into Cassie’s cell before moving toward the door without a backward glance. She’s definitely in charge here. Following her is more likely to lead me to the mage than the grunts who dropped off the barrels.

I slip into the spirit plane with a last look at Cassie’s prison and drop to the floor below. I land in a crouch, then dash across the open space. I dart across cells but don’t dare to look down into the water they hold.

I don’t want to see.

This place is evil.

Following the woman is easy. She carves a path straight out of the room and down another corridor.

Despite the strength with which she attacked Cassie, she’s a small woman. Tiny and doll-like in her proportions. Even her face is delicate, though the lines etched into her skin hint at a stronger personality beneath. She wears the same red uniform as all the others, but she has a sword at her belt, unlike the truncheons carried by most of the others. Alongside the long, thin blade is that large ring holding dozens of different keys, two pairs of metal cuffs and a gag like the one Cassie was wearing.

I suppose one can’t be without spares when dealing with sirens.

“Captain Shen,” a guard calls out, almost as soon as she’s out of the room. “The lizards are acting up again.”

Shen. Well, at least I now know that bitch’s name.

“Why is that worthy of my attention?” she snaps.

The man visibly pales and his Adam's apple bobs nervously. “The... the collars look like they’re failing, Captain.”

“I’ll see to it.” Her words are clipped and hard as she turns on her heel and starts heading in the same direction the guard came from. “Please inform Lord Rinaldi that his presence may be required. The crystals in their collars have been running out of magic faster lately.”

Gotcha, I think to myself.

The second guard runs off—presumably to find the mage—while I trail behind the captain as she heads down the corridor.

“It can’t be that easy,”Opal mutters.

I don’t bother answering her. I’m too busy trying to keep track of the route back to the cells. There are so many turns in these tunnels that I can feel myself getting lost. The underground facility is huge—impossibly so—and the farther in we go, the warmer it gets.

It’s hot enough that even in the spirit realm, I can sense the heat. They must be using some combination of mage-tech and the volcano’s natural energy to keep the place habitable; but even then, why have it so baking hot that I can see the Captain sweating?