Wicked Lord of Thessaly (Halcyon Romance Series Book 3) by Rachael Slate Read Free Book Online Page A

forest.
    He was safe, for the moment, and so was she. Now, she had to find a way to rescue her centaur.
    Or die trying.
    ***
    Agrius grimaced as one guard yanked his head by the hair, wrenching his gaze to the lead soldier.
    “Where is the Lady Eione headed, centaur scum?” the leader growled, crossing his arms.
    Damn, they had identified her. Glaring at them, Agrius held his tongue. Eione would be safe so long as he disclosed nothing. That was all that mattered. She was all that mattered.
    Let these Lapith bastards do to him what they would.
    “Don’t feel like talking, centaur?” the leader jeered. “We’ll loosen your tongue.” He waved toward one guard. “Bring him to the command post.”
    Agrius grunted and stumbled forward while they lugged him toward a cabin about a mile away. They tossed him into a corner room, hands and legs bound. The arrow they loosed had pierced him and remained pinned inside his right hind leg, crippling him.
    He hung his head. They’d been so close. Bloody hell. They should have scouted better, then they would’ve detected the long-range archers. Not that anything short of armor would have aided them.
    Eione is safe , he chanted in his mind, the words lending him comfort. His brothers would care for her. They’d scent him on her and know she was his.
    He’d counted at least a dozen guards surrounding the cabin. Mayhap once they pulled this arrow from his leg, he’d no longer be lame and he could fight them.
    The door cracked open and a Lapith male sauntered inside, cracking his knuckles. “Now, centaur, you’re going to talk.” He removed a cloth bundle from his side and set it upon the table, metal instruments glinting in the dim light.
    Agrius squinted. Tools, for making horseshoes.
    Torture. He winced.
    The man spun, wielding a hammer and a nail puller.
    Ignoring the instruments of torture, Agrius lifted his chin. These men seemed not to have realized one very important fact.
    No one broke a centaur.
    ***
    Eione paced the forest toward the outpost, murmuring prayers to Artemis. She had to rescue Agrius, but how? Ought she to race to his brothers and recruit them?
    She still carried the chest of coins. Could she hire mercenaries?
    No, no . Each option wasted precious time.
    Her father’s men would undoubtedly torture Agrius. Likely were at this very moment.
    Dropping her head into her hands, she fought back tears. They’d dragged him to an outpost. Perhaps she could create a diversion and draw the soldiers out. She carried a full quiver of arrows and, thanks to her gift from Artemis, possessed seamless aim. There couldn’t be more than two dozen men. It might work.
    She might fail, too. They’d both die.
    The notion of Agrius’s death cut into her, pain lancing her chest. Groaning, she sank to her knees.
    From the forest to her right, a rumble mirrored her groan. Eione froze, glancing in that direction from the corner of her eye.
    Gleaming orbs glittered from the trees, a low grunting rolling through the forest.
    More than one.
    She dared a glimpse and gaped at the two dozen beasts trampling through the woods. Their ivory tusks gleamed in the moonlight, the points sharp as knives—and the feral glint in their eyes intent on proving it.
    They ignored her, trudging past as though she were but a rock in their flowing river, and headed straight for the outpost.
    Sweet Artemis. She clapped a trembling hand over her mouth, uttering a silent prayer of thanks to the goddess. Wild boar were sacred to her and she must have sent them in answer to Eione’s pleading.
    The beasts were nearly as large as she, and those spiked tusks could tear a man in half. They squealed as they passed the forest line, charging toward the outpost.
    Eione waited, stringing her bow.
    Shouts arose from the enemy camp while the boars attacked, goring their victims.
    She sprinted to keep pace with the tail end of the group, hiding amongst the beasts and breaking free once they neared the cabin. After