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Maybe the Saghred would refuse to bite the hand that had fed it--and would turn on the one holding its leash That would be me

I hadn’t considered that

My intuition had never lied toto die, and it was really going to hurt But I knew if I screwed this up, I wouldn’t be the only one dying Rudra Muralin was nearly a thousand years old He’d been patiently searching for the Saghred all this tihred ake, its containant and deluded elfisland Rudra Muralin was probably daiddy

He’d probably round

The air shifted

That was all the warning I got

"No songs, spells, or movement," Rudra Muralin said quietly fro"

A pair of Khrynsani stepped out of the darkness ahead of us with a tied, gagged, and blindfolded Talon Tandu between theuards yanked off the blindfold Talon’s aqua eyes blinked in the sudden light

A sound started low in Piaras’s throat

"Khali!" Muralin snapped

Instantly, one of Talon’s guards put a curved blade to his throat

"Your voice is splendid, Piaras," Muralin said soblin’s voice was quiet, but the ain If you make one sound, or so much as clear your throat, he dies--and it will be asas if you had slit his throat yourself Do you understand?"

Piaras hesitated and nodded oing to do everything possible to give hiuests of their weapons?"

His Khrynsani did as told, and unfortunately, they did a thorough job I didn’t have any steel left on me, and I doubted Piaras did, either

"Turn around," Muralin ordered "Slowly"

The goblins had lightglobes of their own, and they increased their glow slightly The goblins didn’t need light to see us, but they knee needed light to see the a pair of elves at your h to appreciate how helpless they were?

Rudra Muralin wasn’t alone Mere psychopaths traveled alone; evil e of minions

And I hadn’t heard, seen, sensed, or s until they were on top of us

We weren’t in a tunnel We were in a roos in the walls indicatedfro, each with a sturdy iron hook at the end Iron rings were bolted to the walls, and there were a couple of other implements I couldn’t identify and didn’t want to This wasn’t anybody’s happy place, except perhaps for sadisticin front of me

Rudra Muralin’s onyx eyes were on mine "Both of you put your hands behind your heads and keep them there"

When a crazy person tells you to put your hands up, you should at least think about it When a crazy person with a dozen or so heavily ar, you don’t think; you just do it

I hesitated and then slowly put my hands behind my head Piaras did likewise I hesitated because I didn’t want Muralin to get the impression that I was a pushover

"Bind therabbed oblin’s instep He swore and hissed, but never loosened his grip

I called up hred, I’d shove it down his throat

A ht wrist and icy nu ic Another manacle clicked on my left wrist as a pair of hands swepther," Muralin said