Page 128 of A Cruel Kindness

I looked back to find she already did that, her eyes scanning the field. “I don’t think any of these people are Muli.”

I turned back, finding our own soldiers sprinting in between burning buildings with buckets of water in their hands.

God damnit.

I didn’t want to leave her side, but we probably needed to split up.

Bellamy was already ahead of me. “I’ll go to the cabin. Grab as much stuff as I can. You find Peter. If we need to head out, bring Clover to—”

A loud, shrieking neigh cut off Bellamy’s sentence. Clover was barreling towards her, huffing as she ran.

“I guess they really do stay in the stables on their own regard,” Bellamy quipped sarcastically as Clover approached, whining in concern. “It’s okay, sweet girl,” Bellamy said, running her hand down her neck.

“Bell,” I said, beckoning her to me. She came over quickly, falling into my embrace like it was as natural as breathing. “I’ll meet you at the cabin.”

Bellamy rose up on her toes to give me a quick kiss. I helped her jump onto Clover’s back, dragging my hand down from her shoulder to her leg as she started to turn away. As I watched her ride towards the forest were our cabin was nestled, her dark hair stark against the glowing fires dotted behind her, I felt my heart stop for a solid second.

Lucky’s snout knocked me in the ass a second later, almost pushing me into the mud. “Alright, boy,” I said as I swung over his back. “Let’s go.”

Lucky ran the perimeter of the camp and I looked on as I saw every single important building erupting in flames. Our food stores. Our weapons storage. Our reserves.

Everything.

Someone had clearly cased the camp. You couldn’t tell the difference between a lot of the buildings, all that same, quickly built cabin structure, unless you knew what was inside.

A sick feeling bloomed in my chest when I realized that they might not have had to case the camp at all. They had someone in their midst who knew this camp like the back of their hand.

I hoped Carson had nothing to do with this. I couldn’t save him if he did.

As much as I was still angry at him for what he’d done, I didn’t wish death on him.

That would be his punishment if he had a hand in this.

I looped around by the main house, watching as people ran from it with food falling out of their arms. From this vantage point, I could see a crowd gathering around the Bridge, prepared to defend it with their life.

Ford’s head stood tall among the crowd, so I sent Lucky barreling down the slope for him. Only one of our lovely deities could have had a hand in this timing, rarely blessing us with a moment of clarity.

I noticed a few bright lights started dotting the sky, taking on a more yellow, orangeish hue rather than the brilliant white of the stars.

No one else could have seen it. They were all too focused on the Bridge.

“BACK UP!” I yelled at the crowd, hoping they were smart enough to listen. Ford was, immediately barking orders for people to flee without even turning to acknowledge me.

He managed to run away with several people in tow, right as three flaming arrows flew from the sky, landing on the top of the cave that concealed the Bridge.

An explosion rocked the camp a second later.

Debris flew everywhere, blasting chunks of rock into the air and out to pelt people fleeing from the Bridge. It was a relatively small blast, not intended to cause casualties.

Just to destroy the entrance to the Bridge under a mass of heavy rock.

Lucky reared back as we finally made it to the crowd. Ford pushed himself up with a heaving breath, muttering, “What the hell?”

The Bridge was destroyed. The energy coursing through that portal to Vir could never truly be cut off, but that small cave that had shuffled hundreds of people through, like they were simply stepping out into the morning light after a night of seeking shelter, was collapsed in on itself under piles of rock.

I turned to look for more flaming arrows, but the night was black and rich with stars.

The job had been done.