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"That right? Then worry more about your own reaction - "
"MacRieve, I&039;m immune to him"
"How? Why?"
Her eyes darted, tears wetting them "P-please, you have to leave!"
Was he finally going to learn her secrets? "Why are you i to bite back a sob, she whispered, "Because because I&039;m his wife"
Chapter 48
Hoill he react? MacRieve&039;s expression was inscrutable She&039;d put the truth out there, a sha
"This is what it&039;s all been about with you," he said in an even tone "All the fear, all the running The nightmares" When she nodded, he said, "You called hi, Scot?
"But you usted with ?"
She sed "He tricked me into it I-I was only sixteen"
A rew pale "Then know this"
She stopped breathing
"Lass, I&039;m about to ainst scabbards rang out in the distance She and MacRieve twisted around, found an ar, eyes feverish with fanaticism
"More of those fucks?"
There had to be over a hundred of them "Please, MacRieve, let&039;s both leave before they attack Take th, he said, "I&039;ll take you away - but I&039;ll come back for him"
Yettheht, love!" Without warning, MacRieve charged the with his claws
With her custo her mortal foes swiftly, careful not to hit MacRieve
But they were in such close confines, and he seemed to be everywhere
With hisfro out one Cromite after another Yet every time he eliminated one, another appeared - even with Lucia&039;s arrows continually whizzing past hi their enemies between the eyes
"Why dinna you tell od
"I didn&039;t want you to know - I didn&039;t want anyone to know!"
This fuck tricked ood as dead!
"What are you thinking, MacRieve?" she cried, shooting three arrows at a tiured he should be reflecting on the fact that his s were much more cohts were siod, and Lousha is led with clarity - at least now he had an eneht
"MacRieve?"
"You should have tolda headless body out fro to prevent exactly this!"
"And all the tihtmares?"
"The dreams are portents They tell me when he&039;s about to rise" Another three arrows in rapid succession "I couldn&039;t reveal that to you because I knew you would come here But this is my responsibility It has been for over a , Cro Good headway
"What are you trying to prove?" Lucia demanded
Between strikes, he bellowed, "That you should no&039; have leftto do it toit!" When he didn&039;t, she said, "Then why are you different?" Another volley of arrows "What gives you the right to risk yourself?"
He snapped, "Because you could ed for the last Cro, she thought as she watched MacRieve finish off their foes
As Lucia fought to catch her breath in the dank tunnel, he stood over his last kill, his chest heaving as well He&039;d warred like aso many
And now that they could leave, they needed to at once! "Scot, again, you have to listen to et infected"
"Lousha," he rasped "I want you to know so"
"Can you not tell me outside?"
He shook his head "I need you to know this I&039; this now?" She trailed off when he faced her once more
His eyes were milky white
"No, no, no" Her heart seeh air He was already infected with Cruach&039;s influence, would need to harods, he loves ht this!" She strapped her bow back on, holding out both of her hands to hiether"
"I love you so dah "Wanted to tell you before"
MacRieve was lost
Cruach&039;s laughter sounded, echoing along the walls of dank earth, then he ordered, "Bring ing forward to grab her arms, she cried, "No, don&039;t do this to me!" She struck out at hi "MacRieve, you have to resist this!"
He was unhearing, forcing her past the fallen Cromites toward Cruach&039;s chambers
Just like before When she&039;d been a terrified girl Now she was a terrified wo realization of how doohastly her ceilings - and bodies strewn all around Wigglingwalls Women, children, no one had been spared The concentrated stench
First, she spied four Crood Then her gaze fell on the altar itself, still , she pleaded, "MacRieve, take me fro had changed - Cruach was still the sa life The horns, the misshapen body, the hideous yellow eyes His scaly skin was decoh in places, down to his bloodstained, broken bones
"Ah, wife, I&039;ve been drea of when you would return to me" He motioned for her to coging in her heels, MacRieve forced her closer "Let o!"
"If this is how you wish to proceed, Lucia, then so be it," Cruach said To MacRieve, he ordered, "Chain her down"
MacRieve snatched her into his arod was driving hiainst him, MacRieve slammed her down upon the altar with so ainst the stone Her vision wavered and her breath hitched The bow at her back gouged into her skin Still, she fought when the robed men seized one of her wrists MacRieve easily closed a manacle around her other
"Please don&039;t do this! Garreth!"
No reaction
As she flailed and clawed, they chained her to the altar she&039;d prayed she&039;d never touch again
She lay prone, defenseless, as Cruach liaze, he groped his gnarled hand fro in her throat
But he stopped at her thigh quiver "Was the huntress planning to ers wrapping around the arrow she&039;d brought to kill hi it out, he said, "Ah, a dieumort My bride came to make herself a "
He raised the arrow over her, but noshe was, nor how frantic, she couldn&039;t break the manacles "Garreth! Helpher with it, Cruach snapped it in two, dropping it on the ground Crushing it beneath his feet, he pulverized it to dust "What will you do now, Archer? Try to shoot me with that"
"No, no" Not the arrow There wasn&039;t even a fragment left to drive into his heart All the work, all the sacrifice in the Amazon
Noo evils could be loosed on the earth
"Fair Lucia, all&039;s not lost You&039;ve pleased ," he said with a wave at MacRieve, who stoodinto my jail such a fine slave as this one Especially since ood to be rid of the fangs "And I bet their meat is tender"
Cruach could force MacRieve to serve hied through her until she felt like choking on it "You haveto you!"
"Nothing?" Cruach&039;s repulsive countenance suddenly changed to an expression of utter rage Bloody saliva dangled from his bottom lip as he yelled, "He cuckoldedoff the walls "For so long you&039;d kept yourself pure for me, but now I smell him all over you I want no wife such as you!"
She screa to calm himself once more, Cruach said, "I want the sacrifice of a powerful huntress - offered up by someone who loves her A sacrifice like that, coh to break free, to become incorporeal and invincible forever" He motioned for MacRieve, who joined his side without hesitation To Lucia, he said, "I want the one who sullied you to punish you And free , his eyes blinded to reality When Cruach handed him a Croan chanting, "To him we sacrifice, for him our cherished to him we sacrifice"
"Take her head, Lykae," Cruach intoned "To me you sacrifice, for me your cherished"
"No, MacRieve!" She strained against the bonds, ignoring the pain as the rusted ht this! I&039;m Lucia - you don&039;t want to hurtsmile, Cruach added, "I bet we&039;ll find yourfrom her wrists She could almost almost squeeze one hand out of a manacle
MacRieve crossed over to the altar, standing at her shoulders Positioned there, because he was going to cut off her head
"Don&039;t do it, MacRieve - you can&039;t do this to me!"
"Do it, MacRieve - youfor hi to reassure her, he told her again, "I&039;m in love with you, Lousha"
Her eyes were filled with dread, tears spilling over "If you love ?" She feared he wouldn&039;t? "Endpower on hith to do what needed to be done
"Do it, Garreth!" she said
He raised the proud sword over his head It would land directly across her delicate neck And her suffering would end "I do this for you"
She rithing with anticipation, eyes wide, screa, "Now, MacRieve! Yes, please!"
"Love you" The sword ca clean
Chapter 49
"MacRieve!" she screa helplessly as he drove the sword into his side - the sword that had been aied his grip, shoving it into hi to his knees, the blade still planted inside hi, he yanked the sword free, throwing it across the cavern Then with his hands squeezing his head so hard she thought he&039;d crack his skull, he roared in agony
"Garreth, no!"
"That was fascinating," Cruach said, staring at MacRieve "I could control him, but not the beast inside him - the one that would rather die than hare is done I&039;d already implanted in hisyou" The fiend laughed "Right now he believes he&039;s rocking your headless body, feeling your skin cooling against his as your blood drains away"
"Lousha, doona leave ed He reverted to Gaelic, uttering anguished words So sorry love you joining you His voice wretched, he pleaded for her to coin&039; you, lass"
Tears ran from her eyes as she choked out the words, "Garreth, it&039;s not real Not real"
He was unhearing, beginning to dig his claws into the dirt around hi," Cruach said "The beast is rising, roiling in horror and confusion, gathering the pieces of you to his body How touching"
"Cruach, I will kill you for this!" Lucia lifted up against the chains "You&039;ll never leave this place! You belong here" When Cruach closed in on her, she screaod - you&039;re a worm in the earth, a parasite!" She spat at his face
His long tongue darted out and collected the spittle fro her words, he murmured, "What to do with you? I could reclaim you or dine on your flesh" He leered down at her with those yellow, slitted eyes "I knoill do both At the sa the four robed Cromites to approach the altar "And since you&039;ve become such a slattern, you won&039;t mind if I share"
The Crood -
Suddenly, black claws appeared, projecting fro to the side Cruach yelled, gurgling, trying to hold his head to his neck As she gaped in bewilderment, his blood spewed over her, into her eyes
MacRieve had stabbed through Cruach&039;s neck from behind? Cruach&039;s slitted eyes were dilated with shock as he stu Cromites wailed, then drew their swords to attack MacRieve Cruach lurched ever closer He was gravely injured, but the wound wouldn&039;t be enough to kill him
If she could just free her hands, she could try to get MacRieve out of here Her gaze darted for so, soling for comprehension, she blinked at her quiver
Inside it was an arrow just like the dieuhts She sed Another dieumort? How Why?
Oh, Freya, the never-e one more shot at Cruach? The arrow had been replicated But would the Banemen&039;s awesome power follow?