Free Web NovelChapter 57: Chapter 57
Caden’s POV
Day two inside Tithers town.
And every second here feels like a damn poison.
We have been living among them for two days now and I swear I have never hated any place more than this one in my entire life.
Everything here feels wrong, the air, the people, the energy, even the silence feels violent. It is like this place is alive and watching every move we make.
The only reason we are still alive and not exposed is because of the mugwort scent suppressants we have been using.
Every morning we rub it all over our bodies until the smell burns our noses and makes our skin itch.
It blocks our scent completely and makes us come off as scentless. Without it, we would have been discovered the moment we stepped into this cursed town.
We even tested it.
Yesterday, we passed several Blood Tithers and none of them reacted to us. One of them even stood right beside Gunnar and did not notice anything strange. That was when we knew the suppressant was working.
But that does not mean everything has been easy.
Earlier today, we ran into some troublesome Tithers. They stopped us and stared for a long time and one of them said it was strange that we smelled and looked weak.
He said no true Tither walks without power in their body. They tried to provoke us into a fight and my blood almost boiled because all I wanted was to snap their necks and move on.
But I could not.
We cannot attract attention.
So I stepped forward and started insulting them instead, acting arrogant and annoying like most of the guards here.
I told them they smelled like rotten corpses and that if they wanted to test their strength, they should go fight mountain Dires instead of wasting time. They got angry and distracted and that gave us the chance to walk away.
Cane laughed later and said I sounded exactly like one of them.
Right now, we are in the last place we have not searched.
The prison chambers.
There are three prison chambers in Tithers town according to what a young girl told us and we already scouted two since last night. None of them had Riley in it. Every time we opened a new door and she was not there, my anger grew stronger.
If she is not in this last one, I swear I will tear this entire town apart until I find her.
At this point, I do not care if I kill a hundred people here.
As long as she is safe.
And I know my brothers feel the same.
We managed to sneak inside the prison sector an hour ago. The guards here are careless and arrogant. They think no one can ever infiltrate their territory. That overconfidence is their weakness.
We silently took out two guards behind the corridor and dragged their bodies into an empty storage room. Gunnar did it so heatedly that he almost broke the first one’s spine before the man even understood what was happening.
Then we took their uniforms and put on.
Oh Jesus they smell horrible.
Like sweat, iron, and something rotten.
But we had no choice.
Now we walk through the corridor like we belong here.
The third chamber is bigger than the others and more heavily guarded. That means important prisoners are kept here.
Which means Riley might be here.
My heart is beating fast but my face stays calm.
We walk slowly, not too fast and not too slow. I keep my shoulders stiff and my expression annoyed like every guard here.
We pass cell after cell.
And what I see inside them makes my anger grow.
None of them are normal.
Not a single human.
Some look like creatures, some like hybrids, some like wolves that have not fully shifted back. Many are injured and chained with dark metal. Their eyes follow us as we walk past and I can feel their hatred and despair.
But still, no Riley.
My jaw tightens.
Where the hell was she kept?
As we move deeper, Cane suddenly bumps into another guard.
The man looks up sharply.
Cane mutters, "Sorry."
The moment the word leaves his mouth, my heart drops.
Oh God Mistake.
He’s done a huge fucking mistake.
Guards here do not apologize.
They insult. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
They threaten.
They never say sorry.
The guard stares at Cane, then at Gunnar, then at me.
We try to walk past him immediately but he says—
"Stop," the guard says coldly. "You three."
Annoyance flashes inside me but I suppress it.
We stop.
He walks closer and begins sniffing us.
Prisoners in nearby cells begin watching. I can feel their attention like heat on my skin.
"You are scentless," the guard says slowly. "That is strange."
He narrows his eyes."Do you not have a Tither in you?"
I step forward before Cane or Gunnar reacts.
I glare at him like he insulted my entire existence.
"Is something wrong with your head?" I snap harshly. "What kind of stupid joke are you making?"
I shove a finger against his chest.
He stumbles slightly from the force.
"You dare question your own kind?" I continue, my voice loud and irritated. "Have you gone mad from guarding prisoners too long?"
He glares back but I do not back down.
I keep staring at him like I want to fight.
That usually works. Tithers respect aggression.
After a few seconds, I signal my brothers and we start walking again.
For a moment, I think it worked but we barely take two steps.
Then I hear the sound. A blade leaving its sheath as cold steel touches my neck.
I stop. The corridor goes silent. The prisoners watching with wide eyes stands up to stare at us.
"Who are you people?" the guard asks behind me.
His voice is calm but deadly.
Gunnar stiffens. Cane’s fingers twitch.
My mind races. If we fight now, the Tithers will be alerted.
But if we do nothing, we will be exposed.
I slowly turn my head, the sword presses harder.
"Answer me," he says.
