Page 77 of Us Deadly Few
But now, the people glared at them with pure hatred and vitriol.
She flinched, hurriedly moving down the street, unsure ofwhat harm they’d caused to warrant such hostility.
The bitter scent of smoke and death intensified in the misty air as they ventured deeper into the broken town.
She found the reason why.
In the open field, where Takeshi normally trained with Patreus, there was a massive burning pile. Khalani didn’t immediately understand the purpose until she saw two guards toss a body into the flames.
They were cremating their fallen.
By the looks of it, there were at least fifty bodies on the pile.
Khalani’s hand flew to her mouth as they stopped and stared, the enormity of the night’s carnage crashing over them.
Entire families had perished. Men. Women. Children.
Her eyes watered as the image brought her back to the mass execution of prisoners in Braderhelm.
To her parents—
“The Chief is expecting you,” Ferren interrupted, his brown hair out of his usual ponytail as he stood in front of the cabin, his voice heavy with grief.
“Ferren,” she frowned, “Where’s Jared?”
A broken sound escaped him. “Jared…he—” Ferren swallowed his words, unable to finish. “Please go inside.”
They exchanged worried glances as they walked past him toward the log cabin.
Inside was chaos.
All the tables had been overturned except for the head table in the back, where the Chief stood, staring intently at a map.
The Chief’s red hair was clasped in two intricate braids hanging down by her ears. Her angular, sun-kissed face was streaked with dirt, and the deep circles under her green eyes were unmistakable.
Other warriors surrounded her, with Patreus by her side. Different voices clashed in heated debate.
“We should attack them tonight.” Someone slammed a fist on the table.
“And how do you expect to do that, Rayard?” Patreus chided. “Half of our forces are gone, and the Sinners have superior weapons.
“We need to regroup, rebuild and refocus on our mission,” another woman declared, staring at the Chief intently.
“But they found a way over our walls. We can’t focus on our mission unless we make them bigger.”
“How long with that take? Months? Years, even? We’ll be dead before then. We need a quicker solution.”
“Enough!” The Chief’s voice sliced through the clamor. “We have visitors. And they may provide an answer to our problem.”
Her focus shifted to Khalani and her group, who stood tensely, waiting for the floor to be further ripped out from under them.
The Chief gestured for them to come closer.
“Chief,” Patreus said in an uneasy voice. “I’m not sure this is a good idea. You know we’re not supposed to—”
“Silence.” The Chief lifted her hand.
She flickered her gaze between each of them, landing on Brock.