//CLARA//
Silas's grip was an iron brand, his fingers digging into the soft flesh above my elbow as he hauled me up the narrow staircase.
Hemp sawed at my wrists with every lurching step. He had loosened my bonds only enough to allow my legs free to run, my hands still tethered behind my back like a trussed animal.
"Move," he grunted, his breath hot and sour against my ear. "Move, or I'll leave your head in this cellar and take the rest with me."
Then my bare foot came down on something sharp.
The pain was immediate and white-hot, a jagged line of fire shooting from my heel up through my calf. A splinter of wood protruded from the stair, buried deep in the arch of my foot like a claw.
A scream tore from my throat, and it echoed off the stone walls. Silas did not stop. He just grabbed the silk he had torn from my sleeves and shoved it into my mouth, choking the noise before it could reach the world outside.
