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It was a strange feeling, her wrists free from their iron chains. She was no longer weighed down by the heavy shackles. Without them, her wrists felt naked. And still, it felt as if a ghost of those chains still floated just above her skin. Like some part of her was missing without those chains.

Stranger than that was being touched by a male, a male she did not know, and yet Rae was not bothered by it. She should have been screaming and clawing at his face. Instead, she felt safe. His arms were gently wrapped around her small body. His hold was light as if she would break if he held her too tightly.

“Are you okay?” His words were a hiss of a whisper in her ear. Rae broke from her stupor with a growl, pushing herself out of his arms. The chill of the air around her hit like a wall. Rae rubbed at her empty wrists in discomfort. She had not realized how cold she had still been until she was wrapped in his warm embrace. Part of her begged to crawl back into his arms if only for the warmth he provided. She bit back that urge.

Rae looked down, quickly identifying what had made her fall. The bodies of the two guards who had been standing outside her cell door lay sprawled out on the ground. Rae bit back her annoyance as the male flashed her a cocky grin.

Despite what his smile said, that was genuine concern for her in his eyes. Rae could not remember the last time she had seen someone look at her that way. The male looked as if he was going to ask her something, but his attention snapped further down the hall as the faint sound of approaching footsteps clicked against the stone floor in the distance.

Without a word, he grabbed her hand, half dragging her down the dimly lit hallway. He stopped before a dark alcove with a statue of a long-dead human king in its center. When Rae did not move towards the statue. The male picked her up and placed her in the shadows of the alcove, hiding her from view.

Rae bared her teeth at him to show her displeasure but said nothing as she turned her attention to the approaching footsteps. She could easily hear the sound of boots on stone. Their walking pattern was slow and sloppy. Rae tilted her head to the side as she listened. Not one set of footsteps but two distinct patterns could be made out. Humans, if she had to guess, not the halflings in their black masks.

Rae held up two fingers, indicating how many she heard. She opened her mouth to tell him they were human, but he put his finger to her lips.

“I know, little one,” his voice like smooth velvet.

He was mocking her she realized. She quickly pulled away from him. There was no way he knew who she was then. Rae was not sure if she should be relieved or insulted. Rae opened her mouth again, but closed it as the distinct sound of iron armor clanging, as the humans walked, could be heard just up the hallway. Speaking now, even if it was only a whisper, would just give them away.

The male, seeming to realize she was not about to say anything, winked before he slipped that horrible black mask back over his face and pulled up his hood. He gave her one more glance, his deep teal blue eyes glowing under the mask before he turned and was gone from sight. His steps were silent as he walked in the direction of the approaching human guards. Rae was not sure why, but she held her breath. Not worried for herself, but worried for him.