Grounded By Love (The Giant Wars #2)(79)

Or maybe he wouldn’t bring her back with him. The castle was proving to be too dangerous for her, and he feared what his father might do. Things might just escalate.

They would need to talk about what they were going to do now.




Hands came out of nowhere and wrapped around her waist, before she was promptly dumped on the ground with an oomph.

Claira cringed, as the breath was knocked out of her, and she rolled herself over in the bag. She wished they would just take it off already.

She wondered what they might have in store for her. They’d obviously reached the spot they’d intended to get to. Were they going to kill her out in the middle of nowhere, assuming there were out in the middle of nowhere?

Any sound she heard made her imagination go wild, every footstep made her eyes dart around for she feared it might be the last she would ever hear, but eventually the noises died down.

Claira was able to pick up the familiar sounds of rattling horse reins and horse hooves fading away from her.

Frowning she thought she must be going crazy. They were going to just leave her here with her hands and ankles bound? Struggling ferociously at her bindings she tried to wiggle her way loose.

Sadly, they had tied the knots hard and well. Claira was unable to get any sort of leeway with the bindings.

She was being left to die. If an animal came across her laying here unable to defend herself, she would make any easy meal.

The only thing she was going to be able to do was hope and pray she would some how survive. Perhaps someone would stumble upon her, but without knowing where she was she wasn't able to tell whether that might be a far fetched idea. There might not be anyone around for days.




After finding where the mysterious troop of rock giants his father hired had gone, Kaeldar easily found some promising tracks leading into the nearby forest. As he ventured forth, he found more evidence to follow. There were broken branches and the tracks of a couple giant horses.

He was glad his father hadn’t found more intelligent people to take Claira. They hadn’t even tried to hide their trail.

Kaeldar hoped they might still be there, when he found Claira. It would make it much easier for him to slaughter those who had dared to take Claira from him.

She was his female.

He just wished she was safer with him. Clearly, he wasn't going to be able to protect her at the castle, while his father was tainting peoples’ minds. They were easily swayed by power and money, when it came to judging a human female.

He needed to be their leader to guide them correctly. Humans deserved the war the rock giants had brought to them, but if he was the rock giant king he could do more to spare innocent civilians like Claira.




It seemed as though hours passed, as she laid in the bag. Since she wasn't able to tell the passing of the sun, she had no idea how much time had gone by. All she knew was she was growing weary of being in no position to defend herself.

After bumping into all the trees around her, she decided to stop rolling around. There was no need for her to be bruising herself.

Then a few hours or what she thought was a few hours later, the sound of hooves could be heard beating a rythym against the ground. Was it someone new? Or was it the same giants coming back to finish her off? They could’ve changed their minds and decided it was better to kill her.

She was both alarmed and excited about the prospect of a rider. Although it could be the giants coming back to finish her off, it could be someone coming to rescue her.

The hooves drew near, and then grew distant. She tried to let out a sound, but the gag in her mouth allowed her no such opportunity, feeling desperate she flopped around in her bag. She needed to make any sound she possibly could.

Thankfully, she heard the hooves coming back towards her, maybe the rider had caught sight of her in the bag or had heard her.

She tried to smile around the gag in her mouth. Even if the rider wasn't friendly, she might have a better opportunity surviving with the rider than staying tied in a bag. There was no way she was going to get the ropes off her wrists and ankles.

The sound of the hooves beating against the ground suddenly stopped, and she felt her sense of hope slowly leave her, but then she heard leaves crackling under someone's footsteps.

Rolling herself across the ground she tried to make some noise, until she hit something. This time though the hit was less hard and there were... feet below her side.

Her muscles tensed, as hands came down to run up and over her body. It felt like the person was checking her over, and then they left to untied the bottom of the bag she was in.

Finally, she was going to be able to see, was going to see where she was and who her rescuer was.

The light was blinding, as the bag came up and over her head, and she was forced to shut her eyes tight.

"Claira." Arms came down to cuddle her head against a familiar chest.

A chest she knew very well and that deep voice that soothed her very soul. Blinking her eyes, they grew accustomed to the bright light of the sun, until Kaeldar's worried face greeted her, and she beamed around the gag.

His eyes darkened, as they landed on the gag still in her mouth. One of his hands came up, untied it, and slid it from her mouth.

Working her jaw Claira heard it pop into place. “Thank you, that feels a world better.”

“I’m sure it was an unpleasant journey.” His voice was deep and gravelly with barely contained fury. Kaeldar cut her wrists and ankles lose from their tight bindings.