After the Skeleton King finished my left arm, he started on the right. When he reached my shoulder, I shouted in desperation, “Ask me another question.”

He paused. My blood stained the chest of his bone armor. “Can you kill Tohon like Wynn claimed?”

An easy one. “No. He knows all my tricks.”

“Correct. How do you stop his dead soldiers?”

Was this another test? “With Death Lily toxin.”

He squinted at me as if trying to read my thoughts. “And only you can harvest this toxin?”

“Yes.”

“Will you harvest it for me?”

“No.”

“Why not? I will stop the dead. Good for all.”

“But you can also use it against us.”

“What if I promised not to?”

I coughed out a laugh. “I trust you about as much as I trust Tohon.”

“No need to worry about Tohon. His days as king are nearing the end.”

Doubtful. But I kept that thought to myself. No need to upset the psychopath.

“Next question. Where is Prince Ryne?”

“I don’t know.”

“Wrong answer.” He sliced my shirt, ripping right through the buttons. Tugging my undershirt away from my skin, he rested the knife on the collar.

A vision of the bite marks on Private Tori’s breasts flashed in my mind. “In the north,” I blurted. “He went north. I don’t know where.”

The Skeleton King smiled. “Chasing Cellina’s skirt. Good. Now, back to the first question. Which one of your five friends is the death magician?”

“Uh, sire?” one of the officers interrupted. “It won’t be difficult to determine that on our own.”

“Difficult, no, but not as much fun.” In one swift movement, he pulled the blade through my undershirt. The Skeleton King cupped my right breast. “Last chance.”

Determined not to expose Flea, I closed my eyes and concentrated on an image of Flea shooting me one of his lopsided grins. Agony from the first bite shattered the vision. All the others that followed erased every last piece. My throat burned from screaming as my skin crawled. I pressed against the wooden post and twisted, but was unable to escape the torture.

The torment stopped...sometime. Pain pulsed throughout my chest, stomach, and arms. My body felt like a chew toy for an ufa.

Having no desire to see the damage, I kept my eyes squeezed shut. Whispers sounded and a rustling of footsteps. Dizzy from blood loss, I drew in deep breaths. Waiting for the next attack proved difficult. To keep sane, I debated if this had been worse than when Tohon had zapped me with his magic. I decided that while the pain was equal, the whole biting thing made this intolerable. Who would have thought I’d miss Tohon? Not me.

Time passed without another question. Perhaps he’d given up.

Harsh voices, boots scuffing the dirt, and a rattle of chain snapped me from my daze. The flaps of the tent snapped and then grunts followed a growl.

Belen.