Another prisoner

Ray helped Lacey to her feet and soon they saw a heavyset man with graying hair and a sad face come up to the door of their cell. Ray called out to him but he did not give them even half a glance as he bent over and slid 2 plates under the door towards them.

then turned around and started his slow pace back the way he had come. They both walked the few steps it took to get to the other side of the cell and each picked up a plate.

Lacey put it towards her nose and gave a sniff and looked at Ray with a scowl as Ray, who had picked up his fork, was carefully moving the pieces of food around on the plate inspecting each piece. "Well, at least it looks edible, and there are no signs of mold or anything like that that I can see.

Said Ray as he put a piece of the food into his mouth. "But what is it?" Lacey scrunched her nose at her plate not sure if she dared try even though her stomach was rumbling with hunger. Ray finished chewing and swallowed.

"It doesn't taste bad, really there isn't much taste to it which I consider a good thing because at least it can be eaten, I think is a lot better than if it stunk or had a foul taste."

Lacey nodded her head in agreement and after they had both sat back down where they had been before the interruption of the man bringing their dinner, she stabbed a piece gently with her fork and put it in her mouth.

Sure enough. Whatever it was, was pretty tasteless and had no seasonings or spices added to it whatsoever. They ate in silence and after they were finished Lacey gathered the plates and forks and stacked them neatly beside the door.

She walked around the room a couple of times trying to sort out her thoughts quietly.

Ray finally caught her hand as she walked past him for the 20th or so time. "Come sit back down, your pacing around in circles is starting to make me dizzy." She turned to him and gave him a sad smile as she paused for a few moments standing in front of him and then sat back down beside him.

Not long had passed, and as Lacey fiddled, with the hem of her skirt, Ray tried his best to see if any of the smallest spells would work. Making some unstable hand signs and gestures.

An almost calm and pleasant silence fell over the cell. Lacey looked up from her hem to see him do a hand moment, she had seen the magic users in the shows at the festivals doing. The sign was for light, she watched as Ray repeated it twice more and his movements were much faster.

"That's the sign for light. Right?" Ray looked at her with a tad touch of annoyance for breaking his concentration. But he nodded, their eyes met and she smiled when his gaze got deeper, and she ducked her head quickly.

"So is anything working?" Before Ray could say anything to answer a short-changed, the sound echoing. They both jumped to their feet crashing over to the door and pressing their faces close to the bars to see out into the dim corridor.

Many footsteps could be heard, when the steps came to a stop at the cell a little down the corridor, they heard a shout. Lacey stood close to Ray as the sounds of shouting grew ever closer, they could not make out the words that were said.

A shiver ran down her spine. A moment later she jumped back with a light screech when a man's body flew past their cell to slam into the far wall.

Ray moved back from the door after her but again pressed his face back to the bars. Lacey got up the courage to put her face closer again and looked in horror.

A man lay sprawled out on the floor, as they watched he curled into a ball in pain, his face comforted and tears in his eyes as blood-colored his lips. She could see the blood on his thin tattered shirt. Then shouting came closer as the footsteps came closer.

Lacey could now recognize the words being said. "Where is she? Come on Harper, tell me. Where she is and this will all be over!"A man scrolled into view of Ray and Lacey.

He walked up to the man curled in a ball and reached down grabbing the older man by the caller pulling him up till his feet barely touched the floor. "Tell me!" Lacey looked over at Ray with wide fear-filled eyes only to see his face was dark with rage.

And his knuckles were white on the bars, Lacey turned back to the scene happening outside the cell and the words that were said next. "If you don't want to tell me!" He boomed. "Then I have no use for you." "I will find her myself." The older man's face looked defeated and his eyes closed.

The outraged man yelled, dark gray light like magic covered his hand, the old man's eyes came open and grew wider, then he gasped for air.

Lacey gasped, and the man's head turned, She drew back her fear rising, his eyes were dark and the blood veins of the sides of his eyes bulged.

-to be continued