Rainbow Snippets: An infitialis dagger.

_{^{Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week and share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation.}}

This’ll be the last snippet I’m sharing from In Pain and Blood before I move on to the short story, And the World Crumbled.

This week’s snippet follows from last week’s where Dylan was getting spooked by cats. If you’ve been following me for a while, you might recognise this scene.

“There you are,” someone snarled from the shadows.

A hand grabbed Dylan before he could face them. He hit the alleyway wall, the back of his head thumping against the brickwork. His vision blurred, leaving him disorientated.

Curious, he let a small ball of light drift on the air to illuminate the figure.

“Do not think about taking another step, you will not get far.” The figure pinning him to the wall spoke with the vaguely similar smooth accent of Dylan’s old roommate, the words tumbling off their tongue much like rocks down a hill, catching occasionally on a soft trill or hiss.

Dylan blinked, trying to refocus. The back of his head tingled as his innate healing hurried to fix whatever damage had been done.

The dagger was the first thing that came into clarity. Curved and sharp. In the lantern light illuminating the alleyway’s entrance, the blade bore an insidious purple sheen. Infitialis. Wielded by someone who was either an alchemist or who had stolen it from one.

Barely daring to breathe, Dylan followed the blade down to the bronze hand and onwards to the elven man glaring up at him.

Next week will be a snippet from Someone Else’s Shoes in celebration of Lesbian Day. In the meantime, check out these other snippets.