Instead of her dark head of hair and sienna skin, I find the opposite. A pale woman in a dark cloak limps toward the tree line, a curtain of white hair billowing behind her and shimmering in the bright moonlight.
You know, I thought it was a gift to have blood that could heal, but now I’m beginning to wonder if it’s not the dumbest thing in the entire realm. The last thing humans needed was for their blood to revive noctis from the fucking dead.
With Harland's boots thundering on the steps just outside our door and my heart hammering in my chest, I tear my mind away from my botched evolution, and back to our escape.
Maybe Rowland is right though. Maybe jumping from the window is a bit hasty. After all,the Devonshire bitchwas limping, likely an injury she sustained from the fall, and one that neither Rowland nor I could afford if we have a rampaging monster on our heels.
But escape isn’t our only option.
Grabbing Sable from my shoulder, I twist back around to face the stairs and ready fire.
The moment I do, Harland stops stomping.
I stare into the blackness, the gaping dark that threatens to pull us in and swallow us whole. Only my breathes reach my ears—and a creak or two from downstairs where Dunce is presumably making a cautious beeline for the exit.
The door creaks open, but in the darkness, I see nothing. And somehow every floorboard that creaks sounds as if it’s coming from every direction.
But Harland is as thick as the ancient oaks of this forest. If I unleashed my bolt now, chances are I'd strike him somewhere. Slow him down.
But I don't want to justslow him down. With only two bolts left, I can’t risk anything but a kill shot.
A voice like smoke sifts into the air. "What did you do to me?”
My eyes bulge, trying to see deeper into the darkness, to find any hint of his location. But I find none. Not even his talking helps me pinpoint exactly where he is. But maybe if I can keep him talking…
"It looks like I saved your life," I counter. "Is that why you've come here? To thank me?"
The growl of a hibernating bear who's just been prematurely disturbed from his slumber rises from the ether.
"Do you have a shot?" Rowland whispers from the side of his mouth.
I want to tell him that I don't, but I also have the distinct feeling that Harland can hear our every word, and he doesn't need any other advantages.
Another floorboard creaks, feet shuffling. In the darkness, I focus on the place where I think I heard him last, and then I see it. Barely. There, a crimson patch scarcely visible in the black abyss.
My aim is steady, my finger confident in its pull.
It's too dark to see the quarrel fly, but there is no mistaking the deadly whistle of it as it slices across the room and—
Thunk.
A moment later, Harland roars and charges from the darkness like a black avalanche.
My bolt is jutting out of his eye—the patched one. A perfect shot. Except that it doesn’t seems to bother or slow him.
He barrels after me, arms outstretched, sausage fingers grasping, and I drop Sable to the ground. She'll do me no good now, not in such close quarters.
That was my last chance to save us, and I've failed. I couldn't even fight his brother who was half his size. What chance do I have at fighting him?
Rowland leaps in front of me before Harland can reach me. Throwing his shoulder into the meaty noctis, he tries knocking the two of them back, but Harland is too big. It's like the guy is part of the cathedral itself, as erect and unmoving as the beams that have stood here and faced not only a demon scourge but also a noctis invasion.
Rowland collides into him with a wince, but he recovers quickly, prepared to fight my battles for me, yet again.
I won't just stand here and do nothing. Let the men fight while I cower like a little girl?
Not a chance.
As long as he's distracted, I can—
