Massive jaws snatched at the body, tearing it off me. Luca’s bear nudged at me gently, his big tongue licking the offending blood from my cheek. I sobbed and pulled his head into my chest, burying my face in his thick fur.
I could hear a battle raging around me. Sickening sounds of males screaming and being instantly silenced. I clung to Luca, my fragile psyche couldn’t handle anymore.
“Michaela!” Nico skidded to my side.“Little bird, are you hurt?”
I pulled myself away from Luca, dazed. Desecrated bodies surrounded us. He cupped my face, turning me away from the carnage to meet his eyes.
“You… you came for me?”
“Of course we came for you.” he whispered. “We’ll always come for you.” He pulled me into his arms. I collapsed against him as a sob broke free.
Lucius’ bear joined us, maw dripping red.
The three of them surrounded me as I shattered.
They took turns carrying me.
Shock hit so hard that I shut down. My sorry excuse for a body wasn’t up for walking back to the ruins of the life we’d begun to build. Yet again, I’d cheated death—or whatever hell Johan had planned for me. The guilt of it ate away at me. How many had died back at the camp while my beasts were busy looking for me?
I was nothing more than a broken girl everyone was trying so desperately to save. And I couldn’t come up with a single reason why their struggles had been worth it.
I could feel them life-binding with me again—always trying to fix me. But none of it was enough. Maybe they should’ve let nature take its course. I should’ve been long dead. Buried next to my parents back in London.What price were we willing to pay so I could go on living? Were the lives of all those innocent people the cost of extending my own? The thought drew a visceral response. Pain rose like a tide, spilling out in the form of tears.
I smelled the acrid smoke before we arrived. A macabre welcome to what awaited us. The sun had fully risen by the time we reached what was left of Whisperhold.
“Put me down. I need to walk. I need to stand on my own feet while we face this,” I said to Nico, his unwavering grip still locking me against him. He paused mid-stride, drew a deep breath, and then gently set me on the ground. The three of them looked me over cautiously, watching to see if I would simply collapse under the weight of everything. But I lifted my chin up.It was the least I could do. I had to see what had been sacrificed to save me.
Songbirds were drowned out by the moans of the injured. The only thing left standing was the skeletal frame of our cabin. Smoke lingered in the morning light, settling over the carnage and cloaking the few survivors that remained. A wave of shouts erupted as we approached. Fiona emerged from the haze, her face streaked with soot and blood. She pulled her bow from her back, knocking an arrow and pointing it straight at Nico.
“Traitor!” she shouted, fury and anguish twisting her features.
Lucius and Luca stepped in front of me as Nico raised his hands calmly.“I am not a traitor, Fiona. I’m on your side.”
“Liar! You said you’d fight with us. That you’d fightforus. But now Levi is dead.They’reall dead!” she cried. Tears tracked through the ash on her cheeks, her bowstring trembling.
“Wedidfight beside you. We should’ve done better—and I am truly sorry. But we couldn’t let them take her. She’s more important to Hiraeth than you realize.”
“Being your fated doesn’t put her life above all others,” she spat back.
“She’s not just my fated. She’s fated to all seven of us. We don’t yet understand the ways in which she’s woven into our future. Please—give us a chance to explain,” Nico pleaded. “We’ll make this right. We’ll avenge Levi and all those who’ve fallen today. But we can’t do it if Johan divides us. We have to stand together.”
Fiona’s voice cracked. “Many were taken. Sawyer among them.”
“And we’ll get them back. Let us tend the wounded, regroup, and come up with a plan.”
Fiona’s bow clattered to the ground. A choked sound escaped her lips. Nico stepped forward and pulled her into an embrace as she broke down.
Shouts echoed from the other side of camp as more sentries returned. I felt the cold caress of his shadows curl around my ankles just before Jase emerged from the smoke. His black hair was a mess, and blood trickled from a gash on his cheek. The sword at his side still dripped with the blood of his enemies.
“You!” Lucius snarled, storming toward Jase. He grabbed the front of his leathers, getting in his face. “You were supposed to be on watch! Where the fuck were you?”
“It was a diversion,” Jase snapped. “They lured our sentries north. Engaged us there while a second wave hit the camp.”
“Not good enough. Why didn’t you send word?”
“I did. Obviously, he didn’t make it back alive. What do you want from me, Lucius?”
“A reason to believe you’re on our side.”
