Chapter 5 #2
“You don’t understand. There are beasts out here. Monsters!”
The pale Fae snorts.
“Don’t you know?” He slowly turns, and hate-filled eyes lock onto me. “We are the beasts.”
Tremors wrack my body.
“Knock it off, Draven.” Jaxon jabs his side.
I wait for the pale Fae, Draven, to dig his sharp canines into Jaxon’s neck like an animal, but he merely stares at me for a moment longer, then rolls back his shoulders and faces forward.
Jaxon shoots me a smile, but no amount of gentle expressions will reassure me. Not in the presence of Fae.
The tan Fae hasn’t slowed his pace, and now my feet work double time to catch up.
I keep my mouth shut as we continue to walk farther into the Forbidden Forest. I jump at every gust of wind that rustles leaves and gasp when twigs snap. Aside from our group, the woods are unnervingly silent.
Where are the buzzing insects? Where are the growls and howls that echo through the trees every night?
I look at the Fae’s cloaked backs. Are the monsters in the forest scared of these creatures?
The tan Fae steps over a rotted log, and his companions follow with ease. I’m tall for a woman, but my legs aren’t long enough to clear the obstacle. Pulled by the shadows, I don’t have time to debate whether or not I should step on the unstable surface.
Wood cracks, and the rotted bark gives in under my weight.
“Ah!”
My foot crashes into the hollowed-out log, and shards scrape my shin when the shadows continue to yank me forward.
“Stop!” I hiss a curse as hot blood flows from my skin. “I’m stuck!”
“Easy there, human.” Jaxon appears in front of me.
He bends down, grips the sides of the hole, and rips the bark wide open.
The freedom of movement has me falling forward. I stumble, then grasp his muscular shoulders when my injured leg threatens to give out.
“Steady,” he says.
A growl rolls through the air.
My heart stops. Flashes of the monster chasing me and Ferria through the woods all those years ago fill my mind, stoking my panic into a roaring fire.
Jaxon steps away, and I fall onto my hands and knees, wincing when my shin digs into twigs littering the forest floor.
It’s not real. I breathe deeply, digging my fingers into the cool, soft earth. The Onyx Wraith isn’t here. You’re safe.
Heavy-looking boots appear.
I lift my chin and lock eyes with a different sort of monster, one I’m sure is just as vicious as the monster from my nightmares, but far more cunning.
The tan Fae holds out a gloved hand. “Get up.”
I ignore his hand, hobbling up and shifting my weight to my uninjured leg.
“See what I mean?” Jaxon’s quiet chuckle reaches my ears. “Feisty.”
The tan Fae’s eyes dip down my body, his nostrils flaring as he takes in my shin. “Can you walk?”
“Yes,” I lie between clenched teeth.
His eyes narrow when they meet mine. Then he turns around and disappears into a thicket of bushes. Draven follows. Jaxon remains where he is and holds out an arm. I rear back.
“Come on,” he says. “I know you’ll need help.”
I debate disagreeing, but the truth will become apparent the moment I take a step.
With a huff, I wrap my hand around his forearm. The shadowy ropes flicker around my arm, but they don’t tug as I gingerly hobble after the terrifying Fae.
Jaxon holds back a section of bush and guides me forward. I brace for twigs and leaves to slap my face, but a brush of cool air hits my cheeks instead.
I stare, slack-jawed, at the clearing in front of me.
Grass cushions my feet. Stars twinkle brightly through the open canopy. Trees pack the perimeter. And a dozen tents are spread throughout the clearing, with several stone firepits illuminating the night.
My heartbeat races when I take in the dozens of Fae soldiers staring back at me.
Their expressions are blank, their eyes empty.
Charcoal-gray chest plates hug their massive torsos.
Matching vambraces adorn their arms, glinting under the firelight.
The details of the designs embossed in the armor are too far away to see.
I gulp.
One Fae can destroy Verdanthia. This many can decimate the entire southern region.
“This way,” the tan Fae calls.
The shadows, once again, tug at my arms.
Jaxon stays at my side, carrying more of my weight than I’m proud to admit, and helps me to the center of the encampment. We approach the largest tent made of rich blue fabric that stands in contrast to the others’ murky brown and taupe colors.
An aromatic, spicy scent fills my nostrils the moment I duck inside. Three lanterns hang from wood posts, illuminating the heavy wood desk littered with papers and a thick, ornate carpet laid over the ground.
My forehead creases.
Who travels with these accommodations? It screams wealth.
My jaw tightens as I take in the finery, silently cursing the Fae who steal human riches and leave us scraping by for every necessity.
But the negative emotions are forgotten the moment my gaze lands on the oversized cot tucked along the side of the tent, more than twice the width of my own. More specifically, the sleeping man on top.
Without looking to the Fae for permission, I hobble across the tent and lean over the man.
Tapered ears reveal I’m wrong. He’s not a man.
The Fae in front of me shares the same features as the ones hovering behind me. Dark hair. Flawless skin. Sharp jawline. Masculine beauty that screams unnatural. But then I note the gray hue of his flesh. His shallow breaths.
He’s sick.
Magic warms my palms.
“Is this my patient?” I fist my hands and whirl around, choking down my fearful cry when I find the olive-skinned Fae standing less than a foot away.
My pulse flutters when his eyes zero in on my fists before rising to hold my gaze. He dips his chin.
I step back, wincing when I shift onto my injured leg, but thankful that my power has already diminished the pain enough for me to bear weight. “What’s wrong with him?”
Shadows swirl. “That’s what you’re here to find out.”
I frown and turn back to assess the male. “He wasn’t injured?”
“Not by a blade.”
I look over my shoulder and lift a brow. “Was he injured by anything else?”
He crosses his arms. “You tell me.”
I grit my teeth. “How do you expect me to heal him if I don’t know what happened?”
“You don’t need to know what happened in order to help him. Trust me.”
I can’t help it—I snort. “Trust you? After you just dragged me here against my will?”
“You accepted the deal.”
“A deal I obviously didn’t understand.”
“No?” He smirks. “Well, that’s a shame. Because you will be held to it regardless.”
The base of my throat warms.
My hands fly to my neck. My eyes widen. “What did you do to me?”
The warmth fades.
The Fae’s stare is unwavering. “We made a deal. Now, see to your patient.”
I swallow down the questions building in my throat, along with my renewed fear. I take a fortifying breath and turn to reassess the patient.
While his skin is sickly gray, his lips are moist and a healthy pink color. His cheekbones are a little sharp, but I can’t tell if it’s from lack of food or great genetics.
I reach out a hand. A growl sounds. I draw back and look over my shoulder. Draven’s eyes swirl with violent shadows as they meet mine.
“I need to check his vitals,” I force out.
Another growl rumbles in his throat. I think he’s going to object, but then his nostrils flare and he nods.
With a ragged exhale, I turn and slowly reach out to press my fingertips against the male’s throat. The moment my tingling fingers touch his skin, coldness sears into my arm like flames.
I yelp and pull back. Only…I can’t.
My fingers are glued to the Fae’s neck. A frigid blaze travels through my body, into my chest, my mind, and a dark haze hovers over my vision.
A scream builds, but I can’t open my mouth to release it.
Fire that is as cold as ice burns me from the inside. Steam coils out of my nostrils. The magic within me writhes and recoils. It’s hurting—dying. I don’t know how I know it, but I do.
The one thing that gives my life purpose is being destroyed, and there isn’t anything I can do to stop it.