CHAPTER 26
The noise came from the ground floor.
I never imagined I’d be moving toward it instead of away, but I was rushing through the corridors of Mountheim Hall without thinking about it. It was a few hours before dinner.
I’d grown accustomed to loud noises. Heated discussions. Gwinifer or Reagan cursing. Battle mages calling out instructions to one another in the garden beneath my bedroom. The castle could be as loud as it could be silent.
But a growl, followed by a long, furious roar? That wasn’t common.
The sound had darkened the clouds in the sky, pulling them together like a storm ready to break. It made the water glasses and vases on my dresser shake.
For him to be this angry, something terrible must have happened.
I reached the foyer quickly and spotted Cerridwen, Reagan, Barracus, and two figures wearing the uniforms of battle mages, their insignia unmistakably embroidered upon the fur-lined cloaks.
Reagan stood with his back to me, hands threading through his hair as he gazed out the open door. The battle mages remained rigid, their faces etched with sternness, their eyes fixed unwaveringly on the second and third-in-command.
Cerridwen pinched the bridge of her nose, her eyes shut. Barracus cast me a quick glance, his expression harsher than usual, before turning his attention back to the lord.
I stepped closer just as Reagan moved, his arms swinging and knocking vases to the floor. The ceramics shattered, shards scattering across the room.
“Fuck!” he yelled, dropping his head.
The whole room was dim, as if the light of day had vanished entirely. I stopped next to Crow.
“What happened?” I asked quietly.
“A man was found dead in Eldritch,” Barracus replied. “Silas Hay.”
I felt the blood drain from my face, my stomach clenching. I remembered him and the way he’d addressed Reagan with kindness.
“How?” I asked, staring at the battle mages’ boots, coated in mud and moss.
“Wraith.”
Thunder boomed outside, and a flash of lightning briefly lit up the room. By the time the light faded, Reagan was halfway across the foyer, racing toward the door. He stalked outside, turning sharply to the right as another crack of thunder echoed through the air.
“Where is he going?” I asked, my voice edged with alarm.
Cerridwen lifted her gaze, shaking her head. She turned to the patrollers. “I’ll need the information—”
She stopped mid-sentence as I dashed toward the door.
“Jane, you shouldn’t go after him.”
But I wanted to. Snatching my cloak at the entrance, I darted out after him.
Rain began to fall, light at first, but growing heavier.
It was him. His emotions were literally clouding the sky, lightning striking erratically across the grounds. He had once explained to me that someone capable of wielding significant power would always be prone to weather manipulation, even unintentionally.
Right now, I imagined he was consumed by guilt, letting it all explode in that primal rage. Not knowing how much it would take to drain him, I watched the storm coming with troubled eyes.
I had no business following him. And yet, I couldn’t leave him alone.
“Where did he go?” I asked one of the battle mages standing in the courtyard.
He hesitated, his expression impassive. “Through the tunnel,” he answered, jerking his chin toward the passageway that led to the Northern Forest. “You shouldn’t go.”
“Thanks,” I said, already running.
I was halfway down the stairs when I spotted pieces of fabric. His shirt and trousers.
My stomach twisted. He had turned. I continued toward the woods.
If a Wraith had attacked Silas, it meant the barrier might have been compromised again.
Just a week ago, Finn and Reagan had returned from that village, certain it was secure.
Reagan had been relieved that Finn and the others couldn’t break through the ward.
Yet, despite all their efforts, Silas was dead.
I couldn’t stop wondering what he looked like now. Is he a Wraith too? Did Silas . . . was he one of them now? The thought sent my heart racing even faster than it had been from running.
In the woods, the visibility was even worse. Light barely filtered through the dense canopy of branches overhead, and mist flowed around me, rising to my knees. At least the rain wasn’t falling as heavily. I abandoned my slippers in the dirt after they began to stick to the ground.
He was nowhere to be seen. The steady drumming of rain against the trees echoed through the empty woods. I slowed my pace, trying to move as quietly as possible.
Where are you?
A roar echoed ahead, muffled by the steady patter of rain. I’d seen Reagan in his animal form only a handful of times. I knew he was still himself.
A sudden wind lifted the hairs on my nape, carrying with it a low, vicious growl from behind.
My chest began to pound.
I peered down at the three knots on my cloak. They were sluggish, the outer one probably loosened when I’d been running. The Velvetshades I had stashed in the folds of my cloak were still there.
As the growl grew closer, turning into a steady snarl, I looked over my shoulder. Very slowly.
A Grim was just a few metres away, red eyes glowing against jet-black fur, the distinctive ribs on display. At first, I thought it was staring directly at me. Then I noticed its snout twitching as it sniffed the air.
It couldn’t see me or sense me. I knew that.
Steadily, I reached into a concealed pocket I had sewn into my cloak, where a small dagger lay, fastened to the fabric.
I stayed utterly still, holding my breath in a painfully shallow inhale.
The creature paced across the paved path. A chill ran down my spine when a second one emerged from the same direction. I silently promised myself I would thank Finnegan, Zara, Godric, the Grimoire, anyone, if they didn’t notice me.
The second Grim moved closer. My legs threatened to tremble, but I willed them to stay steady.
The first creature was padding past me when it halted abruptly. A rustling sound came from nearby, growing closer. A larger animal lunged, knocking one Grim down while the other managed to flee.
I would never grow accustomed to the sickening thud of gore hitting the ground or the sharp crack of bones snapping. In an instant, dreadful sounds rang in my ears as dark blood splattered across my cloak.
Loud howls and high-pitched shrieks echoed in the Northern Forest as a black head was severed from a body, skull crushed. A furious bite ripped through the Grim, brutally disembowelling it and hurling it against a tree trunk. Rotten body parts slid on the ground.
The beast stopped, his frame heaving with ragged breaths and emitting a low, rumbling growl. He turned his head and entire furred body in my direction. I could feel him looking straight through the cloak at me. The animal approached, his mouth slick and dark, leaving a trail of mangled limbs.
I pulled one knot from where my cloak clasped together, my hood falling back, and I was visible again. Even though my heart drummed, I kept still, staring the creature in the eyes. My instincts just saw a threat, but I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. He never had.
“I’m sorry,” I said to him, trying to imagine his face.
I took a step closer. Slowly and calmly, I reached for its head, and he let out a growl of warning. I paused.
“This isn’t your fault,” I said, trying to make my voice steady. “Let me help.”
He growled louder now, trying to scare me. Reagan still believed I couldn’t handle him, or that I’d be afraid. It wasn’t a gamble. He didn’t attack me even when he hated me. I knew he wouldn’t now.
My hand reached for the wet brown fur again, and I could have sworn his blue eyes rounded with recognition. He didn’t pull away. He let me touch him.
A low growl came from him, but his snout leaned in the direction of my stomach, sniffing my cloak.
My chest sank.
I couldn’t see a way to help him, not just with Silas, but with this. This cursed sentence.
A cracking sound startled me. The creature howled. It drew back, squirming as if it were in pain. I stepped forward but stopped when he roared, head and body falling to the ground.
Raindrops slid from my hair to my eyelids, and I had to brush them off my face. My hair was so drenched now that it was as if I had dipped my head underwater, but the rain was easing, turning into a steady drizzle.
In front of me, wet fur began to disappear, the wide form shrinking into a smaller, familiar shape.
Claws retreated where human hands appeared.
It was as painful to see him turn into an animal as it was to see him come back from it.
But I let out a long sigh when I saw Reagan’s body again, crouched in front of me, naked and fully wet from the rain.
He rose from the ground, a bleeding cut on his cheek, and slashes of Grim stained his leg and shoulder. The second his eyes met mine, I noticed a swirl of emotions there. Guilt, shock, sadness, awe. I cupped his cheek, feeling the chill of his skin. His hand covered mine.
“You’re mad to have followed me,” he said, then pressed a kiss to my palm.
“You’re not as scary as you think,” I replied. “I knew you just wanted to be petted.”
A flash of human teeth brightened the rest of the clouds in the sky. An emotion crossed his face as Reagan closed his eyes and leaned his forehead on mine. I couldn’t tell if it was sadness or happiness, but he let out a breath, and I continued stroking his cheek.
“You did all you could,” I said.
His arms came around me. “Yes. I’m so generous.”
I could almost taste the bitterness. “We’ll find a solution,” I murmured.
My hands fell to his arm, reminding me that he was naked. I reached for the knot in my cloak to drape it over him, but Reagan stopped me.
“No, don’t take it off.”
“But you’re naked.”
“I’m fine,” he answered. “I just don’t think I can fling us back. We’ll need to walk.”