Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 54811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54811 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 183(@300wpm)
Fear dilates his eyes as he charges forward without the finesse I’m used to seeing him use on the mat. That fear will be the end of him.
I reach behind my head with both hands, grip the hilts of my swords, and draw, sidestepping his lunge in the same smooth motion. He recovers with grace, I’ll give him that, spinning to face my new angle.
But I’m faster.
My blades converge at his neck, giving him one second to meet my eyes, to realize what’s about to happen to him. I draw my arms back and slice his neck clean open. He drops his sword and falls to his knees, clutching his throat as blood spills over his hands, coloring the snow beneath him scarlet.
I watch silently as the life fades from his eyes.
He falls to the side unceremoniously, his stare vacant as blood pools in the snow beneath him.
“Godsdamn,” Masen says, his chest heaving from running across the field. “He’s definitely dead, then.”
“Yes.” I nod.
“No final words?” Garrick asks, sheathing his swords as he moves to my side. “Seemed a little anticlimactic without a hero speech.”
“I had nothing left to say to him.” I clean my blades on Alic’s cloak, then slip them into their scabbards on my back.
“You really couldn’t leave him for me?” Garrick folds his arms across his chest as Masen checks the other bodies that lie a few feet away.
“No.” A twinge of worry unsettles my stomach. “If anyone finds out what happened here, there will be executions, and I can’t let your neck be the one they come for.”
“You’d rather it be yours.” Garrick scoffs and shakes his head, shooting me a look that would wither a lesser man. “Of course. For fuck’s sake.” He takes a measured breath, then looks at the body. “If anyone sees him like this, they’ll know it was a cadet. An investigation will ensue.”
Fuck. I didn’t think that part through.
“We have to get rid of the bodies,” Masen agrees from somewhere behind me.
A low, menacing growl from the right reminds me that someone’s already seen.
I turn slowly toward the Blue Daggertail, and this time I remember to keep my gaze lowered. She’s been silently stalking closer this entire time, and when I look up, I find she’s less than a dozen feet away. I quickly focus on the gleaming talons of her claws.
If Alic was the rider she intended to bond, then she’s going to be rightfully pissed.
“Move.” A sharp, feminine voice resounds within me.
“What?” My head snaps up. Did she just talk to me? No fucking way.
Her tail flicks forward, and a second later, I’m flying backward. My ass hits the snow and pain erupts on the left side of my face, hotter than any welding fire.
“I do not enjoy repeating myself.”
“Xaden!” Garrick shouts and runs in my direction, turning his back on the blue without thought, but Masen shuffles backward, keeping his head bowed.
“She wants us to move.” I rise to my feet, and half my vision swims in red.
“You think?” Garrick puts his hands on my face and starts turning my head. “Fuck, she got you. You’re split clean open from above your eyebrow to the top of your cheek. I’m surprised you still have an eye.”
Heat blasts on our left, melting the snow at our boots, and we all pivot.
Fire surges from Sgaeyl’s mouth as she swivels her head in a snakelike motion over Eian’s, Lorne’s, and Alic’s bodies. The scents of sulfur and ash singe my lungs, and my face starts to throb. The bodies disappear into the molten stream, and when it ceases, they are nothing but burned scorch marks. Even their blades cease to exist.
All three of us stare in various states of shock at the charred patches of ground.
“Guess we don’t have to worry about anyone finding their bodies,” Garrick mutters.
Sgaeyl snaps her head in our direction, and the three of us take a giant step backward.
My heart lodges somewhere in the vicinity of my throat as her golden eyes narrow on me in challenge. I should retreat again; that’s what Kaori would say to do.
Instead, I take a step forward and raise my head, despite the steady stream of blood dripping down my jawline. I will not cower.
Her eyes flare in what I really fucking hope is approval. “This is not a group activity. Tell your acquaintances to depart.”
My heart hammers.
“You guys need to go.” I leave my arms loose at my sides and welcome the cool breeze against the pulsing heat consuming half my face.
“Xaden—” Garrick starts.
“Go.” I keep my eyes locked on Sgaeyl. Talking to me is a great sign—it means that she’s considering me—but given her history of killing her own rider, I’m not about to overstep on her goodwill. “I’ll be fine.” Or dead. Either way, Garrick shouldn’t have to watch.