“All’s clear. Did you find anything?” Alexei asked, sounding doubtful.
“No Hellhounds or creatures in the vicinity. Only a trail of blood leading from her body.”
They nodded, and we dropped to the forest floor, unsummoning our wings.
Blood and grime obscured the female’s face, but I recognized her. “Bonny?”
“You know her?” Alexei asked.
“She’s the human maid who works on my floor,” I said, surveying her shredded body and the uniform hanging off her in scraps.
Both raised their brows.
“Who the hell brought her all the way out here?” Alexei asked, throwing his blade and slicing through the rope holding her neck at an awkward angle.
Bonny dropped, and I caught her, knowing she was dead.
MJ summoned orbs of fire. Their heat seared through the thick fog coiling around our shins. We caught sight of the glistening pool of blood—and something darker—before the wind roared and snuffed out her flame.
An angel might survive that much blood loss, but a human would not.
“Do you think they infiltrated the castle or captured her outside it?” MJ asked.
“The king would know if someone infiltrated his castle,” I said confidently, lowering Bonny.
“Just like he knows how the Damned Souls are infiltrating the Redemption Circle?” Alexei countered.
He had a point, but his comment didn’t sit well with me. I’d have to post a few Nightmares near the castle entrances.
Fog crept over Bonny’s body, swallowing her from sight. If not for my hand on her shoulder, I wouldn’t have known she was there.
Flame whipped from MJ’s hand, slicing through the fog and wind, bringing Bonny back into view. She pressed her fingers to Bonny’s neck, checking for a pulse. But we all knew she wouldn’t find it. She shook her head. “Dead.”
“I’ve never seen cuts like these,” Alexei said, pulling back the soaked fabric.
My stomach dropped when he revealed the expanse of her skin.
“That’s because they’re bite marks.”
“From what?” MJ asked, revulsion lifting her lip.
“They’re too small to be from a Hellhound. But they—” Something about her blood seemed off near her exposed chest. “MJ, hold your flame here.”
She summoned it, battling the pissed-off wind. Her flames flashed in and out of view as the wind shoved against her, whipping her hair.
“What the fuck is that?” Alexei exclaimed.
Black veins surrounded the bite marks, and dark gunk oozed out, mixing with the blood between her breasts.
Dread settled in my gut. Silas had similar veins—but I didn’t remember any bite marks on him when he was interrogated.
“That’s enough, MJ.”
She pulled back her power, and the wind stoppedattacking.
A branch snapped. All of us stood, weapons drawn, eyes scanning the dark trees. But aside from a few Spinewalkers in the distance, nothing stirred.
Then the hum began—slow, soft, and unnervingly familiar. The sound swelled, growing louder until it cut off sharply as a Damned Soul emerged from behind a tree.
