I lift Eloise’s unconscious body into my arms again, noticing that she’s no longer bleeding. As the dragon has healed, so has she. But no signs of life come from Phantom, and Eloise remains asleep. I leave the dragon, and I run, pacing myself so the children can keep up. To their credit, they give it their all. Victus taught them well. But I hear the thundering of rabble beast feet in the distance, the sound of voices cursing when they find the cart and, I assume, the dragon. And then a lone rider closer behind us. Closing in.
I glance over my shoulder to see a shade in a silver uniform no more than five hundred yards back. A New Stygarde soldier—one I don’t recognize. He sees us, and he locks on. I try to move faster, but I can’t with Eloise in my arms. Can’t risk losing the children.
Like the thunder of a nearing storm, he closes in. There’s only one thing to do.
I stop, set Eloise down, and draw Dawnbreaker. My blade feels exceptionally heavy in my hands as I turn to face the soldier. I might best this one, but there will be more. There will be elf magic. Sunlight. I’ll have to hold them off until Eloise wakes.
“Get behind me,” I tell the children. They obey, the boy searching the ground and picking up a heavy stick. Already brave, this one. My throat tightens at the desperation I see in his eyes.
I sink deeper. Raise my sword higher. I meet the silver coat’s eyes…and frown. This is no soldier. He’s barely a man, with the build of a teenager and the glazed eyes of one drugged to serve Nevina. Only a dozen yards away now, I know this is someone’s child…their stolen child. As innocent as the two little ones behind me. I sheathe my sword. I can’t kill the boy. I’ll have to knock him out with my bare hands.
I prepare myself for a fight. He closes in.
And then, he’sgone.
Fire consumes him. I raise my arms to protect my face from the radiating heat. The blast of dragon fire drives down from above, a swirling inferno contained within a perfect column of incinerating intensity. Although I can’t see Phantom, I know they are behind this, the only creature capable of this destruction. It swallows the shade and the beast he rides on, singes the trees, the underbrush, the ground. Never have I seen anything like this. It burns as hot as a star. I take several steps back until my legs bump into Eloise.
She’s sitting up, and her normally green eyes are glowing as blue as the dragon’s.
When I turn my face back toward the soldier, the fire stops. I lower my arm and can’t believe my eyes. The man is no longer. Now, there is only ash in the shape of what once was soldier and steed. The wind picks up, and the cremated flesh breaks apart and snows down between the blackened trees.
Phantom lands in front of me and chuffs. I follow their gaze to Eloise, who is now rubbing her head and blinking up at me.
“Little dragon?”
Eyelashes fluttering, she says, “Ow. Why does my leg hurt?” She rubs her thigh where the blood stains her clothes. I don’t have time to answer her before she sees the children and immediately forgets her aching leg. “You must be Zander and Zarissa.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Zarissa says.
“Thank the goddess!”
“Eloise…” Under the guise of helping her to her feet, I pull her into my arms and hold her there. She hugs me back.
“Are you all right?” she asks me, as if she didn’t just give me the fright of my life.
I nod. “Let’s get back to the cabin. Quickly. It’s not safe here.”
“Wait! The children…they might have a tracker?—”
“No. They ingested nothing.”
She nods. “I’ll check them on the way back, just to be sure. Help me get them on Phantom.” She leads us toward the dragon and mounts quickly. I help Zander and Zarissa strap into the ingeniously designed saddle.
“As fast as you can fly,” I say to her, meeting her eyes.
“What happened while I was out?” she asks.
My jaw ticks as I grind my teeth. “As. Fast. As. You. Can. Fly,” I repeat.
She returns a nod and grips the strap in front of her. “Hang on!” she tells the children. Phantom shoots into the night sky and disappears.
Thank the goddess. I offer a prayer for her to make it back to the cottage safely and break into shadow, blending into the night. I’m about to take off toward the cabin when the sound of pounding feet heralds a pair of rabble beasts ridden by Nevina and another soldier. I stop and wait, nothing but a shadow. A shadow with ears.
“Where is Xerxes?” she snaps at the soldier beside her. “I ordered him to search this part of the forest. If he somehow disobeyed my orders, he will pay with his life.”
The elf soldier at her side dismounts, squats down and scoops a handful of ash from the charred forest floor, sniffing it ruefully. He allows the ash to sift through his fingers. “It appears he already has, my queen.”
At first, Nevina looks angry, then she releases a dark chuckle. “No loss. Plenty more shade children where he came from. If the rebels wish to execute their own, I won’t stop them.”
