“They were here,” I said. “Come on.”
We ran after the trail, until I found a gathering of footprints underneath an oak tree. The scene was a mess. I smelled blood, and the musky scent of soldiers surrounding it.
“Ozzie caught up with Jasper. They stood here for some time,” I said, stooping to the ground. “They must’ve had some kind of argument before others showed up.”
There were impressions of boots in the mud that didn’t belong to them. It looked like a whole battalion.
“Signs of a struggle,” Alexei noted, pointing to the broken branches on the earth, mingled with dark blood droplets. “Whatever happened, it didn’t go well for them. Jasper was dragged off in one direction, and Ozzie another.”
“Do we split up?” Kiara asked.
“No. We go after the Crystals. Jasper had them, so we have to find him first,” I said.
“But what if Ozzie’s in trouble?” Emma asked.
“We’re all in trouble if we don’t get the Crystals back.”
“I don’t want to make the choice on who possibly lives or dies,” Emma hissed.
“Sometimes you have to. Make a decision.”
Emma’s expression hardened, but she said, “Keep leading us to Jasper.”
We moved forward. The footsteps changed to the markings of someone being dragged. Whoever was bleeding, it hadn’t been Jasper, because the blood smell went away.
When we got closer to the Willow Maiden, the footprints changed. They had morphed into the impressions of giant lizard claws. Someone had shifted. A dragon had been here, several, perhaps.
“The soldiers must’ve flown off with Jasper and taken him somewhere else,” Finlay said.
“What if he never made it to the Willow Maiden?” Emma asked.
Kiara cast the locating spell again. The arrow appeared only for a few seconds before it vanished in an array of yellow sparks. She attempted to cast the spell twice more, but nothing happened.
“Jasper’s arrow is gone,” Kiara whispered. “I can’t summon it anymore.”
Amantha hadn’t been afraid before, but her voice held an edge of fear as she said, “Let’s check the Willow Maiden. Just to be sure.”
We headed that way, although I couldn’t be sure we were going in the right direction. The miles seemed to drag on, although I knew we were moving as fast as concealment would allow.
“His scent’s back, stronger than it was before,” Alexei stated abruptly as we entered a new wave of trees. “He wasn’t here but an hour ago.”
I noted that. This was all very strange. Why did the soldiers take him somewhere else, only to return him to the area later?
Finlay and Amantha gave screams of alarm from up ahead, accompanied by the shouts of strangers. All of us jumped into action. We raced to them, where we found they were surrounded by at least a dozen soldiers.
I changed into a wolven and sprang on the nearest one, tearing him to bits. There were snarls and yowls as Finlay and Alexei fought with shifters. Kiara blasted off a few rays of golden light from her palms, which struck a couple of sorceresses down. Amantha pulled a dagger from her belt and used it to stab the soldier nearest her, plunging the blade into his neck before he could swing his weapon. Emma transformed into her shadow self and completely eliminated the rest, sailing through their chests and creating gaping cavities within their bodies with her ruthless dark magic. As the battalion was destroyed, the six of us formed a circle, looking outward at the woods to see if anyone else was hiding there.
“Do you think that’s all there are?” Alexei breathed.
“She’s probably got more patrols scouting the woods,” Emma said in a tight voice. “If they’re not guarding the Willow Maiden, that must mean—”
“Emma,” I said, although I already knew what must’ve happened.
She took off running. My protests didn’t stop her. I gave chase, though we weren’t far from the Willow Maiden now. The smell of death filled my nose, and it made me hideously ill.
The trees broke ahead, into the ruins of the abandoned Seelie palace. We entered the Willow Maiden’s clearing. Before me, I heard Emma give a wretched gasp. The shock she felt resonated outward through our bond like an explosion.
Her stunned spirit made me completely halt in my tracks. I was suddenly aware of how hauntingly silent it was, only the eerie wind accompanying my ragged breaths.
