The sight unfolding below was so fucked up I almost didn’t believe it was real. Like maybe it was some dark fae mojo making me hallucinate. I blinked rapidly, my eyes adjusting to the dark shapes… ghouls converging on their latest victim… a flash of dark hair splayed in the dirt… the bright burst of red magick.
Magick that could only belong to Haley.
Tucking my wings close, I torpedoed down toward that moat so fast, everything else became a smudge in my peripheral vision, the wind a dull roar in my ears as I pushed harder and faster, desperate to reach her before—
The magick. It vanished. It fucking vanished and my girl dropped to her knees.
Fuck, Haley. Don’t you give up now! Don’t you fucking dare…
I was so close… so fucking close, and then…
Her beautiful black roses exploded across the ground, and every last ghoul in the moat dropped to its knees and bowed.
And then they were gone.
A heartbeat later, she was finally within reach. I didn’t think, didn’t even draw a breath. Just snatched her right out of that pit like I was snatching her from the jaws of hell, because that’s exactly what it was.
Hell.
And she’d survived it. My girl had fucking survived.
As gently as I could, I laid her on the ground just beyond the trench, skimming my hands over her arms and legs, searching for wounds. She was conscious, but she was in bad shape. Broken bones for sure, probably a concussion, but the blood loss was my immediate concern. I did my best with the shredded clothing still clinging to her body, tearing off a few strips for makeshift bandages.
“Tell me what happened,” I said as I worked. There was no way I’d be able to follow the story—my mind was singularly focused on patching her up, stabilizing her enough to get her back to the castle, where hopefully Saint would have the strength to heal her with his vampire blood. But I needed to keep her talking. Conscious. Needed to know she was still fucking with me.
“Keradoc… Keradoc’s guard,” she managed, her voice cracking. “The gargoyle and… two fae. From the…” She gasped in pain as I wrapped her ankle, the sound of it fucking gutting me. “From the castle. I recognized… trying to…. take me…” She was panting now, her pupils dilated, her face covered in sweat and grime and blood.
Fuck, I needed to get her home. Now.
“Keep talking, babygirl,” I said, sliding my arms beneath her. “I need to pick you up, and it might hurt a little, so be brave for me and—”
“Hudson!” she gasped, her eyes going wide with some new fear. “Incoming!”
I whipped my head around just in time to see them—three gargoyles swooping in for the kill.
One I recognized as Keradoc’s man.
The other two were my dear old friends, Mad Marco and Draven. No Garrison tonight, but that was fine by me. I’d hunt him down eventually. Obliterate him just like I was about to obliterate these three fuckstains.
I didn’t carewhothey worked for now. Keradoc, some other fae nobles, some secret Stone City faction, the fucking all-powerful devil himself… Didn’t matter.
They wereallgoing down.
I made sure Haley had a strong grip on that dagger—strong as she could manage, anyway.
“Sorry, babygirl.” I cupped her face. “I’ll do my best to keep ’em away, but you might have to defend yourself. You good?”
“Magick, or… aim for the… the throat,” she managed, a weak smile lighting up her grim face.
“That’s my girl.” One more second to look at her, and then I was gone, shooting up into the air and crashing into Draven like a damn missile.
We rolled and spun and smashed back down to the ground with a crash that tore up the black earth. I gave him no time to react—just pounded him, smashing my elbow into his nose, slashing at his throat with my talons, but it wasn’t enough.
The other two gargoyles touched down, Keradoc’s man wobbling on his feet, clutching his throat. His hide was charred with the remnants of magick, and I knew right then my girl must’ve nailed him good. He was still suffering from the aftereffects, which was a relief.
No wonder he brought backup.
A faint red glow flickered to life behind me. Good—Haley still had some juice left. Wouldn’t last long, given her condition, but I’d make it work. Had to, or she’d be easy fucking prey.
