Page 8 of Cursebreaker

Selene’s rib cage protrudes from her chest, twenty-four spikes of bone, and she drops, hitting the deck with a sickening thud.

The Bloodknights don’t even have the chance to run.

The silence that follows Will’s assault is heavy, the metallic tang in the air almost intoxicating. I can feel my tentative grip on my magic slipping—can feel the beast within me shaking itself awake. Sniffing. Licking its lips.

More, the voice screams. More.

“That’s enough!” Gabriel shouts, cutting through the haze of bloodlust, and I realize Will’s focus is torn between the handful of human prisoners aboard the Mythslayer and…

Stars.

Me.

I brace myself, but it’s no use. Will is on top of me without warning, his teeth at my throat. As he sinks his canines into the soft flesh, I hear a scream, and I barely register that it’s my own. Will’s weight bears down on me, and though I’m somewhat numb to the sensation of his hands pinning my wrists to the hard deck, I feel every agonizing pull of blood he empties from my veins with startling clarity.

Thump.

“Daughter of the sea,” whispers a voice, clear and melodic and as familiar to me as my own heartbeat. “Open your eyes.” And again, urgently, “Open your eyes!”

I struggle to lift my eyelids—struggle to focus as my vision blurs, spins, quakes.

Past a tangle of Will’s dark hair, glistening white scales catch the firelight, reflecting the amber glow like thousands of glittering stars.

The serpent rises out of the sea, towering over the Mythslayer, its fanged mouth gaping, poised to strike. Its silver eyes glow, bright as two moons, as it sets its sights on Will and me.

It lurches forward and—

BANG.

The serpent reels back, shrieking. The earsplitting wail needles its way into my mind, vibrating in my jaw, and it’s piercing enough that Will releases me.

Only to collapse right back on top of me, his body limp.

“He’ll thank me later, right?” Henry flashes a wry grin, but his eyes are haunted as he shoves Will’s body off and scoops me up in his arms.

He struggles to maintain his footing as he carries me toward the gangplank, the ship rocking and swaying as the serpent writhes. I follow the beam of its silver gaze to the crow’s nest of the Starchaser, where Jack continues to draw the Myth’s attention with gunfire. But the serpent appears to adapt to Jack’s bullets, dodging them with the swift dexterity of a snake. And when Jack is forced to reload, the serpent turns its attention back to the Mythslayer—back to Will.

“We can’t leave them!” I try to say as Henry climbs onto the gangplank, but my weak voice is little more than a wheeze.

Henry’s grip tightens, a muscle in his jaw feathering. “We’re not leaving anyone!”

And then I see them—Charlie, hoisting Will over his shoulder, and Gabriel, not far behind, hauling Titus’s limp form. The few remaining prisoners struggle against their chains as Lewis darts about the Mythslayer, searching for a way to free them.

Jack should have had time to reload by now, but he doesn’t fire another shot.

“It’s jammed!” I can barely hear his scream over the howl of the storm as Henry drops onto the Starchaser.

A web of lightning illuminates the sky, glinting off the serpent’s fangs as it rears back, hissing.

My head spins, and black spots edge my vision. I have to do something, I have to—

I attempt to roll out of Henry’s arms, but he holds me close to his chest, his grip unyielding. “You’ve lost too much blood!” he snaps. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

Feebly, I pound his chest with my fist, my screams little more than gasping breaths. “Let me go! Let me—”

The Starchaser lurches as the serpent rams its head into the starboard side, sending Henry and me sprawling onto the deck.

My body spasms, pain cleaving through me like a blade. Every part of me aches as I crawl forward. I grit my teeth against the throbbing in my head as I pull myself to my feet, staggering toward the taffrail.