Page 64 of Why Broken Wings Fray

“Should you have wanted an audience with me, lads, you could have sent a raven. Slaughtering my castle guards and interrupting my dinner reeks of poor planning.”

“You know us, Raegan. We cannot resist a good dramatic flare. Plus, we killed no one.” Taran lifted both of his hands in front of himself, wiggling his fingers, just as Caden did.

“Right,” Raegan scoffed. “Only convinced my guards that death was a sweeter fate than life.”

“No,” Caden cackled, “Living in a kingdom that you reign over did that.”

The two of them snickered with one another just as Raegan cocked his head to the side. It was nothing short of predatory, every muscle along his back and neck flexing.

“You rats and your nest have not come all of this way to dine with me, I assume.” Raegan was back to that look of neutrality, his sword hand flicked up and relaxed.

“Afraid not,” Taran sighed. “We’re to retrieve your head.”

Raegan’s ceadan snarled from their various points throughout the room, not a single one lacking a weapon or an intention to use it.

“But it seems you are better guarded than we were led to believe.”

Raegan let out a matching sigh to theirs. “I did not think King Nevan would outsource his dirty-work to scum such as yourselves.”

Caden placed a hand over his heart and Taran pouted.

“Your words truly sting. Though I suppose I would be defensive if I was bringing ruin to my home.”

“You’d have to have a home,” Raegan snarled at Caden. “You’ve been missing one of those for centuries.”

Caden flashed an unpleasant smile, all fangs and glistening-white teeth.

The group behind them looked as uneasy as the rest of us, their hands somewhat shaky where they held out a variety of swords, daggers, and other pointed, metal things. Eyes flicked from left to right, everyone simply waiting for the one word that would kick off carnage.

“If it is a fight that you crave, then I shall give you a fight,” Raegan said, everything about him even and strong. “But I could save you the trouble, the lives, and my castle-servants from the clean-up. Leave now, take your clan and disappear back into the muck you emerged from.”

Taran hit the end of his tether of tolerance, his lips peeling up into a snarl. Caden echoed him, then it was the whole group making the same deranged and damning noise.

As that vibration of throats filled the room, there was another noise. It was quiet, muffled, and almost indistinguishable from the other sounds in the room. But I picked up on it, the flapping and the fluttering, and turned my head over my shoulder.

Urram.

He took to one of the windows, perched himself on the ledge, and craned his avian head to the side.

This was soon to become a fight not of just blood and bone, but of fire and ash. And Urram’s weird ability to emote as a parrot led me to believe it would be a lot of fire and ash.

“We have made a deal,” Taran said in a way that suggested he cared little for it. “Unfortunately, I am a creature who values honour.”

Raegan and Killian both scoffed at that.

“We fully intend to satisfy our side of the deal. You could make this easy, King of Two but None – hand yourself over and let us be done with it.”

Raegan let go of his cool and allowed himself to truly simmer. “The day I am plucked from my own lands at the hands of fairies will be the day I die.”

Taran rolled his eyes. “That’s sort of the point.”

Raegan gave absolutely no warning before he charged forward, his sword out, a sweeping arch already halfway through its cycle.

Killian grabbed me from behind, wrapping my body up with his arms and prying me away from the fight. A year ago, I would have let him. I would have curled up against him and allowed him to drag me away from the fight. But now, I was clawing against him, bucking in his hold, my eyes focused on Raegan and Raegan only, who had already started raining death down on the fairies.

His ceadan, including Shea and Aisling, Ciara and Liam, were quick behind him, each of them with their swords out. The vibrations of each swing meeting each defence shook the room, causing me to groan as Killian continued to haul me backwards.

“Olivia, please,” Killian begged as he threw me up against the wall. “I can’t worry about both of you at once. And if you truly care about Raegan, about his safety, you will allow me to go and protect him.”