Page 8 of A Beastly Court

The bear’s paw came slashing down.

With a sob, I shut my eyes, steeling myself to the knowledge I was probably going to lose my hand, if not my entire arm, and braced myself for the shock wave.

It never came.

Instead, the black tourmaline crystal—and only the crystal—clattered to the ground. My hand stayed securely attached to the rest of me.

The bear had… missed?

I forced open an eye. There weren’t even stipes of red against my skin where the grizzly’s claws had grazed past.

But it’d still stuck the tourmaline crystal! The bear should be at the bottom of the ravine by now, not pinning me up against the fireplace grate!

One step back and I would be in the blue flames that would (most likely) devour me. One step in any other direction, and it would be the bear who devoured me.

Sweat trickled down my face and into my eyes and off the tip of my nose as the bear leaned forward, his nose snuffling the many necklaces I wore. Whimpering, I turned my face away, flinching as a hot exhale blasted against my chest. Sucking in a shuddering breath, I called on the dregs of my magic, and a green stake like a supersized thorn appeared in each fist. When the bear struck, I would ram these into either side of his neck.

As if sensing my impending attack, the grizzly bear rolled back on his haunches. His paws lifted in a sick parody of a hug, as if encouraging me to embrace him, but I knew he was just preparing to crush me against his chest and break my spine or splatter me into pulp against the floor.

The side door slammed open with a thunderous boom.

The fae king bolted into the great hall, bare feet skidding to a halt at the sight of the unchained grizzly. He was clad in his customary buckskin trousers, fitted tight like a second skin over his muscled thighs, but his torso was bare except for the red fox pelt slung over his shoulders. He’d been out hunting. The lack of clothes, letting the natural elements affect him nearly as much as his prey, was his way of honoring the hunt.

He shook his copper curls out of his jewel-green eyes and flung his arms wide as he sank into crouch, copper magic engulfing his hands like twin suns. At his throat, the gemstones woven into the golden wire necklace shone like captured stars.

“Ossian,” I breathed, the control on my magic fizzling out.

“Meadow!” Ossian shouted.

The bear pivoted at the sight of his enemy and roared.

CHAPTER THREE

The King of Beasts was magnificent. Between one heartbeat and the next, a blast of copper magic rocked the bear off-balance, his claws sparking against the stone floor as he stumbled back. Ossian leapt onto the table, bare feet thunking softly as he stuck his landing.

I shied away as a second blast hurled the bear almost as far as the double doors. Then a rope of copper magic appeared, cinching tight around the grizzly’s throat, and Ossian began to reel him in like a tuna.

The bear fought, but Ossian was stronger. I could see it in the straining tendons of his forearms, in the thigh muscles threatening to burst through his buckskin trousers, in the breadth of his shoulders hidden under the fox pelt as he hauled the bear across the great hall and back to the big iron ring in the wall left of the dais. Rallying through the pain of the blasts and the constriction on his throat, the bear surged to his feet and charged.

Ossian cursed as the tension on his magical line went slack, causing him to stumble back and fall off the table. When he regained his footing, his jewel-green eyes blazed with anger, and two of the gemstones at the necklace around his throat glowed. Three ropes shot towards the bear instead of one, tangling up both pairs of legs and coiling once again around his throat. Ossian wrenched, and the bear was yanked clean off his feet.

The trestle table, easily half a ton in weight, jumped at the impact. The miniature earthquake threw me to the floor in front of the fireplace, my palms scraping against the worn stones. By the time I managed to push up into a kneeling position, a tendril of copper magic was lifting the heavy chain and reattaching it to the collar around the unconscious grizzly’s neck.

With a disgusted snort, the fae king turned away from his enemy. His features smoothed when he caught sight of me. The light in the gemstones of his necklace winked out, the copper power wreathing his hands vanishing. The fae king who had stolen my heart gave me a wild smile of victory, his elation quickly vanishing at the look on my face. With a burst of speed he was by my side, crouched down in front of me, cradling my cheeks in his large hands.

I burst into tears.

“Meadow,” he soothed, kissing my brow. “Love, what happened?”

“The bear was loose in here and Alec shoved me inside and locked the door,” I blubbered in a rush.

Ossian smoothed my hair away from my tears and snot. “He knows you are precious to me, love. Why would he do that?”

I fought through the lingering fear of the bear to glare up at him. Why couldn’t he ever believe me? Whenever I told him of Alec’s covetous looks or jealous remarks or snide comments, they were always brushed aside. “Why don’t you ask him?” I snapped, jerking away from him.

Ossian’s expression hardened. “I will, Meadow. But it must be later. I was late to breakfast—and all of this—because a report arrived of Wystan attacking yet another hamlet. Alec has already left to investigate and it might be days until he returns if he’s able to pursue. In the meantime”—he rose, towering over me as he extended his hand—“would you like to get off the floor?”

I was about to take his hand when I spied the black tourmaline under the nearest chair’s leg. Snatching it up, I slipped it into my foraging bag and then accepted Ossian’s hand.