Page 9 of Sun, Moon & Shadow

Nova collapsed in on herself, swallowed whole by a memory conjured by the creature’s crushing weight upon her. She struggled for air as a boy sat on her chest, his hands at her throat. Her forearms pinned beneath his shins, skin scraping against the rough dirt of the schoolyard. A group of children stood huddled around them, urging the boy on. Darkness seeped in from the edges of her vision, blocking out everything but the boy’s crooked grin as he stared down at her.

Ripped back to the present moment, she cried out in pain, her high-pitched shriek sending the beast into a frenzy. She felt her energy ebbing away, like the tide receding from the shore. Gathering what little strength remained, Nova bucked and kicked until she had her legs between her and the lycane, the bottoms of her feet pressed flat against its chest and underbelly.

Gripping the dagger in her right hand, she held it over her chest with the blade pointed toward the starry sky. Her leg muscles quivered against the sheer weight of the creature, its gnashing jaws edging closer to her throat.

A roar spilled forth from somewhere deep within her.

Then, her legs gave out.

Nova’s aim hadn’t been perfect. Metal scraped against bone as the lycane crashed down upon her. The creature let out a sharp squeal, and she felt the rush of its blood on her chest. It twitched once and then was still. A rush of energy coursed through her despite the near exhaustion she’d felt only seconds before.

Pushing against its chest, she rolled the creature off her. Stunned, she rose up onto her knees, staring dreamily at the hilt of her dagger poking out from between the animal’s ribs. She spied Callan at the edge of the clearing and reached out for him. Her vision narrowed down to a pinprick, and everything around her melted away as if the entire world had been snuffed out like a candle flame.

Callan was using the slain beast’s coat to clean the blood from his blade when he heard Nova’s scream. He sprinted in the direction of the sound, noting that it came opposite from where he’d left her. Within a minute, he arrived at a large clearing. Under the full moon’s light, he saw Nova pinned to the ground by a second lycane. Fighting viciously, she braced her long legs, bent slightly at the knees, against the animal. Callan rushed to the clearing’s edge, his sword raised. Then, Nova roared.

A battle cry. Wild and desperate.

Callan froze.

In the same instant, her legs fell, and the creature collapsed onto her, struggling briefly before going still.

A paralyzing fear seized him. He watched as Nova shoved the body of the lycane off her and it tumbled onto its back. Callan spied a dagger buried to the hilt in the creature’s chest. Nova rose onto her knees, facing him, her shoulders hunched. She saw him. Reached out for him. Then fainted.

He closed the distance between them in a breath. She was unconscious, drenched in blood, and covered in mud. He knelt down beside her, making a hasty inspection of her injuries. There was a wound to her scalp. The hair on the right side of her head was sticky with blood, but head wounds often looked worse than they were. He turned her over gently to check her back and flinched at the deep gouges running down her shoulder blade, bone visible beneath the ruined muscle.

He needed to get her to Pyralis—fast. Callan cursed himself aloud for leaving her unprotected.

Lycane lived in groups but hunted alone. More might not be far off, especially once they scented the blood of two of their pack on the wind. Callan laid Nova flat on her back. With great effort, he freed the dagger from the beast’s chest, securing it in his belt.

A mournful howl sounded in the forest, far too close for comfort. Callan whistled sharply, and Frost emerged, almost sheepishly, from the darkness between the trees. Growling a reprimand at his horse, he lifted Nova up, draping her over the animal’s wide back and covering her with his cloak. Callan mounted hastily and gave a snap of the reins, sending Frost racing through the forest toward the Pyralis Estate.

Signaling to the sentries posted on the high stone wall, he passed through the tall wooden gates just as the sun crested the peaks of the mountains to the east. Dawn’s first rays ignited the perpetually red and orange leaves of the surrounding trees, reaching out toward the horizon in every direction. Callan pressed Frost on at a gallop until they reached the small courtyard at the entrance to the residential wing reserved for the Noble family.

Dropping down from the horse, he shoved the reins into the grasp of a confused stable hand who met him at the foot of the steps. Hauling Nova down, he hoisted her over his shoulder, her head and arms dangling behind him, his forearm secured over the backs of her thighs. When he reached the entrance, he kicked open the massive wooden doors, bursting into the common area.

“Fawn!” His urgent shout reverberated off the lofted ceiling. “I could use your help down here!”

Six

It was not Fawn but Evander who first appeared, shirtless and bleary-eyed, on the landing at the top of the staircase. He leaned his elbows on the railing, squinting down at Callan.

“Cal, what in the name of the gods is going on?” he asked groggily, massaging his forehead with one hand.

Fawn jogged onto the landing seconds later and skidded to a halt beside her brother, tugging the sash of her robe tight around her waist. One glance at Callan and his strange cargo in the entryway and she was wide awake, skipping down the staircase two steps at a time.

“What’s happened? Is that her?” she asked rapid-fire, darting behind him with the frenetic energy of a hummingbird and bending to get a better look at the female thrown over his shoulder like a shapely sack of potatoes.

“Yes, this is Nova. A lycane attacked her.”

Evander, who had made his way to the foot of the staircase at a leisurely pace, circled them, inspecting. He was now fully awake but maintained his typical relaxed demeanor.

“There’s hardly a drop of blood on you.”

“She took down the beast herself,” Callan said, twisting his neck to face him.

Evander’s eyebrows lifted. “Impressive.”

Fawn popped up beside Callan.