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Cold, skinless fingers dug into my ankle and jerked hard. The dagger slipped free, but so did my hand on the creature’s chest. Terror was a bitter taste in the back of my mouth as I swung the dagger, driving the blade into the side of its head. Dark, foul-smelling blood sprayed my face. I gagged, jerking the dagger free as the other creature hauled me across the ground, its fleshless fingers pressing into my calf, my thigh. I shifted, reaching for the creature as I saw the others bearing down on us. There wasn’t enough time. Even if I killed one or two more, it wouldn’t be enough. I knew this even as I brought the dagger down—
A rush of cold air and icy fury roared through the trees, sending the red leaves above into a frenzy. The creature who had my leg was suddenly yanked backward and up.
Ash.
I caught a glimpse of the hard lines of his face as he flung the creature aside, impaling it on a low branch.
Exhaling raggedly, I looked up.
“Don’t,” Ash cut me off as he spun around. “Not a single word.”
I scrambled to my feet. “Excuse me?”
“In case you have trouble counting, that is two words.” He caught another by the throat, but he didn’t throw this one aside. He lifted it into the air, and that silvery-white aura flared to life, flowing down his arm. “I want you to be quiet.”
I opened my mouth as the crackling, spitting energy spread from his hand to ripple over the creature. A network of veins lit under the thing’s skin, burning white. It howled as it erupted in silver flames. I snapped my mouth shut, stumbling back a step against stiff hands. I jumped to the side as the burning creature and flames evaporated. “I want—”
“I want you to be silent,” Ash repeated, slamming his hand onto another’s face. The silvery energy washed over it, and the thing shrieked. He pushed it aside, and it spun, flailing and falling. “And I want you to think about what you just did.”
I blinked. “Do you want me to find a corner to sit in, too?”
Ash’s head snapped in my direction, and my stomach tumbled. His eyes were brighter than the stars. “Will that help you think better?” He snagged another creature by the shoulder, catching it without even looking at it. “If so, then by all means, find a corner.”
“I am not a child,” I shot back as the creature caught fire and screamed.
“Thank fuck.” He stalked toward the one impaled on the tree.
“Then don’t speak to me like I am.”
Ash placed his hand against its head as it snapped at him. Eather poured over the creature, obliterating it.
Then he faced me. “I wouldn’t have to if you didn’t behave as one who couldn’t follow through on their promises.” The woods fell silent around us. “What did I tell you about these woods? Did you forget what I said would happen if you entered them?”
“Well, I didn’t forget. I just…”
Ash stared at me expectedly, nostril’s flared and eyes swirling.
“You go into them!” I reasoned. “I saw you come in here twice.”
“You are not me, Sera.” He took a step forward. “Do you know what is in these woods? In the very place I forbade you to travel into? That you agreed to stay out of? Do you know what exists in here that turns the leaves of the trees red?” he demanded, the radiance of his eyes receding.
I glanced at the bodies that remained. “Shades?”
He laughed harshly. “Those things were not Shades. You are standing in the Red Woods, where the blood of entombed gods soaks every root of every tree These are blood trees.”
A chill swept over me as I resisted the urge to climb one of the red trees just to get away from the ground. “Why in the world do you have gods entombed in the ground?”
“Their entombment is punishment,” he answered, and there was no way I could stop the rising tide of horror at the thought. His eyes narrowed. “Punishment most would consider far too lenient for the atrocities they committed.”
I would have to take his word for that. “How did they get free? Does that happen often?”
“It shouldn’t.” Those eyes bored into me. “These haven’t been down there all that long,” he said, and I really didn’t want to think of the others who’d been down there longer. “But all of them are as close to death as they can be without actually being dead. They are usually magically chained and shouldn’t be able to break those kinds of bonds.”
Gods were extremely powerful. I couldn’t imagine what could be used to restrain them. “What are their bonds made of?”
“The bones of other gods and Primal magic,” he answered, and my stomach turned. “They are placed atop the gods and used to bind the wrists and feet. If they fight it, the bones dig into their skin.”
