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She didn’t understand his reaction. Glancing around the empty street, she debated if now would be a good time to try and escape him. If she could lose him in these winding streets—
A dark figure slunk out of the pub behind them.
Khalstorm noticed him too. “Fuck all.” Once again, he grabbed her by the hand and took off in a sprint.
“It’s them, isn’t it? They’re coming to kill us.”
Khalstorm shot her a troubled glance. “They’re coming to killme. Who knows what they plan for you.”
Terror iced its way up her spine.
12
Heart thundering, Khalstorm raced down yet another side street with Celeste in tow. Every time he glanced back to see if they’d lost their pursuers, he caught sight of the fear in her eyes, and it gutted him.
His mind was a mess where she was concerned. He now didn’t know what to believe. Twice, she’d admitted to killing Lizbet . . . but her nose had twitched and crinkled.Both times!
But he knew . . . he just knew . . . her admissioncouldn’tbe a lie.
Could she have figured out her own tell and used it against him?
A most devious bluff?
To finally admit the truth . . . only to subtly fool him into questioning everything? To make him disbelieve his own memory of that dreadful night?
He turned right, heading down a gloomy alleyway riddled with puddles from the recent rain. Celeste gripped his hand tightly, as though she trusted him completely to lead them to safety. Something in his chest unraveled at the thought.
It’s my fault we’re in this mess.
Moments later, he heard splashing behind them. Heavy footfalls beating a path toward them. Their pursuer was gaining. It sounded like there was only one, though. Unless the other two had taken a different route…?
He should never have given his real name.How could I have been such a fool?Of course others would want to challenge him. Technically, because he’d never been defeated by a rival, he was still the rightful King of Garnath, alleged crimes notwithstanding. Any other claim to the throne would be tenuous without first vanquishing him in battle.He’d never had any intention of reclaiming the crown, but others wouldn’t see it that way. They’d see his very return as an issued challenge to the clan’s shaky leadership.
He cursed himself for putting Celeste in danger. She had no way of defending herself if she were caught. And since he could not shift, he could hardly defend them either. Not if their pursuer took dragon form. His only hope was to keep to confined spaces so their would-be attacker couldn’t shift.
“This way,” he called to Celeste, making a beeline for the forest.
She let out a miserable groan. “Back into the forest?”
“It will impede his transformation.” The forest was thick with trees like living steel. If one transformed in the midst of them, the trunks could easily break a dragon’s bones without taking much damage themselves.
“Unless he just burns the forest down with us in it.”
“The rain has soaked everything, and besides, he’d put the entire village in peril if he did that. He may want our heads, but he wants the respect of the clan more. Destroying half the village would bring him only shame.”
As pavement gave way to sloughy dirt, and buildings gave way to foliage, the sounds of their own footsteps became wet slaps against the ground. Deep in the forest now, the foliage grew thicker than expected, spiked with thorns and briers that forced them to double back in search of another way through.
They didn’t have time—
Suddenly the man from the bar appeared in their path. With a macabre grin, he brandished a sword at his side, the blade polished to a gleam. “I thought you might be leading me to an open space so we could do this the right way, but I see you are too much of a coward. No matter. I can defeat you in this form just as easily.” His eyes glowed with a green hue, indicating his desire to shift.
Beside him, he felt a shudder travel through Celeste. Her safety was all that mattered now.
Khalstorm used to be at the top of his game. Had he battled this man before his incarceration, he would have had no doubts about winning. But years without training, days without a real meal, and the long trek through the forest had taken their toll.
I may not walk away from this.
But she must.
