AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Nikkos held his hand out to me with a wink. I swear I felt sparks ignite between us when I slipped my hand in his. I gasped, but he refused to release me, my skin buzzing all the way to my toes when he drew circles around my palm with the pad of his thumb.
Squeezing my hand, he flashed sharp incisors. “I promise I won’t bite.”
I wasn’t so sure of that, and I wasn’t sure I’d mind, either.
He helped me walk up the steep hill, his wings pushing us forward. The grass was so tall, it came to my knees, though it wasn’t dry and brittle like the fields by my parents’ cottage. It was green and fragrant and brushed up against my skirts like threads of silk. When we reached the top of the knoll, the fortress before us nearly took my breath away. The walls, that were nearly as tall as the massive trees of the Periculian Forest, stretched on forever, disappearing into the fog. I had to strain my neck to see the top. I didn’t think there was any possible way a group of shifters could’ve built something so massive.
On top of the fortress walls were several giant contraptions, pulled back like slingshots, cradling sharpened bolts wider than my leg and as tall as two mages.
Fear numbed my veins at the sight of their pointy tri-tipped blades. “You weren’t kidding when you said they might shoot us down.”
“Those ballistae are meant for dragons,” Nikkos whispered. “There’s a rumor this stronghold was originally built by the giants,” he continued. “It was abandoned for years until the shifters took it over after Fachnan attacked Lupine.”
“Oh.” Unease churned my gut. I wondered how many of these survivors were part of the rebels that had once enlisted my sister in their failed idea to take down Fachnan and his dragon army before my parents had the mind spinner change her memories and take her away.
“But they probably won’t need them,” Blaze added. “We’re on Windhaven land now, and Fachnan wouldn’t dare risk angering Duke Viggo.”
I looked at him. “Why not?”
Blaze slanted a knowing grin. “Because Fachnan needs Viggo’s troops if he wants to have a shot at defeating our aerial army.”
Nikkos snorted. “Even then, they won’t stand a chance against ten thousand fire mages.”
“Ten thousand?” I clutched my throat.
“Most of us were born during the Fertilis.” Nikkos squeezed my hand, a gleam in his eyes. “Our mother was a busy woman.”
Indeed, I thought to myself, even as my stomach churned with unease. On the off chance my sister did align with Fachnan’s army, I didn’t think she’d survive a battle with ten thousand fire mages.
Once we reached the giant double doors wide enough to fit a full-size dragon, Blaze cupped his hands around his mouth and called out, “Hey, there!”
A low howl rent the air, sending a chill racing through my bones. I repressed a shiver, then gave a start when the girls howled back, sounding too much like little wolves.
I gaped at them, and they both blinked back at me, their eyes looking far too feral, and I wondered if perhaps they’d have their first shift before they reached puberty. Hopefully not.
A little wooden window above the doors slid open, and unnaturally golden eyes blinked back at us. My knees trembled when a black, furry snout poked out of the window, flashing long, sharp fangs. “State your business,” the creature said in a dark, demonic voice.
“Our family seeks food and shelter for the night,” Blaze called back.
My nieces howled again. What were they saying?
The creature’s nostrils flared as he scowled down at us. Then he slid the door shut with a loudsnap.
I looked at my nieces. “What were you saying to them?”
Aurora shrugged. “I don’t know, Auntie.”
“It just felt like the thing to do,” Ember added.
I swallowed back a lump in my throat, my hand sweating in Nikkos’s warm grip, though I didn’t dare let go.
“At least they know we have shifters with us,” Blaze whispered.
“What will they do?” I whispered back.
He dragged a hand through his thick hair. “Let us in, hopefully.”
Worry churned my gut. Let us in? Or let just the girls in? “What if they try to take them from me?”
