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The Rathalan to my left attacked first. I let my mind go blank so my muscle memory could take over. Our blades sparkedfrom the impact. With a shout, I shoved him back and jabbed my sword into his side. He sank to the ground, blood spilling from his wound. Spinning around, I sliced another guard in the leg, causing him to collapse. I blocked the next several blows, moving fast on my feet, but it wasn’t enough. There were too many of them.
Sweat ran down my back as I scrambled to fend off their attacks. The darkness made it difficult to see, and I was losing ground. Before I knew what was happening, there was a blade at my throat. My breath caught. My body stilled.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jeddak fighting through the chaos to reach me, but too many men barricaded his path.
This is it.I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain to come.
Instead, the Rathalan’s blade clattered to the ground, and he howled in pain. A knife was embedded in his shoulder blade.Jeddak.
I tried to run, but another Rathalan grabbed me and punched me in the stomach. I dropped my sword and doubled over, gasping for breath. He yanked my hands behind my back, kicking my weapon out of reach.
“This is the girl,” the guard said to his comrade. “The commander said he wants heralive. Kill the boy. And the bear.”
“No!” I cried through ragged breaths, frantically struggling against his grip, but he held firm.
“Raven!” Jeddak shouted as they dragged me away. He and Kah couldn’t reach me in the fray.
Suddenly, the guard holding me crumpled to the ground. An arrow was sticking out of his back. Then the two other Rathalans flanking me sank to their knees one after the other, falling face forward. I stared up into the city ruins, but it was too dark to see where the arrows were coming from.
One by one, the Rathalans in the courtyard fell until only the three of us remained standing.
I ran across the courtyard toward Jeddak. I figured if the hidden bowman had wanted me dead, I’d already have an arrow through my chest. When I reached Jeddak, he was standing beside Kah, holding a blade to a guard’s throat. Jaw set, muscles tight like a mountain lion about to make a kill. “How did you find us?” he barked.
The guard didn’t answer. He was clutching the arrow lodged in his side. Jeddak pushed the blade into his skin.
“How?”
Kah growled in the man’s ear.
“We’ve been on your trail for days,” the guard spat as dark blood trickled down his neck.
“Are there any others following us?” he demanded.
The Rathalan made a choking sound that Jeddak took as a yes.
“Where are they?”
“The mountain pass.” The guard made a horrible laugh-cough sound like he was finding this amusing.
A distressed look overtook Jeddak’s features, but the ferocity didn’t leach from his voice. “How did you know where we’re going?”
The guard didn’t answer.
Jeddak’s arm tensed as if he was going to plunge in the knife, but he let his hand drop instead. The guard slumped to the ground, his raspy breaths stilling to silence as death claimed him.
Looking up, I noticed the dark stain on Jeddak’s armor for the first time. He was bleeding.
“Oh skies, you’re hurt,” I said, breathless as I reached out to him.
He sank to his knees on the cobblestones, his head bowed. As I knelt beside him, his hand moved to cover the seeping wound on his shoulder. His breathing was ragged. With the moon athis back, his face was in shadow, but I could feel the pain and exhaustion radiating off him like a dying star.No, no, no!
I glanced over at Kah to see his black eyes rimmed with concern. He nudged Jeddak’s shoulder with his nose, but Jeddak hardly noticed. I wondered if the poison of the malarite blade had already drained the magic from Jeddak, leaving the two of them disconnected.
There was no time to search the ruins for the mysterious bowman as Kah and I helped Jeddak limp back into the alcove. Because he was taller and much heavier than me, my knees almost buckled underneath his weight. When we reached the doused fire, he collapsed again.
I knelt to help him. He winced as he shifted to lean against the wall, pressing his hand against his shoulder again. I couldn’t tell how bad the wound was. Everything was covered in blood—his hands, cloak, leather armor. My stomach churned at the sight.
“The mountain pass …” Jeddak muttered.
