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“Croygen,” she screamed.
As if my soul was sucked back into my body, adrenaline bolted me awake with a gasp, my body knifing up. I grabbed the gun next to me, already sensing the danger approaching.
The fire burned low, but I could see figures moving in on us.
Cooper jolted up, his instincts so finely tuned he didn’t even hesitate, fear shifting him instantly into his dweller form. His clothes tore off him as a handful of men emerged from the darkness, their guns and swords drawn. They no longer cared about a sneak attack.
Cooper’s roar rattled the cave, the blades down his back glinting from the fire, his enormous mass leaping for the group. Screams of death pierced the air, his claws shredding through the first two.
Bullets whizzed by my head, one slicing through my shirt.
“Annabeth! Go!” I waved her to get away from the fight. Instead, she yanked a gun from her bag, aiming it at our attackers, firing shot after shot as if she had been training with firearms for years.
I rushed toward the men, sword in one hand, a gun in the other. I flipped between the two, slicing through one as I shot another in the chest.
The dweller prowled through them, his flesh bleeding with bullet holes, but they had no chance once he got close, his claws and teeth cutting three more in half as I skewered the final one, my blade piercing through his stomach, pinning him to the ground. Keeping him alive on purpose, I towered over his body. His eyes were a blue-violet.
Low-bred, but a fairy. Seelie. Though those titles were starting not to hold as much weight as they once did now that the Otherworld was gone.
“Who are you?” I heaved for air, blood pumping in my ears. I peered around at the dozen bodies—light, brown, tall, short, though most seemed similar to each other in their features.
Eastern European.
Breathing heavily, he glared at me, not answering.
My gaze went down his form, taking in the dark clothes, a small crest on his arm—two circles with a sword cutting through the middle, the blade and handle engraved with Celtic symbols. It reminded me of the Sword of Nuada, but I didn’t know anyone who would dare to have that as their insignia. Who took something that destroyed so many lives and wore it as a badge of honor?
What it did tell me was this wasn’t a random war party moving through and killing people. They were trained soldiers. Had a purpose. “Why did you attack us?” I pushed my blade deeper. He grunted, snot falling from his nose, his lips pressing together in silence.
“He asked you a question,” Cooper growled, his massive naked body stomping up, covered in blood, his eyes still flaming red. “Tell us or die.” His words still struggled to come out clearly, his dweller barely under the surface.
“Baszd meg!” Fuck off. The man spat, hitting Cooper in the face.
Cooper’s shoulders expanded, his spine spiking with blades, his hand forming claws. A snarl roared from Cooper as he swiped across the guy’s neck. Blood sprayed over both of us, the man’s body going limp as his head rolled off.
“Well, so much for questioning him.” I wiped my face with my sleeve.
“He wasn’t gonna answer anyway,” Cooper grumbled, standing up, slowly returning to his human form.
“They were Hungarian. At least he was.” I yanked my blade from his chest. “Like the group that was following us back on the road.”
“They want to limit the competition.” Cooper shrugged, strolling up to Annabeth, making sure she was okay, not caring that he was not only naked, but looked like he was ready to fuck her up against the wall, his muscles twitching with energy.
“Then why not just kill us back on the road? Doesn’t make sense.” Why did this feel like it wasn’t an arbitrary attack? That it was personal?
My mouth opened to talk when what felt like a train drove through me, almost bending me over.
My skin zapped with energy, my soul twisting with sudden awareness…of her. I felt her.
My heart pounded in my chest with terror, knowing she needed me. I didn’t know how, but I knew she did. I tasted her fear, felt her heartbeat, and heard her call my name.
My body reacted without pause. Grabbing a torch, I took off across the rocky terrain, not giving any thought but following the pull to her, like I could find her no matter where she was.
“Croygen!” Cooper bellowed my name, his calls growing fainter as I ran faster.
I had no control, no other thoughts than to get to her. Because through the darkness, the light leading me forward… was Katrina.
Chapter 3
