Page 98 of A House of Fangs & Deceit

“Jump!”

With the monsters bearing down on me, I didn’t hesitate. I stepped off the ledge and skidded down the incline in a controlled fall, trying to stay on my butt as much as possible.

More jagged cuts tore through my flesh from the sharp rocks and debris, and I hissed in pain but focused only on my descent. As the distance shrank between us, Vail stretched his arm out. I leapt off the incline, grabbing his arm and letting him pull me the rest of the way. I landed hard behind him, the saddle digging into me, and wrapped my arms around his waist.

He urged his mount forward, and the horse clearly needed no further encouragement to get the hell out of here.

The horse leapt forward, and my grip around Vail tightened.I looked over my shoulder just in time to see the long, dark shape of the kùsu skitter down the side of the ridge. Their legs were moving so fast that they were a blur as they tore off down the road after us.

Shit. I’d really been hoping they would decide the chase wasn’t worth it once they saw the horse, but the idea of a larger meal seemed to only excite them more.

We were keeping our distance from them, but Vail’s mount wasn’t built to maintain this type of speed for long. I could already hear his breathing become more labored.

If we didn’t get to the river soon, Vail deciding to not be an asshole and come back for me wouldn’t matter, and that really pissed me off because I wanted to survive this so I could beat the shit out of him myself.

“They’re gaining on us!” I warned Vail.

“It’s not much further!”

With every passing second, fear clamped onto me as the distance between us and the kùsu shrank.

We weren’t going to make it.

“Hold on!” Vail clamped one large hand over where both of mine were clasped together.

I felt our horse slow its mad dash and it hesitated before the excited twin shrieks of the kùsu closing in on their prey made it leap forward. My stomach flipped as we plummeted through the air, the wind whipping at my face before freezing-cold water surrounded us.

Letting go of Vail, I kicked with my legs and broke the surface, only to dive back under as one of the kùsu came barreling over the cliff, unable to stop in time. I swam away towards the opposite side of the river as fast as I could. When I couldn’t hold my breath any longer, I surfaced again.

Vail had managed to get his horse to land and was currently swimming back for me. The kùsu had apparentlylatched onto the side of the cliff and was desperately trying to pull itself out of the water.

I snapped my head back towards where Vail had left his horse, and relief coursed through me when I saw Alaric and Nyx. They were both soaking wet and shivering, but unharmed.

Vail reached for me, but I slapped his hand away and swam to where the others waited. Alaric ran towards me and helped me out of the water. Now that I wasn’t running for my life, the pain from my knee and the cuts covering my body became agonizing.

I gritted my teeth and leaned on him. My teeth immediately started chattering, which somehow made the pain even worse.

“What happened?” Alaric asked as he set me down carefully on the shore, the sand a welcome relief.

“Vail is a piece of shit is what happened!” I spat. “He left me to die.”

Nyx shifted uncomfortably as they looked back and forth between me and a glowering Vail. We’d rekindled our friendship, but they’d served Vail, and I knew they looked up to him. The rangers of House Harker would always be loyal to Vail, not me. I’d have to remember that.

“I did no such thing,” Vail said coldly. “I was figuring out how to get to you when you stupidly ran off.”

“Bullshit!” I hissed.

Alaric held me back when I tried to struggle to my feet, which was probably for the best, because I’m pretty sure I would have fallen flat on my face.

“Figures you’d be ungrateful for me saving your life,” he sneered. “Maybe I should have let you die after you ran off like that.” We glared at each other for a moment before Vail stalked off, tossing over his shoulder, “I’m going to check on the horses. We’ll rest here for an hour, then continue on our way.”

Nyx trailed after Vail, and my lip curled in a silent snarl. Fucking Vail. I didn’t care what he claimed. I saw the look in his eyes when that kùsu got between us. He was absolutely going to leave me to die.

But he did come back for me. Why?

The pain in my knee ached, drawing my attention away from his retreating form. I’d have to dwell on Vail’s odd decision later.

“What do you need?” Alaric knelt next to me, genuine concern in his eyes.

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