Page 63 of Shadow Master
My armor was soakedin blood, but my limbs burned pleasantly from the exertion. Lugh strode ahead beside Athos. We’d fought well side by side, as if we were a team, as if we’d done this before.
Except Lugh wasn’t part of our team. He was an interloper. I needed Brady back.
Cadets intercepted us at the border where sectors one and two met, and again halfway through sector one.
Lloyd had got the patrols going well.
As we approached the fortress rise, the mist thinned. I broke into a sprint, happy to be home, eager to do what needed to be done. The training grounds were lit by sconces and campfires.
More cadets appeared, garbed in armor and carrying weapons, ready to fight. They were standing in rows while Lloyd, Aidan, and Devon inspected them and barked orders.
I recognized weavers among them dressed in feytech skin. Their training in battle magic must be over. Kash ducked out of a tent, stopped, and turned his head to look up at me. His eyes widened, his mouth split in a grin, and then he was striding toward me.
Lloyd followed his trajectory and caught sight of me. “Justice!” He raised a hand in greeting, his icy blue eyes heating in welcome.
Warmth flooded me an instant before Kash pulled me into his arms.
Hyde made a soft sound of protest but didn’t say anything. Instead, he took a deliberate step back as if distancing himself from the display of affection. I caught his eye and watched as the shutters came down.
My heart squeezed painfully.
“You made it back,” Kash said, his lips moving against the shell of my ear. “I fucking missed you.”
He released me just as Athos crested the rise behind us, with Lugh at his side.
Lloyd’s eyes widened at the sight of his second-in-command. Aidan and Devon exchanged shocked glances, and then all three were running toward Lugh.
The king’s eyes flared in panic, and he took a step back, but the guys were on him in a group hug that brought angry tears to my eyes because this moment belonged to Brady. He should be here, not Lugh.
The guys didn’t know … I hadn’t had a chance to pass this bit of information to them through Kash. They had no idea about the talisman either.
I opened my mouth to explain, to warn them, but I needn’t have bothered. The guys stiffened and released Lugh abruptly, almost in unison.
Devon growled low in his chest.
Aidan sniffed the air, his lip curling.
Lloyd looked at me. “What is this? Who the fuck is this?”
I ran a hand over my face. I had a lot to explain.
* * *
“We tie him up,”Devon said once I’d explained everything.
Lugh bristled. “Touch me and lose a hand.”
Devon took a deliberate step toward the king, but I intercepted the moonkissed.
“Lugh wants to be free as much as we want him gone.” I met Devon’s gaze steadily. “No one touches him, understand me?”
“You’re protecting him?” Aidan looked shocked.
“I’m protecting Brady. This is still Brady’s body, and he’s still inside.” I jerked my head to a flat rock a few meters away. “Go sit.”
Lugh glared down his nose at me, down Brady’s nose, and it was a look so Brady that it made my soul ache.
I licked my lips, and he tracked the movement. “Please.”
