Page 88 of Shadow Master
Chaos, blood, sweat, and adrenaline. This is my element. As I cut my way through the enemy, as I stop to stand and fight, I search for Indigo, for Hyde, for Lugh, for anyone who was with her. But there are too many bodies wielding steel. Too many distractions.
“Harmon!”
Lloyd? I locate him and barrel toward him to help him dispatch a fir bolg. My ax comes down on the fir bolg’s head and crushes its skull. There’s blood and brain matter.
Good.
Dead.
“Where’s Indigo?” I ask Lloyd.
“I don’t know.” He turns to defend against another attacker. I grab the fir bolg’s neck and twist. The snapping sound makes me smile.
Lloyd stares up at me and then shakes his head. “She was with Kash, but I can’t find them now.”
I shove a fir bolg out of the way with my fist and stomp on. I need to find her.
* * *
Larkin droppedme into the fray and swept Kash away. My blade was out, and my body fell into fight mode. Hyde? Where was he? Lugh? Shit, was Lugh okay. He was in Brady’s body.
If he got hurt, that meant Brady was hurt.
Around me, the militia fought hard. But too many dead bodies littered the ground. Too many of my people and not enough of theirs. It didn’t take an expert eye to see that our numbers were thinning.
I caught sight of Orion’s golden head as he fought expertly against a stocky fir bolg. I turned away to counter an attack, stabbing through fur and slicing at the backs of his knees.
My attacker fell, but another took his place. It was exhausting and exhilarating and disheartening because, despite our efforts, the militia was falling.
Orion let out a bellow, drawing my eye. He was down on his knees, clutching his bleeding torso. The fir bolg he’d been fighting raised his weapon to finish the Tuatha off.
I locked gazes with Orion for a second. This was my chance. I do nothing, and he dies. I do nothing, and Hyde and I are free. He must have seen my thoughts reflected on my face because he nodded as if to say, hell, he’d do the same.
But I wasn’t him.
I wasn’t a fucking murderer, despite the stain my father had placed on me.
I blurred toward the fir bolg and blocked his swing with my blade before shoving him back with all my might. He roared in frustration, but the sound was cut off by my sword entering his mouth. He fell to his knees, and one kick had him sprawled on his back to be trampled on by the militia.
I offered Orion my hand. He took it, his brow creased in confusion.
My lips twisted wryly. “Get out of the fray, you’re too injured to fight.”
I didn’t wait to see if he did as told. I had fir bolg to kill.
* * *
The sun would be setting soon.Our numbers in sector two, our last line of defense, would be swelling with nightbloods. Just as well, because we were thin on the ground, but so were the fir bolg. Their numbers were dropping too.
Hyde passed me, his blade swinging like a machine as he forced back his adversary.
The man was a fucking legend.
“Watch out!” A body hit me from the side, taking me down.
Brady’s scent filled my head, and then Lugh was hauling me up. “Move.” He shoved me again, taking the brunt of a blow and blocking it with his ax head.
Shit.
