Kuya suddenly grabbed my arm and sprinted forward, dragging me with him as he left the street and cut down an alleyway between two buildings. We ran all the way down it, then turned the corner and ran down another.
“Where are we going?” I asked, my boots skidding against the cobblestone as we ran. “And do we have to run to get there? I don’t think I—”
“Shh.” Kuya pressed me against the side of a building before going still. His ears twitched as he scanned the shadows.
I tried to quiet my breathing, to no avail. Not that I’d had any doubts, but I was one hundred percent sure I’d never survive in a horror movie. I’d be the person who tripped over their own two feet while being chased, getting stabbed or eaten. Or the one who breathed way too loud while trying to hide from the killer.
My anxiety spiked as seconds ticked by. “What’s going on?” I whispered, my heavy breaths making my voice louder than intended.
“Kuya needs Evan to stay quiet.” He stared down the alley before looking at me. “We’re being followed.”
Chapter Sixteen
Stalked and… Kissed?
“Followed?” I asked, panic rising. “By who?”
“If Kuya knew that, Kuya would bite them.” He slid his arm through mine and guided us toward the end of the alleyway, his ears twitching every which way. His nostrils wiggled as he sniffed. “Their scent is… familiar somehow.”
“One of the knights, maybe?” Hopefully.
I wouldn’t put it past them to have followed us on the outing, staying out of sight. Maddox had given Callum orders to watch over me in his absence, but even without those orders, I knew Callum—as well as many of the others—would’ve done so on their own.
“No.” Kuya shook his head. “The scent isn’t human. Come.”
He dashed from the alley and kept close to the wall of the building, staying in the shadows. I didn’t move nearly as stealthily, clutching my shopping bag to my chest to try to prevent it from crinkling too loud.
Good thing he knew which direction to go because I sure as hell didn’t. After several heart-pounding minutes of maneuvering down the side streets, I began to recognize some of our surroundings.
The headquarters of the adventurers’ guild stood at the corner, light coming from inside. Two women leaned against the outside wall. They wore chest armor and had daggers sheathed in holsters around their thighs.
“Those idiots,” one muttered to the other. “They’ll never find the shadow realm. It is but a fool’s quest. The knights can’t even locate it.”
“But can you imagine the reward for capturing the demon lord?” the other asked. Her blonde hair was shaved on the sides and pulled back in a braided ponytail. “We’d be set for life, never again having to worry about money.”
Some adventurers were going after the demon lord? As in, they had willingly journeyed into the dark wood, where all the demonic beasts and creepy things lived? Fuck that. No amount of money was worth that risk.
Kuya and I passed the guild, the women’s voices fading behind us as we headed down another road. In the distance, the castle could be seen atop a hill, the towers stretching toward the night sky.
Almost home.
Were we still being followed? Kuya stayed alert, his rainbow eyes constantly shifting among our surroundings. Thankfully, he didn’t make me run the whole way. Once on the main castle road, we slowed our pace. My legs wobbled from exertion, and my throat was dry.
“Give me a sec,” I said, stopping in place and resting my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. “About to die.”
Trees lined one side of the road, the forest beyond them thick. The same forest I’d gotten lost in about two weeks ago. Branches moved as I stared, and leaves rustled. Tingles of fear spread through me, but it could’ve just been my eyes playing tricks on me.
A dark shape flitted from one tree to another.
Kuya hissed, his ears going back as he bared his teeth. “We need to leave. Now.”
Our pursuer had other ideas.
Someone darted from the tree line, moving so fast my mind didn’t even have time to process what was happening before they slammed into my chest, knocking the bag from my hand and sending me off-balance. But I didn’t fall. Someone had hold of me. And they were carrying me in their arms back toward the forest.
“No!” Kuya exclaimed. Steps sounded from behind me, little, fretful growls mixed in. “Evan!”
Fear had me frozen. I couldn’t move or speak. I was being carried off into the woods to be eaten. But just as my anxiety was about to send me into a full-blown panic attack, a scent tickled my nose, like warm earth and spring water.
