Page 65 of Broken Veil
Whatever was in the trees laughed. Then another laugh. Another and another until wicked laughter echoed up the branches of the ancient forest. Vines swayed with the darting movement of the wisps.
There came the sound of crackling wings, and a buzzing sound filled Carys’s ears.
Lachlan turned and shouted, “Imps!” He waved an arm at Duncan. “Get her out of here now! Run!”
Without a word, Duncan hoisted Carys into his arms and followed Lachlan’s advice.
Her teeth crackedtogether as Duncan ran with her in his arms. Naida moved like a shadow in front of them, and Carys could barely see her.
Laura was behind—Carys spotted her friend running when she turned and looked over Duncan’s shoulder. Laura held one hand up, and there was a golden glowing light that lit the forest around them and illuminated Cadell, who ran beside her with flashing gold eyes. Lachlan guarded their rear, occasionally turning to sweep his short bronze sword through a thick cloud of what looked like buzzing insects.
Carys knew they were not insects.
An imp surged forward and buzzed her ear, snapping at the edge of it until she smacked it away. She heard a crunch and a squeal.
Nêrys,Cadell shouted in her mind.Hide your face if you don’t want them to make you bleed. Your blood will only excite them more.
She hid her face in Duncan’s shoulder and held on tight, but she could feel a line of blood dripping down her ear and neck.
When she heard the roar and felt the crackling fire within her, she knew Cadell was shifting. A moment later, her heart lifted in her chest, and she knew her dragon had taken to the air.
The trees are thin enough for me to fly,he said in her mind.I’ll wheel around and see if I can lay fire behind you to keep the imps from swarming.
Fire at the fae gate?
I feel no fae presence here,he said.This gate has grown wild.
It felt like forever, but Carys heard the change in the underbrush before she lifted her face. The crackle of dry leaves and branches gave way to softer steps, soil and moss and the smell of rich verdant life.
Duncan slowed his steps, his chest heaving as he continued to grip her tight. Carys hugged his shoulders and finally lifted her head to see they had reached a wide outcropping that looked over the hills of dark fae country.
Naida was standing on a line of boulders along the edge of the clearing, looking between the sloping green hills in front of her and the shadowy forest behind.
Laura panted beside her, the light she’d been holding nowhere to be found, but the pearlescent grey sky of the Shadowlands lit the dewy morning.
Lachlan still battled in the trees, slicing and beating back a dark swarm of imps that flew up the path.
Tell Lachlan to join you,Cadell said.I’m going to clear the edge of the forest.
She could feel him turning and flying back to her, their connection like a tether between his dragon heart and her own.
“Lachlan, get over here! Run!” She pointed to the sky as Duncan set her down. “Run!”
Lachlan turned and must have seen Cadell approaching. He slid his sword into the scabbard at his waist and waved at them all.
“Behind the rocks!” he shouted. “Get behind the rocks!”
Naida slipped behind the boulders and virtually disappeared. Duncan ran up and threw one leg over a low spot before he reached out his hand. “Come on!”
Without a word, he hoisted Carys over with ease, then turned and lifted Laura up and over.
“Down!” he yelled.
Lachlan was right behind them, flinging himself over the edge of the hill just as Cadell flew low, his emerald-green throat glowing with fire.
He gave a loud roar, and Carys heard high-pitched screaming from the shadowed tree line.
Naida, crouched underneath a grey boulder, covered her ears and closed her eyes. Her face a pained grimace at the chittering and clicking that came from the trees.
