Page 18 of The Bound Mage
The stairs. She could still get to the stairs?—
She turned again, her breath tearing from her lungs as she sprinted for the edge of the cliff.
But thethingsmoved with her.
Another one rose from the mist—so close she nearly slammed into it. It shrieked, slashing at her with a twisted claw. Araya stumbled back, a sob catching in her throat as every instinct screamed at her torun, even as her mind whispered the truth.
She wasn’t fast enough.
Araya threw up a shaking hand, her power sputtering at her fingertips as she desperately tried to rememberanythingthat could help her—but the runes she’d learned had never been intended for combat. They were crafting, amplifying, sustaining—not fighting.
The nearest creature hissed, letting out a sputtering rasp that sounded too much like a laugh to be anything else, taking a slow, deliberate step forward.
Araya turned and ran.
She sprinted as fast as she could for the trees, her boots sliding in the slick mud. Movement flickered in the mist, a hollow snarl sending a fresh surge of terror clawing up her spine. Branches lashed her face, clawing at her clothes. She stumbled and fell, jagged stones and exposed roots biting into her palms as she scrambled behind one of the twisted trees.
She squeezed her eyes shut, choking back the panicked sobs that threatened to tear free. Somewhere in the darkness, one of the creatures snarled, its bulk rasping over the uneven ground as it searched for her. There were too many of them. She’d been a fool to think she could make it to Nyra’s boat. A desperate, terrified fool. And now she was going to die here.
Something closed around her wrist.
Araya’s eyes flew open, a scream tearing from her throat—but a second hand clamped over her mouth, muffling her cry as her captor dragged her deeper into the shadows—shadows that moved and hissed with a voice of their own.
Araya sucked in a deep breath, the cool, familiar scent of granite and rain filling her nose.
Loren had found her.
His arm banded around her waist, crushing her to his chest so tightly that she could feel the frantic drumbeat of his heart against her spine. His shadows coiled around them both, their hissing, muttered whispers vibrating against her skin and sending chills racing down her spine.
“Don’t scream,” he murmured, his arm tightening around her as the creature’s heavy, uneven footsteps drew closer. The darkness around them thickened until Araya thought they wouldboth choke on it—but for some reason, Loren’s shadows didn’t strike.
“Listen to me,” Loren rasped, his mouth close enough to her ear that his breath stirred the loose strands of her hair. “When I let you go, you run. As fast as you can. Nod if you understand.”
Araya gave a jerky nod, her pulse roaring in her ears. But Loren’s fingers dug into her side, pinning her in place even as the creature crashed closer and closer. It wasn’t until its wet, rancid breath washed over them that Loren let his hand slip from her jaw, his thumb grazing her lips as his breath shuddered against her ear.
“Run.”
Branches lashed her face,clawing at them both as Loren hauled her through the trees at a brutal pace. Araya’s lungs burned, her legs screaming—but when her cloak snagged on a thorny branch Loren only yanked her forward hard enough to tear the fabric from her shoulders, his fingers digging into her wrist like a vice.
“If you fall we’re dead,” he growled.
Araya grit her teeth and kept going—but the creatures were faster.
Loren’s shadows lashed out at a shape closing in beside them, sending the beast hunting them careening into the trees. But another snarled behind them—so close that Araya imagined she could feel the its fetid breath on the back of her neck.
Loren threw them both to the side, dragging her through the remains of what had once been a wall. Araya tripped again but managed to keep her feet, barely registering the toweringcolumns that surrounded them as Loren slammed his hand against the wall behind the ivy-choked altar.
Magic flared white-hot under his touch, throwing jagged shadows across the ruin for a single, blinding heartbeat. Stone groaned and shuddered, grinding apart until the wall yawned open like a dark maw. Araya balked, but Loren didn’t hesitate, dragging her into the pitch-black darkness just moments before it crashed shut behind them.
Araya collapsed against the wall, every breath sawing out of her lungs in sharp, uneven gasps. Every instinct screamed at her to keep running, but her legs trembled so badly she wasn’t certain she could have taken another step. Loren still clutched her hand, his own breathing ragged and uneven.
“Will it hold?” she asked.
Loren hesitated, his fingers flexing around hers. “It’s enchanted,” he said. “Against intruders who mean the royal family harm. So… probably.”
“That’s really reassuring,” Araya muttered.
“You weren’t supposed to be outside at all,” Loren snapped. “Much less wandering around alone at night.”
