Page 44 of Prisoner of Steel and Shadow

There were a few derisive snorts as Cedric shot back, “Anything that unfairly benefits my opponents and hurts my chancesdoesaffect my performance.”

“Need I remind you that a slight against Shadow is a slight against me?” the High Lord drawled dangerously. “I am just as vested—if not more—in the outcome of this contest than you. I wouldn’t risk my reputation, let alone that of my future champion, by tampering with the outcome of these trials.”

Liar.

Shadow didn’t seem to appreciate his coming to her defense. She adopted her most unaffected mask, though her voice was sharp enough to cut. “I’d take offense to the implication I can only win through duplicitous means, but then I’ve never shied away from doing whatever it takes to win. So believe whatever you want, Aldair, but I will be crossing that finish line. Not just today, but every single time. Can you say the same?”

Ronan’s lips curled up in a proud smile. Mother, but he loved watching her set arseholes in their place. For the second time since her arrival, he found himself discreetly adjusting his pants.

Before Cedric could do something foolish, like goad her further, the last of the darkness vanished, putting an end to the verbal sparring match.

Dmitri’s voice boomed like thunder across the seemingly empty field. “Contestants, begin!”

CHAPTER14

SHADOW

Contestants scattered before Dmitri finished speaking. It was immediately clear that well over a quarter of the participants wouldn't bother searching for their tokens in the field.

Strategic? Certainly. Fair? Perhaps not, but morals had no place in a game where lives were on the line. It was a kill or be killed kind of crowd because that’s what the prize demanded. It wouldn’t do Erebos any good to have a weak-willed shrinking violet as his champion. He required someone who wouldn’t be afraid to get their hands dirty.

Someone like her.

Shadow wasn’t surprised so many would prefer to rely on their more nefarious skills rather than luck. Choosing to steal from a competitor and rob them of their chance to cross the finish line was a good way to cull the herd. Not to mention target those you considered a threat. She might have done the same had she no firsthand knowledge of how the High Lord’s mind worked.

It was true, what she’d told Cedric. She hadn’t been given any special treatment, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have the upper hand. After spending the better part of the last five years by his side, she knew Erebos better than anyone. Finding where he hid one of his silly tokens should be easy.

It was really just a question of what would Erebos do?

Scary question, that. Because really, whatwouldn’the do? There was no doubt in her mind that he was one of the good guys, but she’d also seen firsthand how far he’d go to succeed. A man like him would stack the odds in his favor. He’d also want to weed out anyone seeking the easy path, preferring those who thought outside of the box. In fact, he’d likely go so far as to punish those who didn’t.

Intuition crooned so loudly in her ear that a sense of certainty buzzed all the way down to her marrow. She’d bet everything those traps Dmitri mentioned were attached to the tokens hidden in obvious places. Same for any that might be located in the area immediately surrounding them.

With those bits of insight firmly in mind, Shadow sprinted to the west, not caring that several sets of eyes were fixed on her, tracking her every move. They could copy her all they wanted, but they still didn’t know what she did, which meant taking their cues from her wasn’t going to help them.

There was one set of eyes in particular she sensed more keenly than others. She’d felt his gaze land on her the second she stepped free of the carriage. It had taken all of her considerable restraint not to look over and lock eyes with Ronan. The man muddled her mind, and right now, she couldn't afford the distraction.

Focused on the task at hand, she mentally discounted any tokens that might be lying somewhere obvious, like out in the open or along one of the wooden beams surrounding the outskirts of the mostly barren land. Her eyes scanned instead for markers others may overlook, like a pile of rocks or freshly tilled soil. She was on the hunt for anything thatcouldbe natural but was just a touch out of place. She had a hunch they might actually indicate the place where a token had been buried.

Spying a flash of color in the periphery, she spun around. There was a barely audible click and a whoosh of air a split second before a wall of muscle collided with her and knocked her to the ground. Her ears rang, but not from smacking her head. There’d been an explosion.

Looks like I was right about the traps.

It took a second for her eyes to clear enough to make out Ronan hovering just above her. The bastard had tackled her and used his body to shield hers from the blast.

“What are you doing?”

His worried gaze swept across her face, though it lingered on her lips for a second before returning to her eyes. “I saw the brunette hit the trip wire, and I just... reacted.”

She eyed him wearily as his warm body pressed against hers. “They did warn us about traps.”

“Yes, but I couldn't be sure we were free of the blast area.” He shifted slightly on top of her, causing his hips to roll against her.

It was harder than she cared to admit to ignore what that did to her. It took her a few tries to get her words out. “Well, as you can see, I’m perfectly fine.” If her voice was a little more breathless than usual, she blamed it on him forcing the air from her lungs with his weight.

“Yes, thanks to my quick thinking.”

Shadow peered over his shoulder at the smoldering crater. It was right where the competitors had been gathered minutes earlier. Now there were only the remains of those who hadn’t sensed the danger.

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