Page 23 of Wrath of the Fae

‘Peachy,’ I grumble, rolling my shoulder and struggling to hold my weight on my bleeding leg. I wipe away a large bead of blood falling past his eye. ‘You?’

‘Haven’t had this much fun in ages,’ he laughs, spitting a mouthful of blood on the cobbled courtyard and wiping another heavy stream from his eyebrow. He slams his palm over the wound in my shoulder and furrows his eyes. ‘Iron?’

‘Yeah. I’m fine. The wounds will heal soon.’ I guide his hand away and jump as I hear a great commotion beyond the towering wall surrounding the manor.

The soldiers standing on the other side of the wall start to yell, and I hear steel meet steel. Wolf and his warriors bellow as they attack, crashing into anyone in their path like a violent wave.

Lucca turns to face the manor. Many of the windows are boarded up. The roof on the top right side has caved in, and the unmistakable stain of soot from a fire stains it.

Lucca spreads his wings.

‘Gotta move.’

‘I need Tessa, Lucca. Can you get her here?’

His eye twitches before he looks into the distance.

‘I’ve sent for her. She’ll get here as quickly as she can.’ He looks at me with a raised brow. ‘Happy? Can we go inside now before we get slaughtered?’

I nod in agreement, and we take once more to the skies. He stays close and soars upwards to a window above, where I see a thin curtain billowing in the breeze. The windows are ajar, hanging off their hinges, leaving a way in.

A shower of arrows heads straight for us. Lucca crashes through the windows first, sending glass and wood scattering across the floor, and turns to see me barrel through after him.

‘Shit!’

He holds open his arms, ready for the impact and yells as I crash into him.

We both land on the floor with a groan, taking a second to catch our breath. Sitting, I look down at him. I have a leg on either side of his hips and my hands on his chest.

‘I had a dream like this once. Except I didn’t have glass in my arse.’ He groans, tapping my thigh. ‘You mind?’

With a roll of my eyes, I push myself up, and together we get to our feet. He holds me as I sway, even though he staggers himself.

We face the room before us. It’s derelict. Destroyed. Furniture lies broken all over the place. Mirrors have been shattered. The paintings are torn up. Holes line the walls, and empty liquor bottles lie over tables and in threadbare armchairs.

‘Where to, Pup?’ he asks.

‘Down.’

‘Down?’

I shrug and offer him a sympathetic look.

‘I know it’s about as helpful as a blunt blade. But it’s all I have. Down.’

‘Okay,’ he sighs, wiping the fresh stream of blood from his face. ‘Down it is. Wings away. Hood up.’

‘My wings won’t go,’ I reply, swallowing pain and adrenalin down my tight throat. ‘I can’t get them to do what I want right now. My emotions are too… Where’s Tessa?’

‘She’s coming. Keep them tucked in as tight as possible and hidden under the cloak. They might pass for normal wings in this darkness. Hood.’ He nudges me and waits for me to pull my hood back over my head, concealing my face.

Lucca grips my hand and heads to the door. Everything inside is dark. Black walls. Mahogany wood. Midnight blue carpets. Considering this Kingdom is in darkness most of the year, I would have thought they would decorate a little lighter.

‘They take the whole Midnight thing pretty seriously here, huh?’ Lucca remarks, rushing down the long corridor lined with paintings and tapestries. All of which are just as destroyed as the first room. ‘Bit gloomy, don’t you think?’

I don’t get a chance to look closer as he sprints towards the winding staircase. He grips the banister, and I yell as it gives way under the slightest bit of weight. I tighten my grip and pull him back so he doesn’t fall. We stop for a second and breathe, resting our backs against the wall and looking down at the war-torn manor.

‘What the hell happened here?’ I pant, a painful stitch forming in my side.

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