Page 52 of Lich's Mate

I pull Meera close, gazing into her eyes. I stare at her, my emotions suddenly all over the place. My finger runs over her lips, my eyes follow every line on her face. I look into her eyes, noting the vibrant colors in them.

I want to memorize her face right at this moment as she looks up at me with all the trust in the world. Later, I want to kiss every part of her to celebrate our success.

Meera doesn’t look away, as if she’s trying to savor the moment as well. I can feel that we’re united in purpose and spirit.

Suddenly, a noise from my right side makes adrenaline shoot through my body.

Something crashes through the window, breaking it into a million little pieces that burst onto me and Meera.

A small creature flies over our heads before latching onto my arm. I realize it’s a karasu and angrily yank the thing off.

I hold it in the air by the scruff of its neck. “What the fuck?” I ask, almost expecting the damned thing to answer me.

Another ball of fur flies in through the window, going for Meera. I throw the creature in my hand out of the window and reach for the new threat before it can reach her.

It fights back, clawing at my arm. Its nails are sharp and furious, drawing blood. I punch its small head, hard. That’s all it takes and it goes limp, hanging in the air as I hold it up.

“Vicious little fucker!”

I move to throw it out just as three smaller ones make their way through the broken window.

Meera grabs the bag lying on the seat across from us and starts swinging it. She connects with the small karasu, and they swagger around, dizzy. Her punches were enough to distract them but not enough to completely take them out.

I grab two of them, knocking their heads together, essentially knocking them out. They follow the way of the bigger ones, flying out of the window, unconscious and defenseless.

The last one seems to have realized the predicament it's in, and it’s cowering in the corner of the carriage.

Meera growls, grabbing it by a hind leg and forcefully throwing it out of the window. Its little caw echoes through the street and laughter bubbles up and out of my mouth.

“Didn’t think you could get so angry,” I say in between chuckles.

She laughs, a little embarrassed.

“Damn thing was asking for it.” She tries to peer out of the window. “Why did that just happen? Was it the xaphans?”

I remember that Gorran’s associates have managed to tame some of these creatures and immediately knock on the roof of the carriage to signal to the driver to stop.

The carriage comes to a halt and I jump out.

I search around the area for any signs of more karasu and sniff the air, looking for a hint of xaphan in the smells surrounding us.

Nothing seems out of order and I check underneath the carriage as well as on top but find nothing. After a brief conversation with the driver, I get back in the carriage.

“All clear. I think they were just hungry. Little shits are known for robbing unattended cargo but will sometimes attack other creatures if they’ve been starving.”

She sighs in relief. “Ah, okay. On we go then, right?”

I nod and knock on the roof again. The carriage slowly starts moving again, keeping a steady pace until we reach the auction house.

Meera takes my hand, squeezing it tightly. I squeeze back, my emotions calm and my mind clear. Our eyes lock for the last time before we set our plan in motion.

21

MEERA

“This is it. Your chance to get revenge. Make the most of it, Meera.” I take a deep breath to steady myself and confidently walk to the entrance of the auction house.

Four guards are standing at the door, two on each side. I feel my heart beating faster when I recognize three of them.

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