Page 52 of Queen of Serpents and Shadows

Scrambling to my feet, I caught sight of my weapon still lodged in the harpy’s wings. Blood poured from the wound, leaving a thick trail of crimson on the white floor. The bird-woman was screeching so loudly I winced.

“Here.” Cora was standing next to me, a knife in her grip. “Finish her.”

I accepted the weapon, but just as I was considering where to attack, I saw Sophia reach the harpy’s neck. She impaled the monster in the fleshy area above where her feathers began.

Blood sprayed and then began to run from the monster’s mouth. Her eyes went glassy and she spun in a strange, wobbly circle. Sophia jumped from her back, then ran to Laera. She guided the still unfocused princess away just as the harpy hit the ground.

A ruby pool spread from the place the beast lay until it started to drip down the still open trap door.

I wrinkled my nose. “That’s going to be awful to clean.”

“That’s what you’re thinking about right now?” Cora asked. “How terrible it will be to clean?”

“No, that’s what I’m letting myself think about,” I informed her. “I’m not quite ready to think about what just happened.”

Sophia’s peplos was stained red, her arms, hands, face, and hair were splashed with crimson. Her cheeks wereflushed, her eyes wild. She looked more alive than I’d ever seen her.

“Thank you, Sophia,” I said.

“You did good, too,” she replied.

“I’m not sure I know either of you,” Cora said, a touch of awe in her tone.

“Just wait, it’ll be your turn soon enough,” Laera said.

She looked like herself again as she scowled at the fallen monster. “I’m sorry I didn’t help. But I must say, I’m impressed.”

“I had to break into the harpy’s mind. Thankfully, I got the information before you all sent her to the Underworld.”

“What information?” I asked.

“The letter she sent. It explained it all to my father.” She glared at the harpy and I got the sense that if she could kill her again, she would.

“This monster already destroyed the shield here, but she didn’t get to the ones at the palace yet. She let my father know she was going to destroy them all so he could send his new dragons to take us down. He’ll be here soon. He’s eager to finish his war.”

“But we can use the others, then?” I asked.

Laera was staring at the harpy with such disdain, I was growing concerned. “Was there something else?”

She looked up at me. “She planned to eat us. I saw it in her mind. Her fantasies of how she was going to do it. In my opinion, we didn’t make her suffer enough.”

“I think I want to learn how to fight now,” Cora cut in. “I will not be dinner for some crazy priestess.”

“Laera said she’ll keep teaching me if we all survive this,” Sophia said. “You should join us.”

Cora mumbled a noncommittal response. I caught the words,dutyandmarriage. She was already preparing for her life to change as soon as Bahar returned.

“We need to get back,” Laera said. “I don’t know if anyone else working for my father knows about this.”

“That picture didn’t show the shield covering the whole town,” I said.

“It doesn’t,” Laera confirmed.

I looked at my sisters. “We have to evacuate the city. Get everyone up to the palace grounds.”

“That’s impossible,” Cora said. “We don’t have space for everyone.”

“We’ll have to find a way to make it work,” I replied.

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