Page 37 of A Storm Rises

She trembled as her heart skipped a beat. “You have an effect on me.”

“What kind of effect?” He scooted closer and licked his luscious lips.

“You know the kind,” she breathed.

“I do.” He placed his fingertips on her throat, then trailed his hand around to the back of her neck. His lips parted, and she closed her eyes. His musky scent sent her skyward, but he suddenly stopped. He pulled back with widened eyes, then grabbed a spear.

Dead leaves crackled near her feet. She lunged for her bow and snatched an arrow. “What is it?” Paws shuffled over the cave’s floor. A flock of birds flew away outside. A yip sounded. Followed by another. Thunderation. The foxes. They were back.

Mateo’s nostrils flared. He choked up on the wood, looking deadly and beautiful with his long dark hair gleaming in the firelight. “Wake the others,” he urged Avalynn.

Stormshroud faced the cave opening with a growl while Avalynn sprinted toward the cave’s back. “Up! Now!” She nudged the hunters with her bow’s tip. “Foxes are here!”

Finnian shot up, grabbed his spear, and then darted to the mouth of the cave. Selene and Eiric followed him. The yips grew louder. Mateo and Finnian added handfuls and then armfuls of brush to the fire. The flames nearly engulfed the entire opening. With their weapons out, everyone stepped back. The yips were silenced.

“Are they gone?” Selene drew closer to Eiric. Her eyes darted about the cave in a zigzag pattern.

“I think so,” Mateo replied. But then there was another yip, this time from behind them.

Avalynn’s heart raced as she spun. Had a Shadowblood vanished into the shadows and slipped past when she and Mateo sat together? She needed to warn the others. They would hate her, but they needed to know. “You all should know the Shadowbloods are invisible in the shadows.”

Mateo leveled her with a death glare. “You knew this all along and did not tell us?”

He didn’t take the news as well as she’d hoped. “Let’s move past that.”

He squinted and seethed. “The worst of the highborns.”

Selene smirked like a child. “She is a Stromm. What did you expect?”

“Stop this,” yelled Finnian. “Everybody back-to-back. Stay sharp, or we are all dead.”

They formed a tight circle. Stormshroud growled, fangs out, body lowered, fur bristled along her back. Standing beside Avalynn, Mateo shot her a side-eye. “Are they totally invisible?”

Her mind zipped back to her session with Kragar. When he threw the blanket over the cage, the Shadowblood had disappeared. But was any part of it visible? Had she paid well enough attention? “I’m not sure.” She should have asked Master Kragar that question.

Another yip, followed by two more. Stormshroud’s growl grew louder, her wolf body ready to spring.

“Those devious creatures play with us,” whispered Eiric. “Stay sharp.”

The yips continued. Right. Left. Closer and closer. Their circle tightened as Avalynn’s muscles tensed. How many foxes were in the cave? Were the regular foxes here too? Maybe in the way back? Adrenaline rushed through her veins. Her senses beamed on high alert. She poked her foot around, searching for furry animals. Where were the damned foxes?

Illuminated by the flames, a ball of black fur shot from the darkness. Mateo lunged and speared it through. The beast yelped and jetted out of the cave. Stormshroud pounced after it.

A regular fox came at them. Selene swung, but missed it by a hair. Eiric followed with a thrust to the head. Shunk! Got it.

Howling yips shrieked as two more foxes charged. One made a beeline for Eiric. The other zeroed in on Avalynn. She nocked an arrow and let fly. The arrow pierced the fox’s eye, but the creature continued rushing her. Mateo pulled Avalynn behind him. He slammed his spear against the creature. It dropped, howled, and then sprang back to its feet. Flying high, it soared over Mateo. The beast’s claws scraped through Avalynn’s hair as she ducked. Mateo grabbed it by the tail and hurled it into the fire. A piercing squeal filled the night air. Engulfed in flames, the beast cooked with a pop and a sizzle.

Bent over, hands on her knees, Avalynn labored for air. “Is that it? We got them?”

“The regular fox that went after me escaped,” Eiric said between panting bursts. “The Shadowblood did not even try attacking.”

“Devious and intelligent.” Mateo kept a firm grasp on his weapon. “The other foxes are doing their dirty work.”

“Maybe this was only a warning,” Finnian suggested in a low voice, as if the creatures, wherever they were, would hear him and get ideas.

“A what?” Selene recoiled, her shoulders pulling up to her ears. “Please, no.”

Spears out, Mateo, Finnian, and Eiric walked the cave’s perimeter. Stormshroud bounded back in time to join them.

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