Page 29 of The Serpent’s Shadow

“You p-promised!”

I shrugged, realizing Grim’s rage was unstoppable—even more than mine. “Idid. Never said anything about the bear shifter, though.”

Arne tried to sound out words phonetically, but they turned into a garbled mess. His eyes rolled.

“Grim, that’s enough,” I said softly. “With him dead, we won’t get anywhere.”

The bear shifter showed no signs of letting up.

Quite suddenly, the anger inside me turned to panic, because I realized the berserker wasn’t going to stop until he’d snuffed the life out of Arne, after what he’d said regarding Ravinica.

I didn’t blame Grim . . . but I also couldn’t allow it.

I looked around, noticed a knife on a nearby table, and snagged it. Rushing up behind Grim, I went on my tiptoes to get around his bulging biceps, broad shoulders, and enviable height, and pressed the sharp edge of the dagger to his throat.

“Let’s calm down now, Kollbjorn,” I growled in his ear.

His hand only tightened on Arne’s neck, who was on the verge of unconsciousness, head lolling.

“You kill him, I kill you, then we all lose,” I murmured into his ear. “And Ravinica remains missing. In danger. Is that what you want? To tell the girl we had a chance of saving her, but threw away our one opportunity? You’re smarter than this.”

Grim’s hand loosened, remaining around Arne’s throat.

“Arne Gornhodr is not ours to kill,” I said. “He is Ravinica’s. There’s a reason she kept him alive. Don’t squander her wishes.”

With that, Grim let out a bellow and released Arne.

The iceshaper’s chair scraped against the wall as it landed with a loud crash and thud, the legs cracking and fracturing and spilling Arne onto his side.

Grim stepped back. I crouched over the iceshaper, who began violently hacking up a lung. As I pressed the point of the dagger against his throat, freezing him.

His eyes weren’t so mirthful and glinting now. They were scared. “You failed Ravinica,” I said, “and you deserve every ounce of revenge she seeks to give you. But it’shersto give you, not ours. For now, you remain alive. Understand?”

Arne nodded and coughed again. He helped himself up from his side, sitting up with his back against the wall, his body mingling in the heap of his broken chair.

“Tell me how I can help,” he implored. “Please. I only want to see her again so I can apologize.”

I hope my little menace isn’t weak-willed enough to accept such a sorry thing from you, Arne—an apology. I have a feeling she’s not.

“Now we’re getting on the same page,” I growled. Putting my dagger away, I added, “You have no idea where she’s been taken?”

“No. But I know where she was takenfrom. Perhaps we can track her from there. You’re good at that, yes?”

I nodded.

“What’s your plan?” he asked.

“I’m working on it. The academy has taken entirely too long to rectify this missing person.”

“I agree, wolf. If you’re planning on sneaking out to find her, I can help you. I know people in Isleton and—”

I grabbed the sniveling bastard by the collar and yanked his face toward mine. Spittle flew from my mouth when I spoke. “You’re going to point on a map where Ravinica was taken. Because there’s no fucking way I’m letting you come anywhere near her, you diabolical rodent.”

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