Page 108 of Bloodguard

It’s only my anger that keeps my gasp from escaping. The hawk’s ankle is shredded and unnaturally twisted. He is the oldest among the aerie, his glazed eyes and lowered head telling me that he gave up on life a long time ago.

“Go,” I tell the hawk with a shooing motion, still keeping an eye on the man.

The poor hawk tilts his head from side to side, wary, then turns to his master for instruction, his loyalty evident despite the neglect and abuse. The man shakes his head, and the defeated hawk remains in place, wings drooping, and I’m infuriated even more.

“Toso,” I say. “Fly. Go. Tell them.”

Toso angles his furry head to the side, taking a moment to interpret my request before he enthusiastically repeats it in his own magical tongue. The hawk’s eyes widen. He squawks once and expands his wings, soaring through the opening and not looking back.

“How dare you?” the owner asks, his voice rumbling. “They belong to me!”

“You don’t need them anymore,” I assure him. “As of now, you’re permanently out of business.”

“Says who?” he challenges.

“Says me!” I yell. “The heir to the throne!”

I tighten my grip on the sword when the bones along his spine crack and his ribs realign. A shifter.Hmm. But what kind?

He curses when the next hawk takes off, followed by another.

“Did you ever send anything you were supposed to?” I demand.

He laughs—yes,laughs. “Sure. At first. I needed proof I sent something, now, didn’t I? And the wealthy always check.”

He hurls a perch at me. Then a bag of grain. He’s running around the room, and I weave to the other side so he can’t backtrack.

My voice shakes from my hatred. “What about the gladiators?”

“Which one?” he mocks as he runs in the opposite direction.

“All of them!” I shout my words as I fling a dirty water bowl at him. He ducks, and it shatters against the wall beside his head. Coarse white fur sprouts along his back.

Two more hawks take flight at the sound. They used to drink from that filthy thing. They won’t have to anymore.

The owner turns his head, and the long black nose of a badger twitches back at me. “Most die anyway!” he hisses. “How do you think I pay your royal taxes?”

My hands turn to lead. “You evil little worm.”

His fingernails have grown into thick, sharp claws. Instead of running, now he stalks me.

Good.

He’s challenging me, clearly to the death. “You’re making a mistake,” I tell him, my voice seared with rage. “And I swear it will be your last.”

He leaps at me, finishing his shift midair.

I pivot and swipe, cutting off his greedy hand. A cry of agony rattles my eardrums. But chopped arm or not, he’s fast and hits back, using his weight to send me crashing into a feeding station. My wrist strikes the corner, and I lose my sword. I barely catch the swinging claw he aims at my face.

Toso hurtles himself on top of the owner’s head, biting and scratching. I follow Toso’s lead, biting the exposed flesh of the owner’s other arm. He screeches like the swine he is and violently shakes his head, flinging Toso away.

We roll along the dirty floor, wrestling and trying to kill each other. In his shifted form, he’s able to put up a hell of a fight against me. The struggle is intense. He’s heavy and strong, but I’m elven, mad as hell, and refuse to let him go. I turn, adjusting my body until I manage to clutch his trembling good arm between my legs. With all my strength, I twist. The limb is hard to break in his animal form. It takes some effort, but thecrunchwhen I succeed is pure satisfaction, as are my blows that follow.

I punch him in the throat and kick him far enough away to give me time to scramble to my sword.

The shopkeeper leaps again, but Toso bites down on his ankle, surprising him and limiting the height of his jump.

Not a problem. It’s high enough. Arcing my blade horizontally through the space between us, I sever his spine.

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