Page 153 of A Lord of Snow and Greed

“They’re down there. Can you make it to Luccan’s?”

His answer came as he dropped again, this time pulling me down with him. Retaliating, I strained my wings to stay aloft, but Vale was right. He was far too heavy. We were so close, and yet close only spelled death. To get us to safety, I had to think of a different way.

“Vale, I’m going to try to use magic again.” My pulse fluttered at the mere idea. “But I have to let go.”

“Do it. Buy us time.”

I had no idea if I could do so, if I still had enough power left inside me. My magic shouldn’t even be making an appearance until tomorrow at the earliest, but something was affecting it. I hoped that something was the desperate need for survival.

One of my hands released Vale and together we descended like a rock tossed into a lake. With each passing second, the vampire’s red eyes glowed brighter. The one with the bow nocked another arrow, and I seized the moment.

Unsure if it was necessary, but not knowing any better, I aimed my free palm toward the white-blond archer. “Please work!”

Again, a deep cold settled over me. Valehissed, hinting that he felt it too, but I didn’t take my eyes off the archer as he pulled back the arrow.

A second before the arrow would have flown, cold burst from me again. This time, I was more prepared for the sensation. Frost grew, as if from the cobbles, up the vampires, leaving only their necks and heads bare.

I sucked in a breath. So the cold didn’t fully come from me. It felt like it did, probably because I was unused to using magic and it overwhelmed me.

“Brace,” Vale yelled because the ground was coming at us fast.

I shifted my attention in time for my feet to slam into the ice-covered stones. The impact shot up my legs, ripping a scream from my lips as my knees buckled. I fell forward and shot my hands out so that they caught me scraping against the stones. Blood welled, but Vale took those bloody hands and pulled me up.

“Next time, bend your knees a lot.”

“Next time. Bleeding moon, there had better not be a next time!” I muttered.

“There might be, if we don’t hurry.” He gestured to the vampires and then pointed to Luccan’s home, now within sight. “I don’t think your power was as strong this time. Can you run?”

Though my legs cried out in agony, I had no choice but to make them work. “Yes.”

We ran, and against my better judgment, I twisted to locate the vampires.

Though they were still stuck in place, their arms were moving, ripping at the thick frost so that they mightfree themselves. Seconds before, frost had covered their entire bodies, and now there was much less.

Pushing through the pain in my legs, Vale and I sprinted down Lordling Lane, which, thanks to the weather and late hour, was empty. We were nearly there when another arrow cut across the top of Vale’s injured wing. He stumbled and fell.

“Vale,” I stopped.

“Get up,” he hissed, clearly in pain. “Run.”

I held out a hand. “With you. Only with you.”

He took it and though it was his wing that had taken the arrow, the fall impacted him too. He limped ever so slightly.

Fates alive, would we make it?

“I love the chase!” one vampire roared, and I just knew if I turned, I’d see them blurring toward us.

“Come on, Vale!” I pulled ahead of him, tugged at his arm, hoping I wasn’t ripping his injury open even more as I tried to get him to move faster.

He grunted but picked up his speed, and through the swirling snow, Luccan’s gates appeared.

We closed in, my heart thundering with each step. Somehow, the vampires weren’t on us yet, but with their great speed, they might be within seconds.

“Blood, Neve,” Vale ground out. It was taking everything he had to run. I had to do the rest. “Blood releases the wards for us.”

I pressed my bloodied hand into the gate and the metal turned hot. The lock opened. Panting, I pushed it open, and we stumbled through.

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