Page 65 of The Cursed Kingdom

I’m going to die out here.

I can’t see what’s happening below, so I strain to listen. Mason’s still growling, his noises growing in volume, but Kie’s silent. Where are the shifters? I look for them, but it’s too dark to make out anything. My flashlight is in my bag, but I don’t want to draw attention to myself by turning it on.

A few excruciatingly long moments pass before I hear something.

It’s far off in the distance, but it’s distinctly similar to Mason's rumbling noise. I press myself further against the tree trunk, desperately hoping to blend in with the foliage. My knife is at the bottom of my bag, but I’m afraid the shifters will hear me unzipping the bag and rummaging around.

The far-off rumbling grows louder as the shifters near, and I sink my teeth into my bottom lip as thundering footfalls follow. It sounds like heavy paws hitting the ground. I try to count, wanting to know how many shifters are coming, but the thumping blends together.

Mason grows loud, no longer attempting to remain quiet.

I thought his noises were frightening when he attacked and pinned me to the ground yesterday, but it’s nothing to what he’s making now. He’s easily three times as loud, and the noise is so deep, it sounds like it should be coming from a bear instead of the wolf he looks like.

Kie is still silent, and I wonder if he’s climbed up a tree of his own.

Without magic, I doubt he’ll be of much assistance in a fight.

As far as I’m concerned, he’s in just as much danger as I am, if not more. The shifters hate the faeries, and vice versa. I’m sure they’ll be delighted with the opportunity to kill the crowned faerie prince.

I know I would if I were in their position.

There’s movement below, the occasional flash of what is maybe fur, before I hear a snarl and the gut-wrenching sound of two animals colliding. It’s loud, and I resist the urge to cover my ears as wet smacking and pained whines float up the tree.

It sounds like the fighting is happening directly below me, which is far from comforting.

Why didn’t Mason lead them away? That would’ve been the kind thing to do, but he’s drawn them right to me. It’s probably insurance that I won’t run away. I’m sure as hell not going to climb down and sneak away while thosethingsare right below.

A bloodcurdling whine echoes into the dark, and my tree trunk is jostled as something barrels into it. I don’t want to know what caused a tree this large and steady to sway.

Are the shifters trying to climb it?

I peer through the foliage below, but I still can’t make out much.

I briefly spot a pair of green eyes looking up at me, but I can’t tell if it’s Mason. His eye color is distinct, and these match, but it could be a shifter trait like the violet eyes for faeries.

I look around for those violet eyes, eventually finding them at ground level. He’s down there, helping Mason fight? That’s a death sentence if I’ve ever seen one.

I clutch a backpack to my chest, needing something to hold. I’m glad I’m dehydrated. Otherwise, I’d probably be pissing myself right about now. It would be leaking down the tree trunk in a steady stream.

The sounds below are sickening—crunching, squelching, whining.

It’s probably for the best that I can’t see the details.

It sounds like there are several shifters below, but the number seems to be decreasing. The amount of distinct whines and snarls is dropping at an alarming rate.

I assume Mason or Kie are still alive. If they die, it’s probably only a matter of seconds before one of those shifters transforms into their skin form and climbs up the tree to drag me down.

There’s another whine, this one louder than the last, before everything goes silent.

Chapter Twenty-Five

ABBY

I HOLD MY breath. The silence from the ground stretches, and the unknown has my heart practically beating out of my chest.

What the fuck is happening down there? I stare at the ground, waiting for a naked shifter to climb up and drag me down. He’ll probably throw me straight to the ground, breaking my leg and fracturing my skull. Then his friends will lunge, ripping me apart limb by limb.

I hope they do it quickly.

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