Page 8 of The Shadowbound King

He squeezed his eyes shut. Then he turned back to me and shook me hard. “Just…shut up, all right? I have to do this.”

My teeth clicked together, and fear put a whimper in my throat. But Ihadto get away. If Gerren released me, I could dart into the nearest shadow and disappear.

“I delivered your child,” I said, desperation rising. “I saved your wife from dying with the babe inside her. And this is how you thank me?”

Gerren swallowed hard. Something like regret flickered in his eyes. “I’m…” he began, then whipped his head toward the Covenant once more.

The energy in the air thickened, lifting the hair on my nape. Dread coiled low in my gut. Behind the barrier, something moved.

Another whimper escaped me. This time, Gerren ignored it as he kept his gaze fastened on the Covenant.

My knees weakened as I peered at the wall of elven magic. Shadows swirled behind the barrier. Indistinct shapes formed and then danced, sliding around each other. Power throbbed like a beating heart. Something was coming.

A bird’scawsplit the air. Shadows slidunderthe Covenant, long fingers of pitch-black scrabbling over the ground toward Gerren and me.

Gerren gave a hoarse, broken cry. Shaking, he mumbled to himself. “It’s not worth it. Oh gods…”

Anothercawrang out. The shadows behind the Covenant parted, then rolled away from the center, leaving a gap.

An elf stepped into it, his gaze fixed on me.

My heart skipped a beat. I couldn’t move. Could hardly breathe as I stared at the elf. Tall and pale, his features were handsome but arrogant. Long, black hair streamed over one shoulder, the ends cascading to his waist. His black shirt opened in a wide vee, revealing a smooth, muscular chest. A black cloak fastened with ornate silver clasps flowed to his ankles. Tapered ears poked from his long hair. Intricate tattoos climbed up his neck and circled his throat.

But his eyes were his most arresting feature. As purple as amethysts, they glowed more brightly than the Covenant.

And they shone with unmistakable malice.

A strangled gasp escaped my lips.

The elf smiled. I tensed, waiting for him to step through the Covenant. He’d shed his magic the moment he set foot in Andulum. That was part of the bargain his kind made after the Rebellion.

More shadows leaked under the boundary, the silky ribbons curling over the ground.

Thatwasn’tpart of the bargain. Ishulum’s magic was never supposed to encroach on human soil. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.

The elf held my stare a beat longer before running his bright purple gaze down my body in a slow, deliberate sweep.

Heat followed the path of his inspection, as if he’d reached through the Covenant and stroked a warm palm over my skin. Just as slowly, he raked his gaze upward, lingering on my breasts and the pulse fluttering in my neck.

My nipples tightened, and heat built between my legs. I clenched my fists, fighting the arousal churning inside me. It washisdoing. The elf was obviously using some kind of dark, malevolent magic to make me respond despite my fear.

“They’re coming,” Gerren croaked.

I startled, then looked up at him. He searched the Covenant, more sweat rolling down his face. His eyes darted back and forth, landing everywhere but the elf.

Because Gerren didn’t see him, I realized. The elven blood that flowed through my veins allowed me to peer through the Covenant. But Gerren was wholly human, his senses limited to the world on his side of the barrier.

“We had a deal, blacksmith,” the elf called, his voice silky as it drifted through the barrier.

Gerren stiffened. He glanced at me, then squinted as he looked in the elf’s direction. Gerren cleared his throat. “You promised to return my wife’s brother.”

The shadows writhed on either side of the elf, but they didn’t touch him. He stood motionless, his expression dispassionate as he addressed Gerren. “I’ll return the hunter.” Purple eyes flicked to mine. “After you hand over Mirella of Purecliff.”

My heart lodged in my throat. “N-No,” I said, turning to Gerren. “You can’t. It’ll kill me. Please, don’t?—”

“Shut up!” he snarled, dragging me forward. My skirts tangled around my legs, and I would have fallen if not for Gerren’s painful grip on my arm. Blue light stung my eyes as we neared the Covenant. As if they sensed us, the shadows on the ground stretched toward us like snakes.

“Stop!” I cried, digging in my heels. “Who will tend your babe if the child gets sick?”

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