Page 98 of Claiming Sarah

“Not yet.”

He turned to speak to his men, and slung across his back in a holster was the longest bone sword I had ever seen. “Surround the perimeter, teams of two, watch each other’s backs. You know how crafty those bitches are. Trust no one until you hear from me,” he ordered his crew.

“Rex, you’re not in charge here,” I said, already feeling my irritation rise.

Without looking at me, Rex held a hand up for me to stop speaking. As his men ran around the perimeter to follow his orders, he asked, “Where are the rest of your people?”

“Inside that cottage,” I said, pointing to my father’s home. “I’ll get them.”

“Yeah, you get them, and we’ll set the perimeter,” Rex said with a nod. “Jac, we need you to—”

Jac cut him off. “I’m not doing anything but staying by Sarah’s side,” he said, taking the role seriously.

Rex turned around and smiled at him like a predator. “Exactly what I was thinking. We need her as protected as possible. Deacon, you should stay with her, as well.” Then his eyes shifted to seduction when he looked at Sarah. “You are the hostess of this little bacchanal. We need you guarded. Can’t let anything happen to you. We will center you in the perimeter and when the conduits get close, we take them out.”

“What? No!” Sarah shouted. “That isn’t part of the plan!”

“You’re not taking them out, Rex,” I snapped furiously. “That goes against the truce we made, and everything we have agreed to. You willnotattack the conduits.”

But Rex calmly smiled. “I misspoke. I meant to say, we get into concealed positions in the event that weneedto take them out. Apologies, for the confusion. We will, of course, abide the agreement. And we will enforce the agreement. By any means necessary.”

Rex’s whole entire demeanor, and behavior, did not set well with me. “There is no need to—”

“Over there,” Jac said, interrupting me as he pointed at the path in the forest that ended near my father’s yard. “They’re coming.”

We walked to my father’s yard, me, Sarah, Jac, Rex, and Omen. The conduits in front of us walked a three-wide formation toward us. Augur was in front of them all.

Quietly, I mumbled to Omen. “They’re not in battle dress. A good sign, yes?”

“A very good sign,” Omen said with a relaxed smile. Then she called out, “Augur, what say you all?”

The speaker for all the conduits replied, “We are with the contra. Our Queen.” Every ghost conduit knelt before Sarah, with Omen as the last one to do so.

“I am honored, my ladies,” Sarah said in a pleased tone, taking charge. “Rise among friends.”

Augur stood and smiled as she approached Sarah. “Thank you, my Queen.”

“Please, all of you, just call me Sarah.”

Augur nodded. “And so we’re clear, you forgive the first attack? We were under Mother Portend’s orders. We had no choice in the matter.”

“I do,” Sarah said graciously. “You are powerful warriors, you proved it that day. I am grateful to have you by my side.”

“And Rex?” Augur turned to him. “Given that we have taken up with Sarah, that pays the debt between us, yes?”

“No.” Rex retrieved the long bone knife slung across his back and shoved the entire length into her gut and out of her back.

Sarah gasped in shock.

What the fuck?!

Rex swung for another conduit before I was able to react. I pulled my bone knife from the holster and thought to plant it inRex’s back to stop his attack, but a bright flash of red light pulsed in my vision, and I was knocked backwards on my ass.

Hand cannon fire.

My head throbbed, ringing like a bell, and I couldn’t see. But I could hear.

Sarah’s screams filled my head. I tried to sit up and couldn’t—not without the world spinning around me. Then I heard Sarah’s voice shift into something I didn’t recognize. It was as though she had many voices at the same time. My vision cleared.

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