Page 34 of Claimed By Night

While I have no concern over the little winged devil, I know Eilish and Cambion will be following suit shortly. I approach the angel cautiously, as if my footsteps will wake her. Placing my hand atop hers, I use theGaze Of Two Mindscharm to meld my senses to hers. At once, I feel a flood of pain and exhaustion. A shiver racks my body so violently, I nearly bite my tongue. Quickly, I remove my hand, and my senses become my own again.

Thoradin doesn’t make any move toward starting the fire. It’s customary for him to do my bidding without question, but I see the lines of his mouth harden in protest.

“You’re worried a fire will attract attention?” I ask.

He hesitates. “We’ve come to a very dangerous place, liege.”

The high-pitched hum of Flumph’s wings informs me he’s hovering directly over my shoulder. I fight the urge to swat him.

“Yeah, I wasn’t gonna say nothin’, but since he did, I’ll second it. You got some shitty taste in ‘commodations, Lord Night Prince.”

As he speaks, it becomes harder to not hit him; I growl a low warning instead and the whirring of his wings grows quieter as he flies out of reach.

“We didn’t have a choice,” I say darkly. “Thoradin and I were in the process of taking our stone form. We had to return to the Shadow Realm.” I breathe in deeply.

“An’ what’s gonna happen to us?” the sprite asks, motioning to Cambion and the angel.

“Yes, this isn’t the best place for you, but it’s the only place where we have a chance to hide and not be found.”

“Then, what? You jist gonna let the Shadow Realm kill us lil by lil?” asks the annoying sprite.

“No, because we won’t be in the Shadow Realm for much longer.”

“Where we goin’?”

“Grimreap.”

The sprite appears confused. “Ain’t Grimreap in the Shadow Realm?”

“Grimreap isn’t fully shadow,” I respond.

“What?” the sprite frowns. “I thought we was in the Shadow Realm ‘cause you ain’t turnin’ to stone no more.”

“The Raven Forest is the Shadow Realm, yes.” I nod. “But Grimreap isn’t so easily explained. The divisions between theFae, Mortal, and the Shadow Realm aren’t always clear. And in some locations, those lines are fully blurred.”

“What you talkin’ ‘bout?” Flumph demands, plopping his hands on his round hips.

In general, I don’t enjoy explaining myself. Especially not to nosy and irksome sprites. But there’s a time for explanations, and that time is now. “There are areas that exist in more than one plane at the same time—the Tree of Shadows is one such location. These are places where the edges separating the planes become blurred. Edges where each of us can exist simultaneously. Grimreap is one such edge.”

“What’s he goin’ on about?” Flumph asks Thoradin.

“Long ago, before the humans were expunged from the world, hundreds of mortals, fae, and shadow-folk alike lived and died in Grimreap,” Thoradin tells him. “Those spirits continue on, allowing each of us to coexist where, ordinarily, your kind would perish.”

The sprite frowns as though he still doesn’t understand. I curse the bloody imbecile but clarify anyway. “The land is shared by ghosts of all three realms. Essentially, this is the spirit world. There are aspects of Fae, Mortal, and Shadow, all coexisting together. The city is so haunted, it’s taken on a life its own.”

“Quaint,” says Flumph, his small eyes rolling in his head. I hear a weak moan from behind me and turn to see Eilish’s limp head droop forward, her pearly skin coated in a sheen of sweat and gooseflesh.

“Quaint, it’s not. Thoradin’s right; we’ve come to a dangerous place. Grimreap is foul, and, as such, it’s home to some of the foulest. None of us are safe here.”

“Ain’t your Shadow Magic ‘nough ta protect us?” the sprite asks.

“My shadows will cloak us, but the chill of this world will kill you and the others before anyShadar-kaiorBanderhobbcan,”I say, turning to Thoradin. “Thus, we need to warm them with fire.” He nods solemnly and sets off in search of dry wood.

“What’s a Shitter-cat an’ a Corn-cob?” Flumph asks, looking frightened.

“Shadar-kaiandBanderhobb,” I correct. “And what did I say about asking questions when you won’t understand the answers?”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

---