Page 150 of Until the Stars Fall

“Because,” I said, “he told me. He’s done saving me. It’s over.”

The words pierced my heart. I blinked, trying to maintain my balance, to stay awake. But sleep sounded rather nice right now.

My head spun.

The barn began to sway.

Anna cackled as I fell to the ground, and my world went black.

CHAPTER 81

Connor

Matthias and I rushed through the tall grass, pausing behind a large hay bale. My blood chilled in my veins as a sinister laugh rent the air. Matthias glanced back at me and nodded toward the barn.

He had only taken one step forward when the quiet groan of a bow being drawn reached my ears. An arrow slammed into Matthias’s shoulder, throwing him backwards with such force, the archer had to be close. A terrified whine escaped me as my friend doubled over. Falling to his knees, he met my gaze.

“Go!” he said, and I didn’t wait for him to collapse before I was darting forward.

I skidded around the corner of the barn and didn’t slow even when I saw a woman standing there casually, holding a bow down at her side, as if inviting me to take my revenge. Growling, I sprang off my hind legs and sank my teeth into her neck. She fell to the ground under me, and I tore her apart, ripping away hunks of flesh with my teeth and shredding her body with my claws. I didn’t stop until long after she’d gone still.

A pained groan came from the barn, and I snapped my head up.

Lieke.

Leaping off my kill, I bounded for the door, but a man’s voice stopped me mid-step.

“Tie her up over there, Raven.”

“No,” a woman protested meekly. I caught the unmistakable sound of a hand striking a face. Soft sobbing and labored breathing filled the barn as something—or someone—was dragged across the dirt floor.

Rage burned hot in my chest, rumbling low and menacing in the back of my throat.

“Let our guest in,” an older woman commanded.

The door creaked open, and a young woman with black hair and tear-streaked cheeks appeared.

“I said let him in, Raven,” the other woman barked, and the black-haired woman stepped back to allow me to enter.

My eyes adjusted quickly to the dim light inside, and my lips curled back over my teeth when I spotted Lieke sitting in the dirt, tied to a support beam. Her head lolled to one side, and her complexion was quickly losing color. Blood soaked through her shirt, but her heartbeat, though weakening, reached my ears, confirming she was still alive. I stalked toward my injured mate, letting my hunger for vengeance surge with each step.

A throat cleared nearby, giving me pause, and I slowly turned. The older woman and man stared at me, seeming almost impressed.

The woman raised a brow and said, “I can assume—by the fresh blood on your muzzle—that you’ve killed Caroline, my archer. We hedged bets, you know, about whether you’d take the bait. Unfortunately for me, I won’t be able to collect my winnings, but I knew it was a risky wager.”

Snarling, I prepared to lunge at the woman, but when I pushed off my back legs, I faltered, stumbling rather than jumping. I barely kept from falling onto the dirt. A sinister laugh pulled my attention back to the couple watching me.

“Works quickly, doesn’t it?” the woman asked, and my heart jolted.

Had she poisoned me? I mentally assessed my body, checking for any sign that I’d been struck by a dart or needle or something. Aside from my shaky, weakening legs, I couldn’t sense anything.

As if she could read my thoughts, the woman explained, “This method of delivery doesn’t act quite as efficiently as our barbs and knives, but you have to admit, it’s rather ingenious. Caroline spent the past two years drinking the solution daily. Of course, she started the practice with the sole purpose of healing her injuries faster. Was simply by chance we discovered that doing so infected her blood, making it toxic to the fae.”

The archer had poisoned me by…poisoning herself?

The woman continued. “As adorable as you are in this form, Your Highness, you might want to shift back. I’d hate for you to die as a hound, unable to say any last words to her.”

The edges of my vision were already dimming, and I slowly turned to Lieke. I hated doing anything this woman said, but she was right. I had to shift. I couldn’t stay like this, couldn’t die like this.

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