Page 180 of Once the Skies Fade

In one swift movement, he thrust his hand into my gut, forcing a groan out of me. It wasn’t until he pulled away, dragging his hand across my belly, that I realized he’d been holding his knife. The metallic fragrance of fresh blood overwhelmed me as moist heat spilled into my lap. The incision he’d made was small, but enough for my entrails to start spilling out.

A scream ripped from my chest, spurred on as much by the sight as the pain. Graham started to laugh once more. Lifting my gaze to his, I pushed my scream louder, drowning out his amusement. But something—someone—responded with a roar outside, a menacing and terrifying growl that seemed to shake the mountain, quieting us both.

“What was that?” Graham mumbled, his hands shaking as he spun his head around toward the doorway.

I let out one excruciating breath of a laugh before answering him.

“Sounds like my mate.”

Chapter 87

Calla

My shadows billowed from my hands, as strong as the battle cry erupting from my chest, and then Asher, Dax, and Kai added their voices to mine, filling the mountain range with the deafening boom that only three dragons could make. My own shouts shifted into a string of maniacal laughter. When their roar subsided, leaving my amusement dancing through the air, I was struck by an eerie reminder of how I’d laughed like this upon killing those first humans in my court.

Isa peered at me from where she waited on Dax’s back, horror flashing in her eyes briefly before she blinked it away. Clamping my mouth shut, I waited for her chastisement, but instead she lifted a shoulder and pulled her lips into a crooked smile.

“So much for the element of surprise,” she said.

“Better not give them any chance to muster weapons then,” I noted, and without warning Asher threw his head down and dove toward the black rocks below. I scrambled for a handhold, my laughter bubbling back up. Concentrating, I forced my shadows away from me until they engulfed all five of us in darkness without obstructing our own visibility.

Asher weaved around the thin spires, and I turned back to make sure his brothers—and Isa—were staying with us. Trusting my friend’s golden nose to know where my mate was in this dark labyrinth, I focused solely on holding my shadows steady and keeping my hands tight on the saddle.

Careening down into a narrow canyon that was barely wide enough for the dragons’ wings, my heartbeat racing with excitement and anticipation, I dared peek around Asher’s head. I could see nothing but rock, could hear nothing but the rush of air and the steady beat of his wings.

I was starting to grow nervous that perhaps Asher had gotten it wrong when my pulse shuddered for just a moment. My shadows snapped back into my hands, as if my heart had pulled back on the reins and frightened my powers like a skittish horse. I jerked upright, throwing my hand to my chest, confusion swirling in my mind. I hadn’t relaxed at all. The thrill of my coming vengeance still burned hot in my veins. My heartbeat was racing again, but now there was more than revenge filling my chest.

Nervous fear, with the tiniest sliver of hope embedded in a suffering that wasn’t mine.

Matthias was near.

These had to be his emotions through the bond, coming through as strongly as they had during our shared dream.

Before I could tap on Asher’s shoulder, though, a new sound split the air—like a large arrow whizzing by. I craned my neck to peer behind us in time to see Kai tumbling in mid-flight, his body rolling to the side as his wings crumpled around him. He crashed into the mountainside with a loud growl that brought his brothers to a halt, their wings twisting to slow them down and their claws scraping against the ground.

“What was that?” Isa asked, already fumbling with her harness, but she stopped as Dax pivoted around and took off on foot to check on his brother who lay against the steep wall.

“Is he okay? Is he going to be okay?” I asked even though Asher couldn’t answer in this form. My friend wasn’t watching after his brothers, though. He was peering up the mountain, shifting his head this way and that as his nostrils flared. Something moved against the gray clouds that hid the peaks, pulling my attention, but whatever it was—whoever it was—had disappeared.

I leaned toward Asher’s head. “We need to find Matthias.”

He twisted his head around, and I followed his gaze to see Kai had shifted back into his human form, blood visible on his skin even from here, though he didn’t appear to have any noticeable wounds. Isa, having dismounted now, knelt beside him, cradling his face in her hands and tapping his cheek.

Panic took hold. If we stayed here—if we delayed any longer—Graham could move Matthias.

“Please, Asher,” I begged, hating that I was even daring to ask him to leave his brothers behind for me. My friend had lost nearly as much as I had, and I was here trying to pull him away from another loved one who could be dying.

Snorting out a breath, Asher sent a growl echoing down the canyon, and Dax’s head snapped up to face us. They stared at each other for a long, gut-wrenching moment. Dipping their chins sharply at each other—seemingly coming to an agreement—they both turned, and Asher launched forward, leaving Dax and Isa to care for Kai.

The gray clouds descended into the canyon, making it difficult to see where we were going, but Asher barely slowed.

“That’s far enough,” a smooth, deep voice called from the mist in front of us, and Asher locked his knees, rearing back to stop quickly. Asher huffed out an irritated snort, and I quicklyundid the harness and slipped down to the ground. As I strolled in front of my friend, my shadows crept from my palms to pool around my legs and swirl around my torso, ready to strike should I need them.

Asher gazed down at me, a gleam of mischief in his bronze eyes as he discretely nudged his snout toward the man standing before us. He must have been over two meters tall, as he could nearly look the dragon beside me in the eye, but then I noticed what must have caught Asher’s eye. The man’s hands, clasped casually in front of him, were covered in tattoos. His head angled slightly as if he found us more curious than a threat, giving a clear view of the tattoos that crept up out of his collar and around to the back of his neck. This had to be the nightwalker Niko and Sasha had mentioned.

“Our fight is not with you,” I said, silently commanding my shadows to hold back and wait.

The man’s resulting smile seemed almost genuine—and human, with the fangless row of teeth he flashed. Niko hadn’t mentioned him being human, but then again, he also hadn’t confirmed he was a nightwalker. If only there was a way to let this man know that we were truly allies.

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