Page 62 of The King of Frost and Shadows

I forced myself to inhale and exhale slowly to calm my galloping pulse. We weren’t even on the arena floor, and I could feel sweat gathering in my armpits. My only salvation was that Eldrin still hadn’t arrived, which meant it wasn’t time for the games to begin.

Then the guard opened the doors to the arena, and Eldrin stood a hundred feet away with the thick nightmare gas billowing behind him. The gas was more condensed, like when I’d had to crawl through it and could barely move in the last game. There wasn’t a lighter patch anywhere, and I wondered if this was set up for the twelve of us to fight covered in gas the entire time.

I wasn’t sure anyof us would survive that.

“Move forward!” Struan shouted from his spot beside me in the back.

Lorne crossed his arms, his wings still bound, as were the others’. At least, that put me on more even ground with them, even though they’d trained with weapons for most of their lives and I had two days behind me … that I could remember.

The other ten before us moved. They’d put Rona with the dusky-haired woman and Bran with the silver-haired man. I had no clue what most of them were capable of, but I’d learn all too soon.

The twelve of us filed into the arena in a line, with Lorne and me at the very back. He kept as far away from me as possible so our chain had no slack. This would only end with us in a disastrous situation, but if I tried to tell him that, he wouldn’t listen.

“We’ll be right here if you make it back,” Finola whispered as I stepped into the lion’s den.

Most of the Unseelie stood, cheering like the last time, but a handful remained seated without any bloodthirsty joy on their faces.

How odd.

My gaze inadvertently landed on the one person it shouldn’t.

Tavish.

And I immediately wished I hadn’t looked at him. His face was whiter than I’d ever expected was possible, and his hands were fisted at his sides. Finnian stood on one side, his hand on Tavish’s shoulder, trying to look casual. But his grip was too firm, like he was holding Tavish back.

Eldrin extended his wings, making a show of them, though they weren’t as large as Tavish’s. I couldn’t be sure if it was for the audience or a reminder to the contestants thatthey couldn’t use their wings in these trials. Either way, it made me hate the bastard even more.

“For these gauntlet trials, Calean and I have ensured that the times and activities of each one are different.” Eldrin rose a few feet off the ground, spinning slowly to take in the entire arena.

Despite it being morning, the sky remained dark, but a little sunlight shone through, casting twilight over the area.

“This trial will be different for many reasons.” He gestured to our feet, pointing out the obvious. “Each person is chained to someone, which serves a greater purpose. This is not just a test of strength but of agility and grace, even when you’re chained to a person who desires to end you.”

The more Eldrin talked, the more I wanted to kill him. The urge was so damn overwhelming that it stole my breath, especially after reliving the death of the man I’d killed over and over again.Thisman was a problem, not only for me but for Tavish and his people as well.

“This trial will last two hours.” He smirked, and there was a collective gasp from the competitors. Eldrin stared at us and said, “Some advice. Make sure you get on the platform, or the gas will consume you.” He flew upward, heading toward his spot next to Tavish. “Without further ado, let the games begin!”

A guard blew the horn, and something hissed behind me. I glanced over my shoulder to see more gas rising from the ground, closing in around me.

“Blighted abyss,” Lorne groaned as the other ten people hurried ahead, risking getting closer to the wall of gas directly in front of us, which began to dissipate. He moved forward, catching me off guard. My body jerked as his injured leg gave out, and he landed on that knee.

I managed not to fall into the dirt, and I hurried to hisside, wanting more slack in the chain so we each could move without fighting each other’s weight. I reached his side and helped him to his feet.

He glared at me and took a few steps forward to gain distance. He rasped, “Don’t touch me, wildling.”

His reaction didn’t surprise me. He saw me as beneath him and didn’t want to risk even the illusion that I’d helped him.

I rolled my eyes and noticed that the wall of gas was closing in. “If you don’t want my help, then move.” I pointed over my shoulder. “Or we’re both going to die.”

The others were twenty feet away, watching us. The dusky-haired woman frowned, staring at Lorne, but the other contenders focused on me with giant smiles, anticipating my death.

Fuck that. I wouldn’t let them win that easily.

“Come on, or do you want to die?” I bit out, moving forward without checking on him.

I almost expected the chain to snag from his refusal to move with me, but after ten steps, I realized he was keeping up.

When we were a few feet away from the others, Bran rushed forward. He threw a punch at my jaw, but I ducked at the last second, leaving his right side open. I punched him in the gut, and he doubled over in pain. I kneed him in the face, but the chain yanked me back, and I fell onto my back hard with a gust of dirt kicking up around me and getting in my eyes.

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