Page 31 of Luca

The figure at the head of the group laughed, a distorted sound that served as another reminder that they weren’t human. “We don’t care who you are, princeling,” it hissed behind its gold mask. “Nor are we here for you.”

Its eyes were shrouded by the lip of its hood, but I felt it stare straight at me, those words settling like a lead weight in the pit of my stomach.

They were here for me.

They stepped forward again, and Cair’s wings twitched in agitation. “You will die before I let you touch him.”

Its smirk was hidden, but the intention was clear as day when it said, “We’ll see.”

Cair primed himself to lunge, fangs bared, but before he could, there was a whistle through air. I wasn’t given the chance to comprehend its origin as the creature that had spoken slumped to the ground, an arrow skewering its neck. Seconds later, two figures came rushing from the tree line, cutting through the ghoul-like beings with battle cries and the ringing of metal. I could only see vague shapes through the translucent panels of Cair’s wings as he guarded me, but one by one, almost too quickly for me to grasp, the bad guys dropped like flies, either dead or writhing in pain.

Yellow blood soaked the forest floor, spraying the tree trunks, and the stench of rotten flesh assaulted my nose.

My stomach roiled.

With the distraction of the newcomers, one of the hooded creatures surged toward Cair, clearly hoping to catch him off guard. Thankfully, my mate was on high alert. He dodged the slices of its daggers, managing to knock the weapons from its grasp before his hand darted out to seize its thin gray throat, squeezing until it went limp.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away, too focused on the growing heap of bodies and the scent of death to notice the plume of smoke sneaking up from behind me until it was too late. A clawed hand materialized, grabbing my wrist and hauling me out of the safety of Cair’s shadow, dragging me halfway across the meadow, away from the fight. The creature threw me to the ground before straddling my waist, once more a solid mass, and I bucked and kicked, swinging my fists at its masked face, but it was pointless. With little effort, it pinned my arms to the ground with one of its ghoulish hands before unsheathing its dagger.

The sight of the sharp blade had me freezing.

My breath was fire in my lungs, my vision blackening at the edges as terror consumed me. I didn’t know what to do as it set the point against my belly, where my shirt had ridden up, as if teasing me with the power it held. I couldn’t conjure up a single rational thought, couldn’t envision anything except my life force withering away to dust. I couldn’t defend myself, couldn’t struggle, couldn’t evenscream. I was stuck in a body that was working against me, so I just screwed my eyes shut, hoping dying would be painless and that Cair wouldn’t hate me for giving up.

Of course he will, you’re pathetic.

There was pressure at my side and I bit my lip, preparing for the agony that would follow, for the darkness that would drag me under… but it didn’t come.

The weight on my lap suddenly vanished, my arms were freed, and the expectation of my imminent demise drifted into the background like a cloud after a storm. My eyes flew open, landing on the creature hovering above me, a wriggling worm on a hook, screeching inaudibly. Cair was behind it, and the rage radiating through our bond was enough to have me crawling backward, a whimper lodged in my throat.

Cair’s eyes snapped to mine, softening in pity, but I couldn’t calm my erratic nerves, couldn’t find comfort in the look that typically soothed me. He barked an order—words I couldn’t hear over the blood rushing through my ears and the repetition ofdeath, death, deathechoing in the space around me—and suddenly there was someone in front of him, blocking my view.

There was silence for a moment before a sickening crack broke through the fog in my head, and another body dropped to the ground. Four in total. There had been five. Where was the fifth?Where had it?—

“Shh, little one, it’s alright.” Cair’s hands were on my cheeks, sticky and wet, and I didn’t want to think about what had made them wet. “You’re safe. They’re gone.”

I shook my head. “One more. There’s still one more.”

Death, death, death.

“It’s being tracked down as we speak,” he said, his voice gentle, surrounding me in warmth. “There are no more. You can come back to me now. It’s alright.”

Blindly, I reached for him, hands roving his chest, his arms, his face, checking for injuries, checking that he was whole andthere. “A-are you hurt?”

“I’m okay.”

Tears welled in my eyes, and I plastered myself against Cair’s chest, inhaling the scent of him. Listening to the familiar beats of his heart. “I was useless, I’m sorry,” I sobbed. “I didn’t know what to do. I panicked, and I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for.” He kissed the top of my head, and hugged me tight. “They should not have gotten close enough to use their power. Forgive me.”

“Nothing to forgive,” I muttered mindlessly, letting myself breathe and gradually claw my way back from the void I’d strayed into. The heaviness in my chest loosened first, before the haze waned, and once clarity hit, it was immediately replaced by embarrassment. Self-loathing.

Cair had fought them off, had killed them for threatening me, and all I did was lie there, panicking and flailing. Even if I could fight—which I couldn’t because I hadn’t bothered to fucking learn—he wouldn’t have let me in on the action, but I should have felt an urge to abandon all reason and run headfirst into danger. As I was normally inclined to do. I should have felt the same anger surge through my veins, the desire to see their heads on pikes for daring to attack my mate, but I hadn’t. Cair’s first instinct was to protect me with all he had, to die for me if it came to it, and mine was to shut down.

Pathetic.

“Luca, my heart,” Cair said, capturing my attention. “There was nothing you could have done. Those beings emit anguish and dread. You were paralyzed by their auras, and what you’re feeling is the aftereffect. It will pass.” He gently squeezed my nape, and I slumped into it. “You are uninjured, you are here, and nothing else matters.”

I nodded, though I didn’t have the capacity to believe it yet. There was no energy left in me to argue or disagree. My entire body felt drained of everything that helped it function. Instead, I sat back and glanced over the bloody scene, squinting at the creature closest to me. It was dead, its hood askew, and its mask had been discarded on the ground beside it.

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