Page 6 of Veiled Fate
The first thing that I noticed was how he walked. It was impeccably smooth, each motion borne of muscle memory and coordination more finely tuned than the best dancers. There was a swagger to the walk born not out of attitude but rather a simple, inescapable truth that he wasbetterthan anyone around him.
I swallowed a lump in my suddenly dry mouth as it sank in that whoever he was, hewassuperior. Danger oozed from every pore on his body, a lethal cloud that went with him wherever he walked, courtesy of whatever training he possessed. It was not an act. In fact, it was so natural that I doubted he even knew he did it anymore.
Clenching my jaw, I resisted the sudden mewling of my wolf as he approached. The aura of death surrounding him was so blatant even she could sense it, and she wanted nothing to do with him. Whoever he was, he outclassed everyone around him.
Two swords were belted to his waist, one with a short, oddly thick blade, the other a standard great sword with a black hilt and cross guard. His boots were a slate gray and made next to no sound as he walked across the cobblestone. Trim black pants and a thick overshirt complete with a cowl and cape covered him from head to toe, obscuring his upper face until he came close.
Emerald eyes, the color of the northern night sky on certain nights, stared out from under the hood. They glanced me over once but otherwise remained fixed on Kiel, marking him as the bigger threat. I wanted to be offended, but it was true.
“Is that what I think it is?” I asked as the newcomer stopped ten feet away, feet planted.
“If you’re thinking it’s Arcadus’ pet Nehringi, then you’d be correct,” Kiel said in frosty tones, staring right back at the master assassin, his gaze unwavering.
A Nehringi. Masters of shadow and death, the elite of the elite. Only eight of them ever existed at one time, one per Alpha. The Wulfhere and the Volk were the soldiery of the Canis Empire. The footmen and the elite who carried out the mundane day-to-day security of the realm. In the event of war, they fought on the front lines. But the Nehringi were different.
They were the tools the Alphas used when they wanted to play politics. When an enemy proved to be more than an irritation, the Nehringi made them disappear. Tales of the near-mythical beings were used as nighttime stories to scare kids into behaving. Otherwise, the Nehringi would come for them.
I’d never expected to see one, let alone be that up close and personal to one. Now that I was, I knew every story, every legend about them was likely understated compared to the reality. He wasthatterrifying. I curled my free hand into a fist, the skin clammy and cold.
“My master,” the Nehringi rasped, his head moving ever so slightly in Kiel’s direction, “would very much like totalkwith you. If you will come peacefully.”
Kiel surprised me with the calmness of his response as he shrugged like he didn’t have a care in the world. “I don’t see how we have much choice, do we?”
“You give your word to come peacefully?”
“Yes,” Kiel said, tossing his weapon at the Nehringi’s feet. I followed suit, trusting in his decision.
The assassin’s head flickered toward me.
“As for you,” he said, drawing his short sword in a blur and driving it through my stomach and out the other side with one smooth motion. “He has no further need of your meddling.”
“JADA!”Kiel bellowed, rushing to my side as the assassin pulled the blade free, the steel coated in bright red blood.
My blood.
The thought came distantly. My brain was so shocked I couldn’t process anything, even as the world spun and I slumped to the ground, warmth spilling from my belly, soaking my clothing and hands and pooling on the ground next to me.
Kiel’s horrified, fearful face appeared, blocking my lovely view of the sky.
“Jada, no,” he moaned, stroking my face.
Behind him, soldiers rushed into view, grabbing his arms and hauling him to his feet.
“No,” the Nehringi said as one of them bent to grab me. “Leave her as a warning for others.”
“Kiel.” It was all the strength I had in me just to get that one word out.
The agonized cry of a man I cared far too much about was the last thing I heard.
Chapter Four
The first thing I saw was darkness.
How that was possible, I didn’t know, but I did. I couldseeit. Or perhaps it was simply the fact that I was seeing at all. When I should be dead.
“Am I dead?”
My voice still worked. Unless I was imagining that I heard myself. Nothing was entirely real .
