Page 89 of Claimed By Shadow and Blood
The full force of the rockslide had missed us, but the mass thathadpoured in was enough to pin me.
The unicorn foal wriggled and beat my body as it worked its way free. “Mmmrrrhhh…”
Groaning, I slid farther down, my eyelids so heavy.
The foal stumbled out and found its footing, then turned and started pawing at the ground as if trying to dig me out.
I choked and coughed, wishing I could get an arm free. Bile rose in the back of my throat. I had to keep moving.
The foal whinnied again, then nuzzled my cheek. Despite the dried blood and mud on its coat, its fur was so soft. If I were in a safe place, I might have cuddled with it.
My nerves spiked. If they sent more assassins, I’d be dead meat. I tried once more to move, and pain burned through my left thigh. A whimper escaped me; then I froze.
The arrow.
I hadn’t let go of the arrow.
The foal stiffened and spun around, laying its gray ears flat against its head. It bared its teeth and stamped its hooves, the vibrations running through me.
Alarm spiked through me. I tried to wriggle my way out, but my left arm was trapped, and my right was barely moving.
The foal tossed its head and backed up. I winced, then froze as I saw a dark mass oozing into the corner.
The fog monster.
One set of red eyes opened. The pupils dilated as they caught sight of me; then five more sets of eyes opened.
The creature moved forward faster.
Fuck! I looked down for the pendant to make sure it was visible, then froze. The pendant was gone!
“Run,” I wheezed. “Go on. Get out.” If the foal jumped, it could get past the fog monster. Or if it ran up the embankment, maybe it could hide.
The foal squealed again, stamping and pacing, but not abandoning me.
The fog monster rolled closer as it slid over gravel, soil, and sand.
No, he couldn’t die this way. He had to stay alive and find his herd.
Thud. Thud. THUD.
A large chunk of the wall across from me crashed inward as a goliath of a man strode across the piece he’d plowed through. He had a wild mass of red hair and a black eye patch over his left eye, and a white pendant hanging from a silver chain around his neck.
My heart thudded.Another assassin. I had to break free or die by his hand.
“Well, hello, trouble, you ready for me?” he boomed.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Briar
My eyes widened as adrenaline surged through me. I jerked my right hand, trying to free it to no avail. The dirt and rocks might as well have been cement.
Grinning, the massive man strode toward me, his heavy black boots crunching over the dirt and soil. Unlike the other assassins, he wore a V-neck white shirt with long frilled sleeves. A worn black leather cloak covered his shoulders, and that, combined with the eye patch and the loose black and white striped pants tucked into his heavy black boots, made him look like an enormous fae pirate.
Was he even a fae? I’d never seen one like him here.
The fog monster halted when the pale light of his pendant cut across the loose soil. “Off with you now,” he said gruffly, shooing it away as if it were a stray dog begging for scraps. He scuffed one boot into the dirt and sent a spray of debris in its direction.
