Page 174 of The Shadow Fae Rhapsody
The knight glances over his shoulder. “Yeah, I know.”
Maybe I should just leave him to be devoured by the wolf. But I remind myself that this guy is one of Rhianelle’s trusted knights.
The right thing to do is to help him kill his stalker. Red has earned that, at least for helping me yesterday. I draw my hunting blade, but something stops me in my tracks.
A soft scent floats in the air.
Shit.
“What’s wrong?” the knight asks, sending me a concerned look.
Rhianelle’s sweet scent is all over the creature’s snout.
“I would have killed the wolf for you a second ago…” I trail off with dismay. “But I can’t. I think he’s one of Rhianelle’s strays.”
It’s so like my darling Nel to feed cats, raccoons, rats, and befriend the creatures in the woods.
Red is staring at me with a muted expression.
“You want to kill it?” he finally asks, his eyes widening with disbelief. “Who the fuck wishes to kill a dog?”
Annoyance boils under the surface of my skin. “It’s not a dog…”
“Wolves are good boys too. You can’t go around killing them,” Red mutters, shaking his head.
It’s not a wolf either.I keep telling this fucker that the creature is an elf. And this elf-wolf touched my Nel yesterday. Perhaps it’s best if I kill it anyway, stray or not.
The wolf scratches his ear with his hind leg.
“See that? It’s no different from a dog,” Garrett says, as if that proves any of his idiotic points. “What a good boy.”
The wolf’s tongue flicks out and up to the tip of his nose. Its lips peel back, revealing jagged teeth, a high pitch snarl resounds from its throat.
Red pulls down his scarlet hood, his eyes fearless. “My, what big teeth you have.”
Dread crawls up my sternum knowing that Nel had been near those lethal fangs. I must keep Rhianelle away from this dangerous beast. If I’m not careful, I may have another Coral situation at my hand.
A bronze glow on the forest floor snatches my attention. I touch my temple to smooth the strain I feel there. The vision from the pixie dust is gradually disappearing, but I see it now.
Red has a string attached to him.
I expect for it to lead back to camp. I’ll kill him if his fucking string of fate goes anywhere near Rhianelle’s, but it doesn’t. The thread wanders into the bushes… straight towards the wolf.
I blink several times to confirm.
The knight’s burnished thread is entwined with the creature’s silver string.
Interesting.
But I have little time to entertain this fuckery. I need to see Nel soon. Tracking those bastards is taking longer than I thought. My longing for little fawn becomes too much for me to bear.
“I’m heading back to the camp.” I don’t know why I bother telling Red that.
“I’ll come with you,” he says easily, taking another glance at the forest.
I thought this guy said he’s on patrol duty…
Frustration curdles in my gut over the fruitless hunt as we return to neat rows of tents in the camp. Several warriors have gathered in what I can only assume is the elves’ prayer circle. The fear in their faces is stark.
