Page 50 of The Shadow Fae Rhapsody
I’m going to see Svenn and Coral soon. My heart does a little dance and blooms.
All hope shatters as soon as I reach the glass and look down at the courtyard below me.
The jester gives me a wicked laugh. “I guess I forgot to tell you we’re on the fifth floor.”
I stand there quietly, looking at the horizon, the green field, and the sloping hills below. Somewhere out there, my husband, Coral and Ken are waiting for me.
I look at the painting in my hand and sigh.
He sees the intention in my eyes. “Wait—wait. Let’s talk about this—”
I smash the painting towards the window, shattering the large panel glass into pieces. The jester’s horrified scream echoes in the air as he falls to the ground.
“Sorry,” I mutter underneath my breath. I remove the bits and pieces of sharp glass from the frame to make way for myself. Footsteps approach from behind me.
“Well, well. Look what the lynx dragged in.” My blood curdles at the sound of that voice.
The Shadow Fae strides towards me slowly, his steps purposeful. “There’s no way for you to run.”
I’m so dead.
He is wearing a helmet, yet I can feel his gaze on me through the metal slits. The intensity of it makes my feet stagger.
I jump out of the window without hesitation.
I expect pain when I land on the cold, hard courtyard below, but instead I land on a bouncy leather. My backside hurts but I’m surprise I survived the fall without a scratch. I rub my head in a daze at the voice of the jester.
“Wake up, guys! Can you do something about her?”
His frame is a little dented, but the painting looks fine for the most part. I rise to my feet, wondering who he is talking to.
“She’s right over there!”
I nearly jump out of my skin at the sight of a row of teeth almost the length of my full arm.
Heavens help me.
I take several steps back. In a heartbeat, it dawns on me. The soft cushion that broke my fall is this wyvern’s wing. My heart stutters and ceases beating in my chest. The creature barely registers my presence, its eyes half-open, dazed with sleep.
Thank the heavens.
I keep backing away until I hit a wall—another wyvern.
I take a sharp, shaky breath.
Oh gods.
Of course, it’s just my luck. I landed in a courtyard filled with lounging wyverns.
“Wake up, you buffoons, there’s the thief right there!” the jester screams at the top of his lungs. “She’s trying to steal me.”
My heart panics to another stop. This cruel jester is going to get me killed. I wait for death to claim my soul.
Seconds turn to minutes.
Nothing happens.
“Help me! You stupid lizards!” The jester makes another attempt to get them moving.
