Page 57 of A Cage of Moonlight (Dark Fae Academy 1)

He fell to his knees, and tears streamed down Bree’s face as she counted the arrows. Not one, or two, or three. Five arrows protruded from his chest. Black spots spread out from where they’d sunk into his skin. And blood. There was so muchblood.

His eyes were wild and vacant as he tumbled face first onto the ground. With a cry of alarm, Bree fell to his side, her entire body shaking. “Rafe. Stay with me Rafe.Please.”

She spread her hands across his chest, trying to force her will upon his broken body. He couldn’t die. Not here and now. Not protecting Bree. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair. Rafe was the best fae she’d ever met, and he couldn’t die. Not like this. Not for a very, very long time tocome.

“Have they gone?” he hissed his words through clenched teeth. Eyes wild, Bree scanned the rocky canyon below. There was no sight of their attackers, though Bree hadn’t seen them in the firstplace.

“I don’t see anyone,” shesaid.

“Go get the Prince,” he hissed through painful gasps. “He will know what to do. He is the only one who can helpme.”

Bree hesitated. She couldn’t just leave Rafe here, out in the cold, all alone. What if the attackers came back? What if they wanted to finish off what they’d started? And besides, the Prince would probably kill her once he found out what had happened. He would blame Bree. Hewould—

“Bree, please.” Rafe squeezed her hand. “Go get Taveon. Andhurry.”

Bree took several steps back and nodded, her heart trembling in her chest. Rafe looked bad. Really bad. He’d been shot multiple times and blood poured out of every wound, soaking his glistening skin. With a deep breath, she tried to focus on his words, to focus on histraining.

She would be so much faster if she could run back to the castle in her beastlyform.

Closing her eyes, she pictured the beast within her mind’s eye. The mangy fur, the sharp claws, the eyes that glowed underneath a moonlit sky. As she kept her focus on the image of the beast, her body began to shift and strain, her beast’s muscles ripping through the beautiful gown that Dagen had given to her for thisnight.

And then she was off, tearing through the thick branches of the forest. Her paws pounded the ground, kicking up dirt. Her ears pricked as they picked up the sounds all around her. Chirping crickets, dragonflies, the rustle of small creatures darting out of herway.

That hunger she usually fought so hard to hold back wasn’t there. She was far too focused on the run. On getting back to the castle. On finding Taveon so that he could saveRafe.

When she reached the castle, she used her claws to scale the wall outside her window. Her muscles strained as she climbed higher and higher, her raging heart trembling in her massive chest. When she finally climbed inside, her breath was ragged, but she didn’t have time to slow down now. She calmed her mind and shifted back from the beast, grabbing a robe from the closet before tearing out herdoor.

The guards were nowhere in sight. Likely, Taveon had called them off when he’d discovered she’d gone to the ball. That or they hadn’t returned from wherever Dagen had sent them earlier in thenight.

She stormed through the corridor, flying past guards and Court members. When she reached the Prince’s chambers, she didn’t even bother knocking. She threw open the door and ran inside, heaving out great breaths of air through her painfullungs.

The Prince was inside, surrounded by Conlan, Dagen, andBranok.

He looked up, eyes widening in shock when he saw the state of Bree. “What in the name of the forest? Bree, you cannot be in here. Go back to your quarters now before the guards shoot you down. This time, they will not holdback.”

Whatever. She knew he hadn’t been the one to order her shot, and he wouldn’t do it now, no matter how inappropriate or non-Courtly this whole thing was. Rafe needed herhelp.

“Rafe’s in trouble. He’s hurt. He told me to come getyou.”

She didn’t know if she should say more than that. Dagen and Branok were both looking at her with an intense curiosity while Conlan was frowning. Obviously, this entire situation was way out of the ordinary. Bree was certain it wasn’t often that slaves stormed into Prince’s chambers and demanded to seethem.

In fact, she felt as though she could say with certainty that it had never happenedbefore.

The Prince’s face pinched together as he strode across the room. “Rafe is hurt? What’s happened? Where ishe?”

She winced. She didn’t really want to advertise to the council where she’d been and why. Even though Rafe had told her that Prince Taveon hadn’t been the fae to order the arrow, Bree understood what kind of position she’d put him in if the others found out where she’d been tonight. He would feel forced to punish her again. And she really did not want to endure any morepain.

“Can I speak to you outside? Alone?” she asked, keeping her eyes locked on the Prince’sface.

He frowned, but he didn’t argue. “Verywell.”

Outside in the hallway, Bree dropped her voice to a whisper, afraid the fae inside would hear her. They had enhanced hearing after all. “Please don’t get upset with him. Rafe wanted to show me Underworld. He flew me out of the castle to one of the nearby volcanos. Somehow, we were spotted and...well, we were attacked. He got shot in the chest several times. He’s bleeding pretty heavily. The pain is so bad he’s unable to shift. AndI—”

Bree’s voice cut off. She couldn’t bear to say any more. They needed to get moving. They needed to get to Rafe. Now, before something worsehappened.

Taveon’s jaw clenched, and deep shuddering breaths escaped from his lungs. “Whichvolcano?”

“He called it VolcanoFate.”

“Of course that would be the one.” He gave a nod. “Thank you for tellingme.”

Prince Taveon turned to stride down the hallway, and Bree had to run to keep up with him. “Don’t you want me to come with you and show you where heis?”

The Prince stopped abruptly, grabbing her roughly by the shoulders. “Go to your room and lock the door. Do not let anyone inside. Do you understandme?”

Bree swallowed hard, eyes wide. She nodded, even though she wanted nothing more than to go with Taveon and make sure Rafe was okay. He wasn’t messing around though. This was not one of those times she should argue withhim.

“Good. Now,go!”

---