Page 72 of Dark Sun (Wicked Lovely 6)

Irial nodded. “Would that I could have looked after him myself. . .”

Katherine cleared her throat loudly. “Can we reminisce or whatever when he’s not imprisoned? And why”—if you both saw him—“did you not just set him free?”

Callisto laughed. “You are a good mate.”

“What’s say that we slip away before we have to involve Sorcha?” Ani suggested, voice barely a whisper now. “She’s not terribly fond of Ash as it is. Bad enough that Seth spends so much time with her, but now she’s captured Uri?”

Irial made a sweeping gesture, and a silver fold of air appeared. Katherine had seen it when she entered Faerie, but it was different to see it up close.

They stepped forward, and in the next moment, they were stepping out of the veil-like doorway. It seemed to reseal with a slithering sensation, as if it truly were some sort of multi-hued fabric.

Katherine jabbed her hand toward where the veil was, but there was nothing there.

“You can’t cross the veil without permission from both courts in Faerie,” Ani said.

“Or be Chaos,” Irial said.

“Or wild magic,” Callisto said.

“So how . . .” Katherine looked around at them: one former Dark King who was now Chaos, one wild magic in whatever shape she chose, and Ani. “What are you?”

“Errr, Shadow Queen, so you know, Dev asked his sister—the High Queen—and she said one of us could go,” Ani looked remarkably sheepish.

“Right, well, I can’t deal with”—Katherine waved her hand at the lot of them—“any of you right now. I just want to see Uri.”

“We can fight our way in!” Ani said in a far too cheerful voice. “Maybe not you, Iri? Can’t imagine that going too well . . .”

And though Katherine didn’t know Irial, she could see Urian in his expression as he weighed the merits of what he was doing. There was likely no one there that thought he was making a wise choice as he said, “The wolves still around, pup?”

Ani sort of shivered, and a growling noise filled the air—like bees but far, far louder. Her tattoos, almost all of wolves, seemed to be moving. The creatures’ red eyes gleamed so brightly that it was as if the whole of the woman was illuminated in red.

Then in a chaotic blur, wolves seemed to materialize. It was as if the ink jumped off her body and before it hit the earth, it shifted into a massive wolf-like creature.

Muzzles and tails, bone and blood, fear and muscle, each creature took form. Then they were suddenly surrounded by growling, red-eyed wolves the size of small horses.

Katherine wasn’t sure whether to be terrified or excited. She’d gone from “not in this world” to right in the heart of faery troubles.

They were a few blocks from where Urian was being held when Irial paused mid-step. “He asked for you.”

Katherine nodded.

“Idowant to come with you. I’ll attract enemies, though, so tell him . . . just tell him I came?” He looked less like the walking temptation that he’d appeared to be—not that she was tempted, but shegotit. He was an older version of Urian. Beautiful. Deadly.

“If you do this, Niall will be furious.” Ani nudged him with her shoulder. “Just wait at the Crow’s Nest or something. I’ll bring him to you.”

Then a scream of rage rocked them all back. Whatever caused that pain wasn’t a thing she wanted to face.

But there wasn’t much of choice now, for any of them. The wolves were running, and Ani ran with them. Irial and Katherine were both swept up in the race of fur and teeth.

No words. No hesitation.

Please let him be alive.

ChapterThirty-Two

Aislinn

From the comfort of her loft, the Summer Queen watched her beautiful garden fall to ruins from ice and shadows. Whatever else she was expecting today, this wasn’t it. She felt Winter Court and Dark Court in her domain, and a rage built in her skin that made her wonder if peace was at its end.

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