Page 55 of The Lost Siren

“You’re all so blind! To think ahumancould by aspy!”

I saw my chance to literally put D’Arcy off balance and took it. I leapt, surprise breaking across D’Arcy’s face as my weak,humanbody easily passed through his shield, not even considered a threat. I wrapped my arms around his legs and justhung on. It was all I had strength to do.

“GET OFF!”

D’Arcy teetered, off-balance with me dragging him down. Benedict took the opening as the shield fell and slashed his brother across the chest, causing D’Arcy to roar in pain. I managed to unsheathe my remaining dagger and stabbed it down in his foot as hard as I could, pinning his foot to the ground underneath. Then D’Arcy was attackingme, spitting in rage as I felt claws and teeth pummel my body. Instead of trying to get away I latched on, holding him down and rendering him unable to defend himself despite the abuse to my body. Benedict hesitated, so I decided for him. Using my short sword, I stabbed D’Arcy again in the thigh, finally bringing him to the ground. Kieran was suddenly next to me, not hesitating as he opened D’Arcy’s throat and spilled his blood all over the rocks. The white magick on his fingertips fizzled and died. His body tried to heal itself, then fizzled out.

“Part of Sabien’s sacrifice; no one who intends to do our people harm will survive.”

We stood as a sad group as we watched D’Arcy die, sneering and goading us even as he bled out.

“The Overlord will come again withmore, and he will hunt down every last one of you until our race is wiped from the planet. You should have—" He choked on his own blood, but none of us moved a muscle, “—justdied. We’d be on Lyoness right now. My mate would bealive.Youdid this Benedict.” He gave a final cough and went still.

I turned to Benedict to tell him it wasn’t true; none of this could possibly be his fault. He heard D’Arcy’s confession himself, surely, he wouldn’t believe his poisonous lies!

Benedict was already gone and across the pit, keening over Sabien’s body. He gently lifted his nephew’s head into his lap, stroking his blonde hair away from his face. Every Draken left standing kneeled, their claws held up with palms facing out. It would have made me feel better if Benedict had cried or screamed or did anything to outwardly express his grief. Instead, he sat there cradling Sabien, silent and unmoving as stone. Gelf stood next to Benedict with Pirth and Wyrren, covered in blood but mostly uninjured.

“It should have beenus. We have lived long enough.”

I felt his regret in my soul. My legs swayed, and pain in my neck raced throughout my whole body. Kieran glanced at me and put one hand respectfully on Benedict’s arm.

“My king, please—"

Benedict shook him off violently, which was at odds with the gentle way he laid Sabien’s body back down. He stood and faced me, and I would have been terrified at the anger radiating from him if I hadn’t already been so consumed by pain.

“Benedict,no, she is not our enemy!”

He grabbed me by the hair and yanked me up, and it was hard to tell which pain was worse; that or the rest of my body. I hung there, unable to fight him. I understood his pain; understod what I represented: the one who had takeneverythingfrom him. The other Drakens began to speak up, incredulous at his treatment of me.

“She fought with us—"

“Bledfor us—"

“Kept us together in time for you to come!”

“The black magick would have killed her if she were a traitor!”

“Sabien trusted her. You aren’t going to let his death mean nothing, are you?”

Gelf was the last to speak, the three elder Drakens the only ones who dared to reproach their king. Benedict slowly released me when it became obvious he was about to have a mutiny on his hands. I crumpled to the ground and Kieran caught me, saving my head from meeting a large rock. He pulled his hand back, wincing at the amount of blood pouring from the back of my neck.

“Heal the fang marks, Benedict.”

The King of the Drakens was already storming off, and Kieran chased after him, leaving me on the ground to Ronan’s gentle hands. Gelf blocked Benedict’s path, his face so ferocious looking that Benedict paused.

“Heal the fang marks, or I will challenge you.”

Benedict laughed, an ugly sound that echoed loudly off the stone walls.

“And if you defeat him, I will be next.” Wyrren’s large hand landed on Gelf’s shoulder.

“And then me,” Pirth added. Benedict stopped laughing, his face ugly.

“And then us.” Kieran and Ronan both stepped in front of me, and then as one every Draken rose to their feet, clasping shoulders.

“And me.”

“And us!”

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