Page 40 of A Warrior's Fate

“Only with you, my gift.” His tease caressed the shell of her ear again before he pulled back. “This little game of ours has proven to be a joy that’s been hard to come by lately. I might actually miss it.”

Miss it. Not her. Just their dance around destiny, their defiance of a deity. Their game. That was it.

Thankfully, before any type of sting could settle upon being relegated to entertainment, a loud howl rang through the air, urgent and alarming. They broke away from each other, turning in the direction in which it came. It seemed as if the entire world had arrested again—the wind, bugs, fire—even for those down below.

Isla’s blood rushed, and her heart began thrumming wildly. Her hand went straight into her pocket, feeling the marker’s edges. If it weren’t for the mutual reactions, she would’ve thought she’d hallucinated. “Is that—”

The howl came again, cutting her off. A confirmation. Everyone down below began running.

Her mouth fell open as she stepped back, and Kai, her opposite, moved forward, placing his hands on the railing as his eyes narrowed on the top of the Wall in the distance. “The Gate—someone’s coming through it.”

Isla had taken off for the stairwell before he even finished his sentence.

“Who do you—Isla!” She heard Kai shout from behind her. “What are you doing?”

“What do you think?” She nearly ripped the door off its hinges getting it open.

Mind and body buzzing, she took the steps as fast as she could, focusing on her feet so she didn’t fall over, occasionally jumping to a landing when she could manage the distance and impact.

The door above never had a chance to close. Kai’s voice echoed through the chamber down to her. “Are you supposed to leave?”

“No!”

Kai grumbled something under his breath, reverberated by the cavern, about how she didn’t listen to anything before his steps thundered down her same path, the exit slamming behind him with a bang that made her flinch and nearly stumble. She didn’t care enough to protest him following her. Her mind was focused on the Gate, the marker, the Trainee, and those things alone.

When she broke out of the side door, Isla wasn’t sure exactly where she was going. The world on the ground felt different. The atmosphere felt charged, overwhelming. In the distance, thanks to the moonlight, she caught the specks of those from the fire. They had to have some sense of direction.

Just as Kai made it to her, opening his mouth to speak, she was off again. “Un-fucking-believable.” She heard him curse.

“Thank you!” She threw the words haphazardly over her shoulder.

The dry grass crunched beneath her shoes as she sprinted across the open field, pushing herself so hard that the crisp air and smoke burned her lungs. What she’d give to have a handle on her wolf again. But there wasn’t time to try working out a shift. She didn’t have the patience or fortitude to recover from the pain, to deal with the disappointment of not being ready or fully healed.

The Wall loomed as Isla drew closer—for the first time since she’d gone behind it. Her breath hampered but not in exhaustion. She fought back the paranoia, the demons, the darkness, the fear, pressing forward despite it, unsure of how long it could be kept at bay.

Her battered body was nearly depleted by the time she could sense a crowd—hear them, smell them, finally see the faint glow of lights and torches. The top of the Gate’s wrought iron blended into the night, only the bottom illuminated. The shadows of the spectators danced large and menacing on the stone around it.

She slowed to a stop, observing the scene from a distance. People were pocketed all along the field, some daring to stand close and others maintaining a separation from the wretched land. Everyone here had not come from the infirmary, judging by the various types of dress. The call from an emerging hunter, followed by the signal from the Gate’s surveyor, could be heard for miles.

She’d never witnessed a re-emergence—unconscious for her own and not present for Adrien’s or Sebastian’s. What she expected was excitement, celebration…but everyone just seemed distraught. Taking a couple of steps closer, mingling into the horde of those deciding to keep some space from the Wilds, she began picking up on some of the words spoken. Her heart gradually filled with foreboding.

Something was wrong.

The Gate should’ve already been opened, waiting for the hunters to come through.

She perked up when she spotted a silhouette, one she could find in any crowd.

“Adrien!”

The Heir spun, face laden with confusion at her nearing form. “Isla? What the hell? Where’ve you been?” He looked her over as if searching for injuries. “We went to your room, and you weren’t there.”

We, she assumed, were him and her brother, wherever he’d gone off to as he was nowhere in sight.

Isla opened and closed her mouth, unsure how to answer—certainly not with that she was in a battle of wanton wits with her mate—so she didn’t. Instead, she faced the Gate. “What’s happening?”

“It’s stuck.”

Isla jumped as Kai’s voice came from behind her, even if she knew he’d been tailing. She would’ve thought he’d been closer, but he must’ve stopped to ask questions.

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