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Terror punched through me. My limbs turned numb.

“Lorian!”

He slumped against me. I grabbed the arm he’d wrapped around my waist and held on with all my strength.

He didn’t say a word. But I knew. They’d shot him in the back. The arrow hadn’t hit his heart, or he’d be dead already.

“Jump,” he ordered, his voice tight.

Their bolts contained fae iron. Lorian couldn’t use his powers now either. He was planning to lure the iron guards close, kill whoever he could with his sword, and go down swinging while I ran.

I slowly unwound his arm from my stomach.

“Good girl,” he muttered.

Condescending bastard. If he lived through this, I’d kill him myself. Instead, I swung the horse wide and threw my arm behind me. It only worked because Lorian weighed so damn much and because he hadn’t expected the move. He cursed as he fell off the horse, his body immediately swallowed by a tangle of trees and cluster of shrubs next to the trail.

Gods, I hoped that arrow hadn’t just found its way to his heart. But this was our only chance.

The horse tossed her head. I wrestled for control, and the path split. I had a choice to make. Left or right.

I steered left, my arm screaming at me as I pulled the reins. The horse was faster without Lorian’s weight, and we practically flew down the path. I drew her to a stop, and she bucked, refusing to cooperate as I attempted to guide her off the trail and into the forest itself.

The horse was panting, wild-eyed. I slipped off her, gently guiding her off the trail and behind a huge tree. She snorted, clearly unhappy. I couldn’t blame her.

“Come on, beautiful. Just for a few moments.”

Finally, she took a couple of steps, right as more shouts sounded behind me. I ducked, hoping the horse was hidden well enough.

Five or six iron guards charged past us. I had moments at most before they realized my hoofprints had disappeared. Taking a deep breath, I looked at the arrow in my arm.

This was going to hurt.

I had to push it through my arm, or I’d rip through too much flesh. Tibris had taught me enough about veins and arteries to know I had to be careful. I could practically hear him screaming at me.

“Projectiles stayinthe body, Prisca!”

Unfortunately, if I did that, I was dead. I had to take my chances and hope the arrow hadn’t hit anything important. At least if I could access my power, I had a chance at survival. Slipping a hand into the saddlebag closest to me, I groped around until I found a long bandage.

Hooves sounded. The iron guards were coming back this way.

I grabbed the shaft of the arrow with my other hand. Just that much jostling made me want to pass out. Sliding down, I leaned against a tree, panting through my teeth as I shoved a short branch between them, biting down.

My hand shook, but I snapped the end of the shaft, groaning around the branch in my mouth. My vision dimmed, and I forced myself to push the arrow through my arm, breathing deep.

If I passed out, I was dead.

“She’s over here!” one of the iron guards yelled. “I can see tracks.”

Live or die. This is it.

A muffled scream left my throat as agony blazed through my arm, but I kept pushing until the arrow popped free. Grabbing the bloody arrowhead, I pulled the rest of the arrow and shaft free, throwing it on the ground. My head turned lighter than air, my vision blurred, and I leaned over, bracing my good arm on my knees.

My other arm was drenched in blood.

Fae iron didn’t affect hybrids as much as it did the fae. But it still weakened us. And reaching for my power felt like crawling through mud.

Please…