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“Going with you will just end up being a death sentence for her, and she’s not willing to risk it again. Let her be with her family.”

“She has a little sister–”

They continued to talk over each other, speaking fast and low, making Nathair snap his skull one way and the other. He couldn’t deny what they were saying.

I always knew there would be a possibility she may not want me once she was with her people.He’d known it when he brought her here, but he’d taken that risk purely to save her life. It was true she’d almost died because of him, but she would have to know that was an accident.

He had vague memories of that morning; he remembered enough.

The human males sped up their discourse, muttering loudly and then quietly, and the sound of their colliding voices clashed with those already swelling in his mind. He groaned and clutched the side of his skull, trying to keep them at bay.

He’d slipped into many fragments in her absence.

The removal of his sound barrier – his coils – only made the chatter from the village mingle inside his head. Many scents flittered through the air: a light tangle of fear, food, plants, and creatures. There was even blood, forcing him to drown his tongue in drool and breathe through his mouth to combat how it made his orbs brighten in their red hue.

It’s dangerous for me to remain.

Yet Nathair produced a dark, possessive chuckle, and gave a universal hand gesture. One he’d seen his many fragments produce, no matter what land they came from.

He lifted his right hand, gave them his middle finger, and they both shut the fuck up. One’s eyes even widened in surprise.

I’m not leaving until that female comes out here herself.Until then, these people could send out whatever messengers they wished, and they would get the same response.

The only creature he trusted was his little nightingale. Not her father, the Anzúli that tried to make him leave as well, and absolutely not these men. Whether their words were the truth or lies, he wouldn’t follow anyone’s orders.

They both pulled out their weapons, two swords that glinted in the muted lighting from the heavy clouds above.

“We told you to fucking leave!” the right one stated, foolishly coming forward to kick at his tail with the bottom of his boot. “She doesn’t want you! Leave us be!”

He chuckled harder. It was the only thing keeping the rage at bay. It was the only thing stopping him from darting forward with his claws bared and rending these two in fucking half.

He released the tip of his tail and slipped it to the side. It caught the sides of their feet and sent them straight to their arses. As they were fighting to get up, Nathair reached down and grabbed the back collars of their metal-and-leather armour. They roared yells when he lifted them off the ground, their meaty legs dangling as they kicked, and he slithered towards the village gate.

He didn’t dare get too close, but he threw both men towards the partially open gate. They rolled, thumping and clattering against the dirt. The one that slid across the dirt on his front almost had his feet touch the back of his head, while the other skidded on his side.

Nathair turned, giving them his back as he moved a safe distance away. He returned to his place of rest, and once more waited, wrapping his tail around himself tighter when the space felt emptier without his warm, soft female.

You are running out of time, Linh.Because Nathair was patient, but he wasn’tthatpatient.

A hand slapping over Linh’s mouth shoved her into alertness within seconds. Blinded by the darkness of night, Linh struggled just as a scream to her right cut short.

An oil lap being lit brightened the infirmary and revealed four men.

Her stark expression and wide eyes flicked to Glenda, who lay in the other bed. With a knife held to her throat, the wielder placed his index finger over his lips to quieten her.

“Be quiet, Priestess.” He reached for the bottom of her mask to push it off. “I’ve always wanted to know what you guys look like under your masks.”

With a hand still over her lips to stop her from crying out, Linh wiggled in a poor attempt to help.Oh no. They’ll see she’s not human!

When the mask was pulled away, Glenda had her eyes clamped shut, likely to hide whatever glow they had. A head cap was tied around her hair just above her brow, hiding her third eye from view.

Linh settled at the realisation that the Anzúli people were wise enough to cover themselves even beneath their masks.

“I thought she’d be ugly, but she’s actually rather cute,” he stated, before one of his waiting companions grabbed his shoulder.

“Don’t. They’re not to be messed with,” he stated, eyeing her warily. “Apparently they leave curses on people. Turn them into harbingers of bad omens. Best to do what we came here for.”

The bandit with the knife to Glenda’s throat sneered but nodded. He was given a long strip of cloth, and he shoved it between her teeth before they bound her wrists and ankles together. They tied her hands to the headrest of the bed.