Page 13

The world still smelled like blood and smoke, and the trees whispered with the echoes of her screams. I couldn’t stand still. My pulse hammered in my ears, loud and punishing, drowning out reason.

“She’s gone,” I said, and the words burned. “They took her.”

“I know.”

I lunged at him before I could stop myself, grabbing his shirt and slamming him into the nearest tree. Bark cracked behind him, but he didn’t fight back. Just let me pin him there.

“Then why are you standing here?” My voice broke. “Why are you wasting time?”

“Because someone has to keep you from getting yourself killed.”

I shoved him again, but this time, he grabbed my wrist. “Stop.”

The command in his voice hit like ice water. I pulled back, but the fight bled out of me as fast as it had come. I let go, stepping back, my chest heaving.

“I need to go,” I said. The words spilled out before I could stop them. “I need to find her. Track them. Burn their whole damn camp to the ground if I have to.”

“No,” Kael’s voice was steady and calm, but it hit like a punch in the gut.

My head snapped up. “No?”

“There’s a better way.”

I laughed, but it was a bitter, broken sound. “A better way? They took her. They could be killing her right now by draining her blood or whatever other hellish machination they have in mind. And you think we have time for a better way?”

“I’ll go.”

The words stopped me cold.

Kael straightened, brushing dirt from his clothes. “I’ll infiltrate their ranks. Get inside. Find her.”

I stared at him. “You think they’ll just let you in?”

“They don’t know me.” He shrugged. “Not like they know you. And they’re looking for her. Not me.”

“No.” I shook my head. “No, I’m not sitting here while you—”

“Yes, you are.” His voice cut through mine, sharp and final. “You’re staying here. With your people. If they come back—and they will come back—you’re the only one who can stop them.”

“I don’t give a damn about this town!” The words tore out of me before I could stop them, because they were only half true. My voice echoed through the trees, but I didn’t care. “The only person I wanted to protect is gone.”

Kael stepped closer, his eyes hard. “And what do you think will happen if you leave? If you let this place burn?”

I clenched my fists, but he didn’t stop.

“You’ll come back to nothing. No home. No safe haven. Nothing for her to return to when we get her back.”

“When?” My voice cracked. “You’re sure of that?”

“Yes.”

The word hung between us, heavy and certain. I wanted to tear it down, rip it apart, but part of me, some small, desperate part, clung to it.

Kael exhaled and stepped back, giving me space. “I’ll find her,” he said. “I swear it. But you need to hold the line here.”

I didn’t answer. Not right away. My nails bit into my palms, and my teeth ached with the effort to stay in control.

But finally, I nodded. Just once.