Page 127 of With Wing And Claw

As if a raincloud had pulled across the sun … but it wasn’t acloudthat moved outside the windows, dull shapes shooting back and forth behind the coloured glass. A winged silhouette— Another silhouette, this one closer—

‘Watchout!’ Naxi shrieked.

The sunlight turned a blinding red.

And with a deafening crash, every single gallery window exploded in a razor-sharp shower of glass.

Chapter 27

She did not evenhave time to cry out before the mob poured in.

Dozens of them.Hundredsof them. Many, many more than had ever left with Bereas in the first place, a sea of black and red as they swarmed into the gallery – eclipsing the light of day almost entirely with the sheer number of them. Magic crackled, and two statues flew apart beneath the eastern windows. More magic, and the flagstone floor cracked open, a fissure running all the way from left to right.

No.

No.

This could not be happening. This couldnot—

A statue burst into pieces, a flying marble hand missed her head by mere inches, and her body reacted before her mind had even begun to process the pandemonium around her. Drawing from her dress was a matter of instinct. Midnight blue – at least there wassomered in it, and it went hurtling at the face of a fae female diving towards them, cutting a bone deep gash through her forehead.

A dozen others were already filling her place.

Flames roared. Yndrusillitha had jumped to her feet with a speed that belied her physical age, a reflex older than this lifetime’s body; fire spilled from her hands in a blazing cascade and billowed between her and the attackers. Thysandra aimed her next burst of red at a fae trying to sneak around the burning shield. He spun to avoid the magic, then swivelled straight into the dome of fire instead – and for one spine-chilling moment, his howl of agony drowned out every other sound reverberating through the gallery.

Then he went down, wings still smouldering.

The smell of charred flesh came a moment later, putrid and nauseatingly sweet.

No time to gag. No time to breathe. On the other side of the hall, Naxi screamed ‘Sashka!,’ and her mind went blank for a moment – just a moment, and then the brightest ray of red so far exploded from her fingertips, taking down three fae at once. She tried to draw more and found there wasn’t a sliver of the colour left in her dress. Why the fuck had she decided to wearblue?

Because there shouldn’t have been an attack today.

Because therecouldn’thave been an attack – because the whole damn meeting was a secret and Bereas shouldn’t have even been able to come anywhere near the island – and gods help her, where was Naxi?

There were no more cries.

Through the swarming masses of fae, she could barely see the other side of the gallery.

‘You know what?’ Tared said, suddenly close behind her. His sword lay loosely in his grip; with his other hand, he was holding a bleeding Helenka on her feet. ‘Let’s delay the rest of the meeting to another day. Lovely to have had a word with you, though, Your Majesty.’

No. No, no,no—

‘Great idea,’ Delwin panted, limping towards the two of them with a grimace of pain. ‘Not in an urgent hurry to lose another leg, I must say.’

Feet away from them, a handful of fae dropped from the air without warning. Was that Naxi’s work, then? But their faces didn’t show that telltale demon agony, and only then did Thysandra catch sight ofNenkhet – standing beneath the swirling ring of phoenix fire with eyes as dark as ink, a trickle of blood seeping from her pale, clenched fist.

Blood magic.

She hadn’t missed the sight ofthat.

‘Right,’ Tared grimly said, no longer nearly so casual as he all but pushed Helenka into Delwin’s chest. ‘Time to leave. Drusa—’

The phoenix fire abruptly sizzled out as Yndrusillitha yanked back her arms, grabbed a blank-faced Nenkhet by the shoulder, and began dragging her towards the other three. A howl of excitement went up among the fae circling above them, and then they were diving down, down, down—

Delwin’s hand clamped onto Helenka’s bicep.

Yndrusillitha’s fingers closed around Delwin’s wrist.