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Chapter Fourteen

Samara

“Thanks, love,” I told Kieran when I tossed him back his sword.

“No problem, sweetheart.” He flicked the blade to the side to get some of the blood off before resheathing it across his back.

“What should we do about that?” Alaric pointed at the three statue-like howlers as he sauntered over and crouched down to wipe his blade clean on the bottom corner of Demetri’s pants.

The three of us slowly approached the howlers, who didn’t react to our presence at all.

“That’s creepy,” Desmond said as he moved closer to Roth.

“Death. Awaken,” Roth murmured as they tried to get closer to the hounds, only to be tugged back by their elder brother.

“I think whatever magic was used to bring them back from the dead didn’t bring back the essence of what they are,” I thought out loud.

“Like their instincts, what made them predators, are missing. It feels like my earth magic is repulsed by their very presence. They’re just empty vessels that can take commands, and it didn’t occur to Demetri to order them to attack us. ”

“Your husband was an idiot,” Taivan rumbled. “What’d you ever see in him anyway?”

“Ex-husband,” Kieran and Alaric said at the same time.

“Dead ex-husband.” Roth smiled.

I rolled my eyes. “Let’s chalk up my failed marriage to the foolish and idealistic views of my younger self.” I frowned at the hounds. “We should destroy the collars. If it’s a spell that’s reanimating them, that should allow their bodies to return to the earth.”

We all looked at the creatures.

“So . . . uhh . . . who’s going to do it?” Kieran scratched his head.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Roth growled, then the ropes that had returned to their forearms shot out and slipped underneath the collar of the nearest hound before ripping it free and tossing it to me. Within seconds, the howler fell apart into a pile of rotting flesh and bones.

I stepped back with a gag, and the others followed suit.

Apparently, we didn’t even have to destroy the collar, just remove it.

With a grimace, Roth’s brothers stepped forward and snapped the collars off the remaining howlers.

The beasts didn’t even move, just crumbled as soon as the leather broke contact with their bodies.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here.” I stared at the carnage around us before my gaze lingered on Demetri. His death had been too quick, but I was still glad it’d come at my hands.

I looked up to find Kieran also staring at Demetri’s corpse, a troubled look on his face that I didn’t like one bit. Demetri might have been dead, but the pain of his words was clearly still lingering in Kieran’s mind.

Before I could say anything, the storm kicked up a notch, and the rain became more like buckets of water being dumped on us.

“This way,” Severen called from where he and Celestina waited in the forest. I shoved some loose strands of hair away from my face and reached out to grab Kieran’s hand, pulling him with me.

Alaric glanced at his friend in concern and fell into step next to me. Roth was already bundled up between their brothers—and grumbling loudly about how they never wanted to be outdoors again.

I’d build them the library of their fucking dreams once this was all said and done.

We’d been walking for no more than five minutes when Severen and Celestina suddenly stopped.

Everyone halted with them and looked around.

Because of the damn rain, I could barely see twenty feet in front of me and definitely couldn’t hear that far.

All I could smell was the damn forest and the faint scent of ozone as lightning cracked across the sky.

“Run,” Severen breathed out.

We all took off without second-guessing the order. Celestina yelled something harshly and Taivan immediately snapped Roth up and flung them over his shoulder, then peeled from the group, going left with Desmond hot on his heels.

Severen darted to my side. “Samara, take your group and go west. We’ll keep going north. All three groups will meet—” He shoved me away, and I crashed into Kieran just as a bolt sank into Severen’s shoulder.

Our group ground to a halt in the middle of a clearing, Kieran and Alaric on either side of me and the three rangers just to our right. Lightning flashed, and I inhaled sharply as I saw the dark forms taking shape in front of us, becoming easier to distinguish as they closed the distance.

Carmilla sat atop an enormous black steed, and behind her, in two neat lines, were a dozen rangers also on horseback. Just like with Demetri, I had no doubt there were others in the trees surrounding us.

This wouldn’t be like fighting Demetri and his rangers. For one, House Laurent wasn’t known for creating strong warriors. Their rangers did the bare minimum to protect their lands.

A wordless whisper brushed against my mind.

Demetri also hadn’t had a crown capable of warping minds.

That was the true danger. Panic threatened to overwhelm me, but I shoved it down.

Severen was letting out pained breaths behind me, and I could hear Celestina ripping fabric to tend to his wound.

We already had one injured in our party, and two of our strongest fighters were hopefully getting Roth as far away as possible.

There would be no fighting our way out of this one. Unless . . .

I did my best to ignore Carmilla drawing her mount to a stop ten feet away in front of me, her rangers obediently stopping behind her. I followed the strange connection between me, Draven, and Vail. There. Less than three miles from us.

Still not great odds, but I was fairly confident that the crown’s magic wouldn’t work on me.

In the past, it hadn’t worked on anyone who had drunk a lot of my blood, which meant Kieran and Alaric should be protected.

Maybe Nyx too, although it’d been well over a week since they’d had some, and they hadn’t drank all that much to begin with.

Everyone else was vulnerable. I just needed to buy us time until Vail and Draven arrived.

Carmilla had purposely driven us into this clearing because their horses wouldn’t help them much in the thick of the forest. If we could cause a big enough distraction and get to the trees, we might be able to make a run for it.

During our standoff with Carmilla, the rain had decreased to a steady but less overwhelming amount.

“I thought I raised you to make better decisions than this, niece.” Carmilla’s dark green eyes looked almost black, but I could still see the disdain in them.

Stall , I told myself. Stay calm and keep her talking.

“And I thought you were honorable and dedicated to your people, aunt,” I said coolly. “It seems we’re both disappointed.”

Carmilla shook her head. “You’re too weak to do what it takes for our people to survive.

I tried to give you an opportunity, but you’ve spat on my reasonable requests.

” Her mount took a step forward. “Surrender. Return with me. You will marry Demetri and give me an Heir. One who will do right by me.”

I felt Alaric and Kieran go still at my sides. It was an empty threat because she didn’t know Demetri was dead. Still, it hurt to hear it from her lips.

Gods, we’d all been such fools. It still smarted that the woman we’d all respected as the Leader of our House had been the villain all along and not a single one of us had seen it.

That was something I’d have to come to terms with later. For now, we needed to survive—and I wanted more information.

It wasn’t hard to let the pain of betrayal show on my face. “What did you just say?” I let my voice crack a little.

“Don’t play coy, Samara.” Carmilla narrowed her eyes. “You must have some idea of the importance of your bloodline by now.”

I swallowed and looked at the ground like I was defeated before saying quietly, “I’m part Fae.”

“Yes. Courtesy of your father. Knew there was a reason I never liked him.” My aunt shook her head in disgust. “As soon as he came into the picture, my sister stopped listening to me. I should have killed him then. If I had, perhaps things would have played out differently.”

She didn’t look all that heartbroken about it.

“We both know that’s bullshit,” I snarled.

“Was it even Velika’s idea to kill them?

Or was it an idea you whispered in her ear?

” I took a step forward, only for someone to grab me and yank me back against a hard chest. Kieran’s scent wrapped around me, but I just stared at my aunt.

I thought about that scar running across Vail’s face.

“You tried to kill us .” The words were barely more than a whisper.

For a second, something like regret flashed across Carmilla’s face, but it was gone faster than the lightning dancing across the sky.

“I told your parents to leave you behind, but as usual, they didn’t listen to me.” A cold mask settled onto my aunt’s face.

“Probably because they suspected you were a traitorous bitch!” I hissed, my hand slipping down to the dagger on my thigh, only to be stopped when Alaric clamped his fingers around my wrist.

Something dark and angry twisted inside my soul, and Carmilla’s horse stamped its feet uneasily.

Magic. It was my magic I was feeling. Pity I had no idea how to use it. I took a deep breath. Now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. I needed to be stalling, not picking a fight and probably getting someone I loved killed.

I did my best to ignore the earth magic churning inside me and instead sank further into my Moroi side, letting my bloodlust rise that much more. At least this magic I was familiar with. I let my nails shift into claws that bit into my flesh when I clenched my fists, the pain grounding me.

“You condemned Draven for being half Fae, yet you want a grandchild ‘tainted’ with the same blood?”