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C ora tried to keep her bow steady as she confronted the prince, but her body was racked with tremors. It had been one thing to watch her carefully laid plans end in a bloodbath as Gringe, Hammond, and Sam turned on the prince and his friends. She’d waited in her tree for the fight to end, knowing she’d have to take down the victor. She hadn’t expected Teryn Alante to battle his friend over the fate of the unicorn, nor had she anticipated the Beast. As soon as it had threatened the unicorn, she had no choice but to act. Now it was gone, but she didn’t know for how long. Her arrows left it wounded. Would that be enough?

Teryn stared at her, his spear still clutched in his hand, forearm stained with blood beneath an open wound at his inner elbow. His falcon watched her with unblinking eyes, daring her to make a single move that would harm the bird’s master. Or was the prince—like Cora was to Valorre—the falcon’s friend ?

Teryn’s eyes narrowed. “You’re the one who poisoned the rum.”

“And you drank it. So why aren’t you dead?”

She expected terror from him. Or rage. Anything but the weary answer he gave. “I didn’t drink. It only touched my lips.” He gulped. “Will I die?”

She released a sigh and let down her bow halfway. “No, but do you recall the promise you made?”

He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his brow. “That I wouldn’t come near another unicorn.”

“Or else I’d kill you,” she finished for him.

His eyes were unfocused when he opened them. “It seems today is a day for breaking several promises.”

She huffed a laugh. “Do you expect me to break mine?”

“I…I didn’t know.”

“Didn’t know what?”

His gaze sharpened and slid to the unicorn. “I didn’t know what it took to remove a unicorn’s horn.”

Cora felt the blood leave her face. Before she’d witnessed Prince Teryn’s fight with the man he’d called Helios, she hadn’t known either. She’d assumed the horn had to be severed, not…cut from the unicorn while it was still alive. Did Valorre know?

Teryn met her eyes. “I’ll never do that,” he said, tone laced with conviction. “I’ll never take a unicorn’s horn.”

She considered his words, opened her senses to try and feel if he was lying. Not that she trusted her observations. “You lied when you said you worked for no one.”

“I didn’t lie.”

“I saw the writ your friend had.”

Teryn glanced at the dead man, then winced, as if he’d forgotten the carnage. He shook his head. “I don’t know what that was, but I can only guess it was a forgery. Why would we work for anyone? I’m the Crown Prince of Menah. Helios was the Prince of Norun. Prince Lex?—”

Teryn stiffened. His spear slid from his hand as he whirled around. The motion sent the falcon launching off his shoulder to land in a nearby branch. Cora drew her arrow, following Teryn’s every move as he crouched down beside a man Cora hadn’t realized was alive until now. “Lex!”

Cora hesitated, watching the two, before letting down her bow.

The man named Lex lay on his side, his arm pressed to his chest. Blood stained his silk shirt, marring the gold brocade of his frayed waistcoat. “What the bloody hell, what the bloody hell…” Lex repeated over and over. Finally, he met Teryn’s gaze. “What the bloody hell was that thing?”

“The Beast,” Cora said.

Teryn glanced over his shoulder at her. “You know what it was?”

She nodded. “It…works with the hunters. They feed the unicorns to it.”

“Why did it…” His voice trailed off as his eyes landed on the body of his dead companion. “Why did it attack Helios? It barely spared me a glance, but it went straight for him.”

“I don’t know.” With slow steps, she approached the body. A few feet away, she found a discarded dagger. Gingerly, she picked it up, noting its white spiral blade. All at once, she sensed a dense, murky energy that buzzed against her palms, burning the ink there. The feeling was so strong, her lungs began to contract. Dropping the blade, she launched a step back.

Hide that , Valorre said. Cora startled at his sudden appearance behind one of the trees outside the camp. There he remained, not daring to take a step within the clearing. Sheathe it. Cover the blade. The abomination is drawn to our horns .

Her heart slammed against her ribs. She glanced at the waning campfire. I could feed it to the flames , she said in her mind.

It will not burn .

She considered simply leaving it where it lay or burying it in the ground. But the idea that someone else could find it, wield it…

Worse, she imagined the Beast returning, unearthing it, devouring it. She wasn’t sure why the Beast was drawn to horns, why the hunters fed it starving unicorns. But there had to be a reason. Whatever it was, Cora needed to do whatever it took to keep the Beast from consuming another horn.

Without a second thought, she reached for the white-bladed dagger again and dropped it into her quiver. As soon as it struck the bottom, she felt its dark energy recede. Relief flooded through her. Now she just had to hope that her inability to sense the horn anymore meant the Beast couldn’t either.

She returned her attention to the two men—only to find Teryn removing his shirt. Momentarily shocked by the unexpected sight, she could do nothing but stare at the flex of his shoulder muscles as he drew his tunic over his head and immediately set to tearing it into strips. He tied the first one around the cut on his arm, then crouched by Lex and began to dress his friend’s wound.

We must go , Valorre said.

Cora shook her head to clear it and tore her gaze from the two princes. She knew Valorre was right. It was madness to linger. The Beast could be back at any moment. There was but one thing left to do.

She jogged over to the unicorn’s cage. The creature within trembled as she brought her knife to the ropes and severed the bindings. The front of the cage fell open, but the unicorn did not move. “Go,” Cora said, voice soft. “You’re free.”

A sharp sound pierced the quiet of the camp. Cora startled at the noise, as did the unicorn. In a flash, it darted out of the camp in a blur of gray. She whirled around, finding Teryn behind her, hands pressed together. That was when she understood the sound had been a clap.

Cora glared at him, keeping her eyes anywhere but below his chin. He’d donned his hunting vest again, but he’d only secured the bottommost closures. Which meant he might as well still be topless. “You didn’t have to scare it like that.”

He lifted a shoulder in a fatigued shrug. “Perhaps fear will keep it well out of the monster’s range.” With that, he turned away from her and strode back to his friend.

She watched him walk away, her argument dying on her tongue. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, he was right. The unicorn needed to get far away from here, no matter what. And so did she. Casting a final glare at his back, she made her way to Valorre. He remained in shadow at the edge of the clearing.

The stout one is badly wounded , Valorre said.

Cora followed Valorre’s line of vision and saw Teryn and Lex walking toward three tethered horses. She noted the way Lex continued to cradle his arm to his chest. “Why should I care? Let’s go.” She skirted around him but Valorre remained rooted in place.

The tall one tried to save my brethren from the dead man . He radiated with something like awe. Gratitude.

“Weren’t you the one telling me I should have killed him at the stream?”

Maybe I was wrong , he said with a touch of indignation. Maybe he and I both were .

Cora bit the inside of her cheek, urgency propelling her to leave the men behind. She owed them nothing. If anything, they owed her for warding off the Beast.

Valorre scraped the earth with a hoof.

“Fine,” Cora said between her teeth. She crossed the camp, trying to ignore the dead bodies she stepped over, and approached Teryn and Lex. Teryn was trying to aid his friend into his horse’s saddle, but Lex kept losing his balance. “Let me see the wound.”

Teryn whirled around, brows knitted. “Excuse me?”

She ignored Teryn, addressing Lex directly. “Your arm. Show me.”

He eyed her from head to toe. “Like I’d trust you. Did you not just poison an entire camp?”

“They were bad men,” she said, swallowing down the guilt that crept up from her heart. “Did you not see the brands on their necks? Besides, I had to stop them from hurting more unicorns. This was the only way I could do so on my own.”

Lex scoffed but said nothing more.

“Show me your arm.” When he still refused to move, she added, “You’ll have a much easier time riding if you don’t bleed to death.”

“I wrapped it well,” Teryn said.

She turned her scowl to him. “You bandaged his wound with your filthy shirt. Did it never cross your mind to use a clean one?”

“Did it ever cross yours that perhaps we don’t have any? We’ve been traveling for?—”

“Then I assume you were planning to eventually stop, boil fresh strips of cloth, disinfect the wound, and pack it with a poultice. And that’s only if he doesn’t also need sutures.”

Teryn said nothing, only held her gaze, jaw set. Finally, he relented. “Just let her see it.”

Lex eyed her through slitted lids several moments before he too seemed to relent. With a roll of his eyes, Lex extended his arm. Cora stepped close and knew at once it was bad. The bandages were already soaked through over what appeared to be three gouges. She opened her senses to him and discovered just how much pain he was hiding. His arm radiated with the severity of his wound. She could feel it darkening her senses, could almost see it in her mind’s eye as she took his arm with gentle fingers. Peeling back a corner of the bandage, she caught a glimpse at part of the wound. It only confirmed what she’d already felt. “Is that from…”

“The monster kicked me out of the way with its hind leg,” Lex said stiffly.

Again, Cora debated turning her back and leaving them to their own fates, but she could feel Valorre’s reproach from here. When did he get so softhearted? She let go of Lex’s hand and released a sigh. “The wound needs sutures and a poultice. Come.” She turned and waved for the men to follow. “Gather your horses. I’ll help you.”

“I don’t want your help.” Lex’s tone was laced with venom.

Cora threw a look over her shoulder. “Do either of you know how to stitch a wound? Disinfect it? Do you know which herbs will relieve pain and calm inflammation? Which ones will stave off infection?”

Teryn and Lex exchanged a glance. Of course they didn’t. According to Teryn, both men were princes. Royals had no need to learn first aid. The Forest People, however, were well versed in healing, even those whose Art didn’t specialize in the craft.

“Have you any particular fondness for that arm?” she asked.

Lex huffed. “Of course I do. What kind of question?—”

“Unless you want it amputated after infection sets in, come with me.” She left the camp and didn’t wait to see if they’d follow.