Page 3 of Shifter’s Promise (Devourer of Magic)

White-knuckling the reins, images of blood and gore splashed behind my eyelids.

So much pain. So much suffering. Beatings.

Torture . Death was a mercy in comparison.

I couldn’t even begin to describe the amount of times I wanted to end it all—but I didn’t, couldn’t.

As much as I wanted to die, my body wouldn’t let me, and neither would those fucking elves.

A growl tore from my throat, startling the horses. They whinnied and hopped, but I was quick to soothe them.

“Shhhh, it’s okay.” I shook my head. “You’re safe now.” I wasn’t sure who I was really talking to—me or them. Both, probably.

Cresting the hill, the capital came into view. Sprawling from the jungle’s edge to the coast, a city rose from grass and sand, a palace at its center. The golden dome glinted in the sun, nearly blinding me with its reflection. I looked away, down into the city shadowed by the looming sentinel.

“Bigger than I remember,” I mumbled. Much bigger. The city stretched several miles further than it once had. Thousands of people had to live here now. But there were only a few I wanted to see.

Anticipation boiled in my gut, twisting my stomach. Nerves prickled down my spine. I’m almost home . Mom might be gone, but my baby sister would be all grown up. Father would have aged too.

Would they even recognize me?

The thought hit so hard, I pulled back on the reins. The horses stopped and for the first time in a long while, I really assessed myself.

I was clean thanks to the amenities at Elherd’s manor. My clothes dwarfed my thin frame. At least they were fresh. My copper skin had dulled from being forced indoors ninety percent of the time. Faint scars littered my arms. Evidence of Elherd’s sick torture.

Reaching up, my fingertips grazed the raised ridge at my neck. The scar I’d be left with forever. It curled, wrapping around my throat. Though the welts had since healed, I would have this mark forever. The same one we all carried. The same one she carried.

Cinna flashed in my mind’s eye: crystal blue eyes ready to fight. Serene white hair. Pale olive skin, and that white scar cutting around her throat like a brand. She was wounded, she was scarred… but she was a goddess. I was almost certain her powers couldn’t be rivaled.

She would save us all. I didn’t know why I believed that so fervently, but I did. I trusted with all of my heart that Cinna would rid Auroi of slavers and free every captive soul.

I sighed then laughed. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be like her or be with her. The latter, I would have to compete with four large wolf males for. Since I wasn’t keen on that, I’d stick to wanting to be like her.

I could only imagine that kind of power.

I always wanted to save myself .

But I never had. Never could. I was weak, lonely, hurt—but I could be different. Better. I could learn to fight just like her. Wield magic of another kind. I just had to get home first.

Blinking from my thoughts, I snapped the reins. The carriage lurched forward.

Steadily, we descended the incline into the streets of Auroi.

People bustled by on the street, beastkin wrangling their cubs, vendors touting their wares.

It had been so long since I’d seen a street vendor that I nearly crashed the carriage while staring at a particularly delicious smelling meat stand.

I inhaled the scent, tasting the imaginary sizzle. I groaned.

Gods, I missed meat.

“Hey, watch it!” someone shouted.

I yanked back on the reins instinctually, eyes flying wide. The horses reared, pulling sideways as a feline beastkin hissed.

“You watch it!” I snarled. “Leave the horses be.”

“Take your elf lord elsewhere.” He spat at the wheels as the horses snorted and yanked against my hold .

I rolled my eyes. There was no elf lord, but he didn’t need to know that.

Trying to wrangle the horses back into step, I lost my grip as the left horse slammed into the other.

I barely caught the mischievous grin of the beastkin before the horses bucked and whinnied and thrashed.

Suddenly, the left horse pushed the other over with a pained whinny.

My eyebrows furrowed as I leapt off the carriage just in time for the right horse to bowl over the delicious meat stand. My heart sank.

A rage fueled scream stung my ears. I hurried to pull the horse away from the grill it had knocked over.

“What the fuck are you doing?” a man screamed. “My stand is ruined!”

I barely had the horse on its hooves before a thick hand wrapped around my forearm.

“You’ll pay for this, lass.” His growl reverberated through his chest, rumbling like a bear.

I snarled, my leopard leaping to the forefront of my mind with a growl of her own.

“It wasn’t my fault.” I looked around for the beastkin that had caused this. His brown hair disappeared into the crowd, but not before I caught his nasty wink. “Someone did something to the horses.”

I yanked my arm free, rubbing the space he’d touched while I tried not to freak out.

So many hands had grabbed me like that. So many it nearly sent me right back into Elherd’s manor.

Gooseflesh raced down my arms despite the stifling heat.

I circled the carriage to assess the other horse, dodging the vendor’s second grab .

“You’re not going anywhere without paying for this!” he snapped as he stomped after me.

Ignoring him, I crouched to assess the horse’s legs. It kept moving, prancing from hoof to hoof. Claw marks, red and bloody, scraped the horse’s long hind leg.

“Fucking bastard.” What reason did he have to hurt a defenseless animal?

A hand on my shoulder spun me to face the angry vendor. “You heard what I said right? You’re going to pay for this.”

I pointed at the horse’s leg. “Some asshole did this, not me. He injured my horse and caused this mess.”

The vendor glanced between the wound and my face skeptically. “How do I know that wasn’t there before?”

“They’re fucking bloody!” I nearly screamed. I couldn’t believe this. I wasn’t even home yet and someone was already fucking with me. Worst of all? It wasn’t even an elf or those slimy human shits. It was my own kind—beastkin of all people!

The vendor shrugged, his nails digging into my skin. “Pay for my stand or I’ll have the city guard here in minutes.”

Un-fucking-believable .

Snarling, I barely managed to keep my leopard contained. She was desperate to claw this fuckwad to bits. I’d let her if it wouldn’t mean more trouble.

“The city guard has nothing better to do?” I snarked.

Yanking me closer, the man towered over me, trying to intimidate me with his size. His earth bear scent grew with his closeness, overwhelming my predatory instincts.

Fight or flight?

An image of Cinna appeared before my eyes.

Fight.

Black claws shot from my nail beds, rage curling around me as I began to shift. Before I could, the bear flew back, his fingers torn from my skin. My eyes widened as he slammed into the sandstone wall of a nearby building.

How the fuck…

I blinked once, twice, as if the image would fade. But no, he remained unconscious with the wall crumbling around him.

“What scum.” A thick, raspy feminine voice made me jump.

Standing nearly shoulder to shoulder was a woman a head taller than me, broad shouldered, square jawed and wrapped in leathers.

“He knows exactly what that street trash did,” she continued.

Finally, she looked at me and my knees nearly gave out.

Her orange eyes blazed brighter than the sun, twin flames set in a deep olive complexion.

A smattering of freckles crossed her straight nose.

Her cheekbones could slice that bear shifter in two.

Long blonde waves descended over one shoulder, the other side partially shaved. I inhaled her citrus smell.

She was beautiful. Powerful. A beast of a woman.

My leopard recognized her by scent alone.

She was my mate .