“You see where he's going?” I whispered.
“He's going after the Coyote Lord,” Dalsharan whispered back. “Fuck, I have to save that bastard.”
I chuckled. “Just remember that this isn't about him. We're saving the Coyote Soul. It had to have been the stone that asked me for help. It knew it was still in danger.”
Dalsharan grunted.
We kept going, keeping several feet back until we saw the Farungal pause, watching the Coyote Lord's personal guards as they prowled around his tent. They, like the Hawks, were massive versions of their animals, standing as tall as a man. Fangs glinted as they pulled back their lips and scented the air. They'd surely smell the monster.
But they didn't. They prowled on, circling the tent at a steady pace.
“He must be masking his scent somehow,” Dal growled. “Fuck, there he goes!”
The Farungal waited for a space in the circling guards and then dove for the tent. He slid right beneath the bottom edge, squeezing his body through the slim slit made by the staked fabric. Dal darted after him and I followed. It didn't matter if the Coyotes sensed us at this point, once we were inside with the Farungal, we'd have all the proof we needed. We dove and crawled beneath the tent edge after the Farungal.
Before I could get to my feet, something hit me and everything went dark.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
I woke up in chains. Silver-lined iron manacles bound my wrists and ankles, and my cheek was pressed against a thick tent post. The chain between my wrist manacles had been looped over a hook, and I dangled from it. I groaned and got to my feet, feeling woozy even as I alleviated the pressure on my wrists. Something was wrong with me. Finally, I realized that it was my magic. The hawk inside me was gone, pushed down by my proximity to iron. My fae strength had dwindled too, and I felt like a human again.
“Ravyn,” Dalsharan called to me, worry tinging his voice.
“Ah, there he is,” a familiar voice purred.
I blinked as my hair was grabbed roughly and my head yanked to the left. “What the fuck?” I growled.
“Hello, pretty bird,” the Coyote Lord drawled.
My stare shot around me as I tried to process. In addition to the Coyote Lord and Dal, Kervel was also in the tent, sitting on the ground, his wrists bound to his ankles and his whole body a bloody mess. Dal's knight was naked and his eyes had a haunted look that twisted my stomach. A few feet to my left, Dalsharan was chained to a tent pole like me except that he faced outward. His face and chest were bloody and his hair hung wild around his bare shoulders, the pale strands stained red in places. He had pants on, but the rest of his clothes lay in a pile nearby, along with my tunic, sword, and satchel. Yeah, I was bare-chested like Dal, but I didn't feel any injuries. Maybe the Coyote Lord wanted me conscious before he started beating on me.
Dal met my stare with regret and apology.
“Kervel was just investigating the possibility of a traitor here. And there is one! We chased a Farungal into your tent,” I said urgently to the Coyote Lord. “I swear, we were trying to save you. Please, you have to listen to me. He could still be here!”
The Coyote Lord laughed as Dal hung his head.
Help me, the voice of the soul stone came again—the Coyote Soul. He has betrayed me.
“You fucking traitorous bastard,” Dalsharan whispered as if in confirmation of the stone's accusation. “How could you do this?”
“Wait. What?” I stretched my neck to try to see Brendallen better.
He has betrayed us all, the voice of the Coyote Soul held profound sadness.
“It was a trap, pretty bird,” Brendallen purred and stroked a finger down my cheek. “The Farungal Queen wanted the Hawk Lord, and I wanted you. We came to an arrangement.”
“What?!” I roared.
The Coyote Lord chortled. “Oh, don't get too full of yourself. I didn't ally with the Farungal just to get my hands on you. Gremara has found a way to unite our races and end this war. A child of mixed blood will break the curse and end their suffering. It will be a bridge between our races, one that will lead to a truce.” The Coyote Lord went grim. “I'm loyal to my people, but I knew they wouldn't understand. I trusted only my officers and guards with my plans. Most of them, at least,” he grumbled. “I had to kill those who didn't agree with me. I couldn't let them warn our king.”
“You actually want Gremara to have a mutant baby?” I growled.
Someone hissed nearby. I swung my head and saw a Farungal man step around a partition. Fuck, Brendallen really was in cahoots with the monsters.
Help me, his stone said.
Yeah, I'm a little tied up at the moment, I growled back in my head.
The Goddess and her Beasts are with you.
“Easy, Habbern,” the Coyote Lord held up a hand toward the Farungal. “You know he's mine.”
“Fine, but then you must stop marring the Hawk Lord,” Habbern grumbled. “My Queen will not be pleased when I bring him to her injured.”
“Queen?” I looked at Dal.
He nodded grudgingly. “We don't like to give her the title, but yes, Gremara is their Queen.”
“So, the fucking Farungal Queen wants to have a mutant baby, and you think this is a fabulous idea?” I snarled at Brendallen. “You're totally batshit!”
The Coyote Lord stepped around the pole I hung from so I could see him without straining. His stare wandered over my face and then my body. “You will be so much fun to train.” He drew a fingertip along my jaw, and I jerked away from him. That didn't go over well; he grabbed my hair and held me still. “I'm going to show you what a real man can do to you.”
“Yeah? I don't think so. You look like a pussy to me,” I drawled.
The Coyote Lord growled—as in seriously growled like an animal—and bared his teeth. Kervel whimpered and rocked himself.
“Ravyn, shut up,” Dalsharan hissed.
“He's mine now, Dal.” Brendallen's eyes flashed gold as prowled away from me and went to my lover. His black hair was loose, hanging around his slim shoulders; he flung it back with a toss of his head before he declared, “I will handle his rebelliousness.” Then he backhanded Dalsharan, who shook off the blow and bared his teeth. “Oh, it's such a shame they took your amulet away, you might have had the power to fight me. Alas, you're just another fae Hawk now. Even less than that in these manacles.”
“Leave him be!” the Farungal snapped.
“Hawk Lord,” Kervel groaned. “I'm so sorry.”