With a savage roar, Lucian killed two more of the lajhár. “Fall back! Get to the portal!”
Kael led the way as they followed Lucian’s bellowed order without hesitation, but even as they tore through the forest, the bloodthirsty creatures gave chase. They were relentless in their pursuit.
The numbness was climbing higher up Effie’s leg, making her strides awkward and lurching. Each step was agony, and soon Effie was falling behind the others, a fiery burn starting to replace the numb ache.
“Don’t you dare,” Lucian snarled, swinging her up into his arms.
He was running, holding onto her with one arm while swinging his sword in the other. Effie soon gave up trying to do anything more than hold onto him as she bounced and slipped in his hold.
It felt like a lifetime before they reached the portal, but finally, they were back in the clearing they’d arrived in.
Effie let out a relieved cry as the infuriated creatures shrieked when they slammed into an invisible barrier. Whatever magic worked to conceal the portal was keepings the lajhár from getting close enough to follow them.
“Why didn’t we think about that sooner?” Ronan asked once Lucian and Effie came through the portal.
“Because no one thought they would actually get the better of us,” Lucian grunted, his frustration unmistakable. “I’m not used to having to retreat from something the size of a damn puppy.”
Lucian carefully set Effie onto her feet, but her knee buckled, unable to support her weight. It was only her Guardian’s impeccable reflexes that kept her from sliding onto the floor.
“What just happened?” Effie asked, her knuckles white where she gripped Lucian’s tunic.
Ronan let out a mirthless laugh. “Didn’t you hear? We just lost a battle against a pack of demented rodents.”
Kael scrubbed his good hand over his face, slumping against the wall. “The lajhár must have drank the water. It’s the only explanation for a total temperament shift like that.”
“The corruption was able to work that fast?” Kieran asked, his throat bobbing like he was about to be sick.
“Apparently,” Lucian muttered darkly.
“It’s not the only thing that works fast,” Reyna said, her usually sultry voice thin and frail.
Ronan snapped his attention to her. “What do you mean?”
Reyna winced in pain as she gingerly poked at the deep scratches along the left side of her face. “I can’t seem to see out of this eye.”
“Their claws were poisonous,” Effie interjected. “I didn’t notice at first, but it explains the severity of our injuries. I shouldn’t be having this much trouble walking from just a couple scratches.”
“You too?” Lucian asked Kael, who gave a weak nod.
Ronan bit off a curse. “Come on, let’s get you to the healers.”
Reyna slapped Ronan’s hands away as he tried to lift her. “My legs are perfectly fine, Shield.”
“Shut up and accept the help, woman,” Ronan growled.
“I still have one dagger left. Are you volunteering to be my target?” she panted in a saccharinely sweet voice.
“Mother’s tits, Reyna. You can be a cold bitch.”
“Just help me stand and lead the way. I’ll be fine,” the Night Stalker assured him.
Ronan looked ready to fight her over it, but was gentle when he helped her stand. “Come on, then.”
Reyna wove her arm through his and leaned heavily against him.
Effie started to limp behind them.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Lucian asked, stopping her with a hand on the arm.
“To the healers?” she said, thinking it obvious.
Lucian rolled his eyes. “As if I’d let you walk there on your own in that condition.”
Not too injured to feel annoyed, Effie scowled at him. “You don’t let me do anything, Guardian.”
Kael snorted. “Not the time, little warrior.”
Lucian gave her a tight-lipped smile and swept her back up in his arms. “It’s either this or ass-first over my shoulder, fledgling.”
“Fine,” she snapped, inwardly relieved she wouldn’t have to walk. It was getting hard to think straight with the shooting pain climbing ever higher up her body.
“Kael, will you be alright there until I get back?” Lucian asked.
The other Guardian gave a weak nod.
“I can help him,” Kieran said, straightening.
Lucian shot Kieran a look so filled with vitriol Effie couldn’t help but remember the night he’d made the man in the tavern piss himself. Not even she was immune to the promise of violence in her Guardian’s eyes.
“And why should anyone trust you to be helpful, princeling?”
Kieran’s pale cheeks turned crimson. “I’m more than capable of helping him walk down a few hallways.”
“Are you? Only this morning you abandoned us in that cave. I still haven’t quite figured that out, by the way. Were you scared or simply throwing a tantrum?” Lucian laughed, but it was a sound devoid of humor. “Either way is hardly a point in your favor, is it? In fact, I can’t recall the last time you did anything remotely selfless.”
“I warned you about my dream!” Kieran sputtered.
Lucian’s eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped dangerously. “And I’m still working out what your play was. When I do—”
“Enough, Luc. Let the poor bastard help me.”
Lucian’s nostrils flared, his temper sinking its claws in deeper, before he released a breath and shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
Wordlessly, Kael slung his good arm around Kieran’s shoulder and leaned heavily into him. Kieran grunted under the weight but remained upright.
Lucian waited only long enough to ensure that the two men were moving before he set off in the direction Ronan had taken. From her perch in his arms, Effie glanced over Lucian’s shoulder and studied Kieran.
Out of all of them, he seemed the most undone by the attack. He looked haunted as he stared at the ground. While disturbing, today’s fight was hardly the worst thing they’d faced recently, and all of them were still conscious. That was a vast improvement from their last bout in the jungle.
So why then did Kieran look like they’d just suffered a massive defeat?
As if he could hear her silent question, Kieran lifted his eyes.
A shudder slid down Effie’s spine at the emptiness she found there.
Kieran blinked, finally seeming to notice her, and his expression softened infinitesimally. There was a flicker of something in those green orbs, a warmth Effie hadn’t seen since she’d stumbled into his room on a drunken mission.
Then Lucian spoke, shattering the moment. “Just a bit further,” he murmured.
Kieran’s jaw clenched and his eyes darkened, turning his handsome face into something that frightened Effie more than anything else she’d seen that day.
She let out a soft gasp as a shiver of premonition buzzed through her.
Lucian tightened his arms around her, mistaking the sound for pain. “It’s going to be okay. You’re safe now.”
Effie might be in Lucian’s arms, but the last thing she felt was safe.
Chapter 15