She ignored my gaze, though, and just stared straight ahead, ready. Determined.
My right hand hovered over the handle of my sword, ready for an attack. But none came. The footsteps grew and grew and grew?—-
And then they were silent.
I scanned the trees around us looking for any signs of our attackers.
Nothing.
“Are they gone?” Xavier whispered. “Did they pass?”
I had just opened my mouth to respond,Yes, they’re gone,when I heard one twig break on the right.
My wings snapped outward as I dove my horse in front of Rummy’s, protecting as much of her as I could.
But it wasn’t going to make a difference.
A few seconds later, we were surrounded.
Chapter 27
Rummy
Shit, shit, shit.
I was never much of a fighter, but under normal circumstances I would’ve had complete confidence in Jessiah’s and Xavier’s ability to fight off a few enemies.
But here? My confidence quickly faded.
Nearly a dozen men surrounded us with arrows on their backs and swords in their hands. Jessiah and Xavier now flanked either side of me, but it was no use. There was no way out.
“What do you want?” Jessiah’s voice boomed through the forest and vibrated the trees around us.
One of the attackers stepped forward. “Give us the girl and you two can live.”
For a split second, I thought Jessiah might hand me over right there. We hadn’t exactly spoken much since the incident in the caves. This was the perfect opportunity to be rid of me, to wipe his hands clean and blame it on our enemies.
But then he drew his sword. “Leave now and I’ll forget that you just threatened us.”
The next few moments passed in slow motion, yet it was all too fast to do anything but stand idly while the circle around us drew closer.
Our three horses reared together in defense. Fear tickled the back of my neck, a primal sense deep in my chest told me something was about to go very, very wrong.
I barely heard the order to attack over the roaring of my heartbeat.
The first three men attacked Jessiah straight-on. His horse reared and his wings flared out on either side of him as metal met metal in a violent clash of swords. But Jessiah was strong. He easily defended himself, the strength of his swing enough to take down any man.
But then the rest of the men came.
I was defenseless—and damn it all if that wasn’t the worst fucking feeling in the entire world. I tried to swallow my fear. Tried to turn it all into hatred for these bastards who thought they could just take whatever they wanted.
Xavier drew his sword, too, and started head-on with his own attackers. I couldn’t even take a damn breath without waiting for that last fatal slice of metal.
But it didn’t come.
Jessiah and Xavier fought and fought and fought.
I remained pinned between the two of them while they deterred our attackers, slicing down one after the other.
