Saraj whistled, and Zephyr dove out of the sky. Bryn whirled to find two wolves creeping up on her.
She gasped.
Zephyr suddenly slashed its talons at one’s eyes. The other locked its sight onto Bryn and snarled. She had just enough time to raise her knife as it rushed her. Her instincts took over. As the beast lunged for her with lips drawn back and teeth flashing, her hand came down. She slashed the knife against its muzzle. Its weight crashed into her, knocking her to her feet, but she had enough time to raise her knife again before it doubled back.
It snarled low, preparing to strike again.
Black eyes, she thought in a confused rush.Its eyes are black and weeping black tears.
But she didn’t have much time to wonder what was wrong with the wolf before it pounced. She dug her heels into the ground, ready to fight. When it was close enough, she drove the knife into the side of its neck, though it managed to get its teeth around her arm.
“Bryn!”
Rangar was by her side in an instant, sword raised. He brought the blade down over the wolf’s neck. Such a blow would have sliced the head off a regular wolf, but this one seemed like its bones were made of steel. Rangar’s sword lodged in the wolf’s spine. He wrenched it out with a vicious battle yell and brought it down again.
This time, the wolf stayed down.
Dead—finally.
Breathing hard, Bryn looked in a daze at the blood seeping from her arm, then at the dead wolf. She grabbed her knife out of its neck, clutching the hilt tightly in preparation for the next attack.
“Valenden, protect the horse!” Rangar shouted.
“I’m trying, gods be damned!” Valenden answered. With his back turned, he didn’t see a wolf stalking out of the woods behind him.
But Bryn did.
She screamed as the wolf threw itself on Valenden in a storm of teeth and claws. Valenden was fast—he gripped the animal by the neck and tried to wrench it off him, but it had gotten its teeth deep in his side. With the wolf blocking access to his sword, Valenden had only his fists as weapons. He slammed a punch into the wolf’s head, but the beast only bit him harder.
Rangar was on his feet immediately. He picked up his sword with both hands and, giving another battle cry, leaped on the wolf, using his momentum to slam the blade into its back. The wolf yipped, wounded, and released Valenden. It scrambled back a few steps, blood rushing from the deep cut, but then it turned on Rangar with those strange black eyes.
Saraj gave a sharp whistle. Zephyr circled overhead, ready to dive again. “Bryn, get Val into the carriage!” Saraj said. “I’ll cover you!”
While Rangar faced off with the wolf, Bryn skirted around it, breathing hard. Its eyes shifted to her, but Zephyr swooped down with flapping wings to block its vision. Rangar gave another yell as he swung his sword at the wolf, though it moved with incredible speed out of the way.
Valenden collapsed to the ground, clutching his ribs.
“Val!” Bryn sank to her knees beside him. She tugged his arm around her neck. “Stand. Hurry!”
He winced as she helped him to his feet.
“We have to lay you down in the carriage,” she ordered.
She helped him crawl into the carriage, where he groaned as he lay flat on his bearskin cloak. She rested a hand on his shin while glancing back at the fight. Rangar raised his sword again. The wounded wolf feigned an attack to the left, but Rangar sensed its deception and swung the sword to the right just as the wolf moved that way instead.
The blade lodged deep into the animal’s skull.
The wolf shuddered before falling to the ground, dead. Rangar immediately went to where Valenden had been working to extract the horse from its broken harness. He cut through the tangled strap, freeing the animal.
Eyes rolling in fear, the horse reared up, drawing the attention of the wolf pack. Rangar slapped the horse on its hindquarters, and the panicked animal took off at a gallop down the road. Immediately, the entire wolf pack gave chase, disappearing into the twilight mist.
Bryn exhaled in both relief and exhaustion. She clutched Valenden’s leg hard, her attention turning to him as the next most immediate danger.
Rangar was by her side quickly. His eyes scanned her to make sure she was unhurt, his hand going to her tangled hair. “Your arm—”
“I’m fine. It’s Valenden who needs attention.”
“Damn thing tried to eat me alive!” Valenden wailed.
