It lifted its snout to the air and bayed. Answering cries sounded from far off in the distance.
Our time was up. For now.
The stag and I leapt down the small bank of the tracks, abandoning them in favor of the shadowy protection of the forest. Now that we’d been spotted, staying on them was impossible.
Without the iron to dilute it, the magic of the hunt rose with the force of an inexorable tide.
We ran, the sound of pursuit hard on our heels. On the rare instances where we stopped to catch a breath, I worked on the stag’s bindings, pulling and plucking any chance I could. My success was minor to say the least. The webbing gave just the slightest bit every time.
He helped as much as he could, pushing when I pulled, but even several hours later, I was still no closer to freeing him, and my reserves were at their limit.
I staggered against a tree, clutching it to keep myself upright as I panted. All around us we could hear the hunters. They were closing in. It wouldn’t be long now.
Worse, I was losing time, the magic catching me in its grip for long periods and carrying me off—the forest passing by in flashes as my world spiraled down to survival and running, terror and fear my constant companions.
“Come here,” I said.
If I was going to free him, it had to be now. I didn’t know ifI’d get another shot. No reason we both should die.
He bowed his head before me, resignation in every line. He knew better than I did what our odds were. In this, we were in complete agreement, without a word having been exchanged.
This time I reached deep, summoning that rarely-used power inside, using it to grab the webbing and rip. When I ran out of power I reached deeper, ignoring the throbbing pain in my head or the parts of me that were screaming I was doing too much.
Desperation lent me strength. The bonds were looser than when I started, weaker from all my previous attempts.
From some unknown place inside me, power sparked, giving me a glimpse of what I could do, what I could be given half the chance. Suddenly, reading the magic on the stag was as easy as child’s play, a mapI’d been born to decipher.
I bore down with my magic, hitting the spell with everything I had left. It crumpled, wisping away like cobwebs.
The stag reared, knocking me down as he screamed a challenge.
Before I could react, he took off, disappearing into the night without a backward glance.
CHAPTERNINETEEN
I pushed myself off the ground, weak and dizzy. Using whatever that power had been, had knocked out the last of my reserves.
And hereI’d thought freeing the stag would help me. Turned out it’d had the opposite effect.
I rolled into a depression in the ground, hoping the small spot would shield me from view while I caught my breath, or at least until I summoned enough willpower to stand.
The night was a hazy gray against the darker shapes of the trees, the stars stretched out, so numerous they were infinite.
I didn’t know how long I lay there, too tired to move, before a set of purple wings fluttered into view.
Inara landed on my nose, glaring down at me with hands on her hips.“Get up, you lazy fanger. I haven’t invested this much time into your survival to watch you give up when you’re so close to freedom.”
My tongue felt thick in my mouth.“What are you talking about?”
“Get up and survive this and I just might tell you,” she snarled.
With Inara pulling at the sensitive parts of me and bitching the entire time, I somehow managed to make it to my feet. For a creature no taller than the length of my hand, she could be surprisingly persistent. Her vicious pinches on my ear and nose kept me moving when I would have faltered.
A blue streak flew by, Lowen’s expression frantic.“They’re coming.”
Sure enough, the sounds of the hunt grew frighteningly close.
Inara cursed.
