“I thought you could use a little entertainment.”
I winced as the silver came into contact with my skin. Prickles similar to that of pixie dust nipped at my nerve endings. It was only when the net was finally lifted off me that the sensation abated. Though it didn’t entirely disappear. It would probably take a couple hours before I fully healed from the small amount of silver exposure.
“You have great timing, by the way,” I told her.
A second later and I’d have been dead.
“We would have intervened sooner, but we needed to wait for the right opportunity,” Natalia informed me.
Her explanation wasn’t an apology. But then again, I didn’t need one. In her position, I would have made the same decision.
“You’re pretty good at scurrying about. I particularly liked the part where you leap frogged a bench and nearly fell on your face because you misjudged the height.”
“When you’re moving that fast, it’s hard to judge distances,” I said stiffly.
Natalia made an o shape with her mouth.
“It is!”
“Uh huh.”
I sighed, putting a pin in the conversation as I winced at the number of bodies strewn around us. “What do you think the chances are that any of these hunters will still be alive when your sisters are done? Having someone to interrogate later would be helpful.”
I didn’t hold out much hope though. The harpies were impressively thorough in their actions. The few they didn’t get, fell at Liam’s fangs.
“Once engaged in battle, harpies aren’t known for leaving our enemies alive. We have a reputation for hunting down any who happen to survive.” Natalia lifted a hand to signal her sisters. A pair of harpies snapped to attention, their expressions eager. One of them was coated in blood, her hands and face dyed red with it. The other had entrails hanging around her neck. I was pretty sure I’d seen her take a bite out of heart earlier. “You, however, weren’t as thorough as us. You left a few alive in your wake. They should satisfy your request.”
“Just to reiterate—I need them alive,” I said.
The harpies sneered, their expressions more terrifying than usual what with all the blood.
“So much more fun to kill,” the entrail-wearing one grumbled.
Be patient, self.
“Yes, but they also have information that I can’t get from them if they’re dead.”
And I had need of what was in their heads.
Liam released his last victim, letting the hunter slump to the ground. Like the harpies in front of me, he hadn’t been fastidious in his killing. I was pretty certain there was more blood on his clothes than in his stomach.
The harpies close to him drew away, a little intimidated by his homicidal aura.
Natalia’s gaze lingered on Liam as she answered in place of her sisters. “They understand and will bring them back alive.”
The entrail-wearing harpy made a face but didn’t argue. She took to the sky with a screech that her sister answered.
A loud boom came from the other end of the street, reminding me that the hunters were just one of our problems.
“We need to leave this area,” Natalia said, summoning several harpies with a flick of her hand. “The sorcerer’s creature won’t return to its slumber until its prey no longer exists in its territory.”
I glanced at the harpies as they flanked me. “You’re sure it won’t follow us into the city?”
“Past encounters with the monster support my theory,” Natalia said with a shrug.
Ah ha.
I stared at my friend, wondering if any of those encounters involved baiting the sentinel to test its limits. Or if they’d learned by watching the sentinel pursue other victims.
