Idiots.
The approaching figures crested the hill, finally coming into view.
My heart jumped to my throat.
I recognized those figures.
Leading the charge, a pair of antlers sticking up over a small silhouette, was Ginger.
A smile broke across my face.
And then the knights pulled their swords free.
The smile dropped, and I began to struggle in earnest, begging my shadows to unbind the ropes tying me down.
That’s when the first burst of fire ripped across the open space.
“Ah! Ember, don’t aimforthem, aimin frontof them!”
The vampire’s voice was impressively loud, shrieking over the commotion.
Smoke churned and billowed, mixing with my shadows, strengthening them. The tiny dragon had nearly incinerated my captors, missing them only barely. I was sure they were at least blistered—the heat was impressive.
The release of ancient magic fueled me, bolstered me, settled into my bones.
Screams of pain echoed, followed by the smell of burnt flesh.
Powerful little beast. I grinned.
The ropes binding me fell away as useless scraps. I rose to my feet and stepped out of the tent.
I felt wobbly for a moment—an after effect of the drug, I was sure—but I stood my ground.
A knight noticed my presence, but before he could scream and alert the others, my shadows swarmed down his throat, choking off his voice. His eyes bulged in his head and his cheeks paled.
It would be so easy to kill him. Effortless. But I snatched my shadows from his windpipe before his heart stopped beating, and he slumped over, merely unconscious.
Tommins broke through the crowd, headed right for me. He had an axe strapped to his winged back, one that was clearly used for chopping wood.
I had to glance again—yes, those were indeed wings. Great golden things, tucked in neatly. I nodded in quiet approval.
“What are you fools doing here?” I asked.
He exhaled sharply. “Don’t go with them.”
My brows rose. Around us, the knights were at a standstill, clearly outnumbered and overpowered, based on the rich smell of fresh magic blooming in the air. They didn’t know what to do.
Just as I previously assumed—idiots. Puny cowards.
“Is this a rescue mission, then?”
“It is. Will you come back with us?”
I gestured to the knights. “What about them? They won’t give up, now that they know I’m here.”
“We will figure it out, take it day by day,” Tommins insisted.
Three small bodies took flight, the suns behind the lingering smoke making their shadows appear much larger. The knights screamed, running for their horses.
