The umbra.
Heart hammering in my chest, my hand flies to the dagger at my hip. I let out a silent sigh of relief when I feel its familiar tingle. Lying perfectly still, I try to determine the umbra’s position, but the impenetrable darkness and the deafening silence make it an impossible task. I can only pray Vilder and Seniia are unharmed.
My mouth opens in a silent scream, my whole body convulsing as the umbra’s shadowy tendrils crawl up my body, feeling me out. When they reach my throat, they tighten, allowing just enough room for a wheezing breath. I need to wake Seniia and Vilder, warn them, but not a single sound escapes my lips
The umbra’s slithering voice breaks the silence. “Did you think he wouldn’t find you?” it hisses, its rotten odor filling my nose. “After youspiedon him?”
Writhing like a snake, I do what I can to escape the umbra’s hold on me, but it only increases its heavy pressure, pinning me to the bed as if I’m nothing but a rag doll.
Don’t panic. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.I stuff the growing anxiety back where it came from.Breathe. Focus.
“If he didn’t want you alive, I would snap your neck right now.”
I grip the hilt of my dagger more tightly. Why can’t the minister just let me go? Is it that important for him to set an example?
Although it’s close, it’s still hard to tell exactly where it is in the darkness. All I have to go by is its voice and the hand pinning me down. I slam the dagger into where I assume the center of the umbra to be.
A spine-chilling screech permeates the silence. I must have hit the mark. For a heartbeat, the darkness wavers, giving me an indication of its position. Before it has time to move, I slam the dagger back in. Once. Twice. Unable to stop myself, I stab it again and again, faster than I thought humanly possible. The piercing scream intensifies, demanding all my attention to keep from blocking my ears.There.
The vacuum bursts, taking the oppressive darkness with it. A tremor runs through me as I stare at the black smoke, illuminated by the Celestial Moon’s silvery light streaming through our small window. I glance down at my white-knuckled fingers still clutching the dagger, then over at Vilder and Seniia where they sit up in their beds, eyes wide. I must be a sight to behold, my body shaking, hair wild, and black dagger in hand.
Seniia gathers her senses first. Scrambling to her feet, she shakes her body, then rushes over to where I now sit at the edge of my bunk. She squats down in front of me.
“Are you all right?”
Am I? There’s already so much going on that I have a hard time keeping up with it in my own life, and now I have to worry about the minister tracking my every move as well. It’s already more than enough to handle with Llyr. And then there are the dreams. And Aster. I can’t believe Casimir killed his mate as if she was nothing but an afterthought. I bite my lip, studying the hands resting in my lap, still trembling. They’re mine, but they look foreign to me now. I’m a killer. It was an umbra, yes, but it was a human once... Does this change me somehow? I grit my teeth. Burn me. What have I ever done to be in the midst of such a mess?
Pressing my lips together, I nod. “I’m fine.”
I’m not.
“Did a human just save my life?” Vilder shakes his head in disbelief.
I toss a glance in his direction, barely noticing that he’s shirtless, revealing a well-toned upper body, his arms and chest covered with foreign golden glyphs.
“She did,” Seniia quips.
“You can’t be serious...” Vilder’s voice trails off.
I cast another glance toward him, and the way he stares at me with a mix of awe and wonder sends a flush of heat into my cheeks. Then I realize he’s not looking at me. He’s looking at my dagger.
“Is that what I think it is?” Vilder says, eyes wide. He drags his gaze from the dagger to me. “Can I touch it?”
Seniia’s attention turns toward the dagger in my hand. A frown creases her pretty face. “Is that theshadowshard?” Her gaze flickers from me to the dagger and back again. “How on Rea did you get your hands on that?”
Having no idea what they’re talking about, I shrug and hand the dagger to Vilder.
“I... stole it,” I say sheepishly. “From Llyr.” I glance between them. “It wasn’t affected by the brace, and I needed something to defend myself,” I add quickly, scared they’ll judge me. Think me untrustworthy. A thief.
Seniia shrugs. “We don’t like Llyr anyway, do we? I’d say you deserve that blade, right, Vilder?”
Vilder nods, though I’m not sure he’s paying attention to us. Lost in the shard, he studies the dagger from all angles, then lets out a low whistle.
“Unbelievable,” he whispers to himself. “Itisthe shadowshard.” He looks up. “I wonder how Llyr got his hands on one of the twin shards,” he says as he offers the dagger to Seniia. “You have to feel this. Its powers areimmense.” There’s so much awe in his voice.
She takes it almost reverently, her eyes widening slightly upon touching it. “Is that what you used to take out... whatever that thing was?”
“It was an umbra,” Vilder says.
