“Are you?”
“Didn’t I already answer that question?”
“It’s dangerous, Magda,” he said.
“I know he’s dangerous—”
“Loveis dangerous. That’s what you don’t understand. Itdoeschange you. And it makes you do things you didn’t think you would do, that you didn’t even know you were capable of. It’s about strength and survival and power, just like you said. It makes you stronger. It makes you feel like you need it to survive. And it makes you feel more powerful than you were when you were by yourself. So I’m not at all certain that you would know the difference. And that’s what’s dangerous about this, Magda.”
The strength of his emotions was dizzying, even from a distance. So much of it was sadness still, pain from what he’d lost, but the rest—the focused heat of it, like the summer sun through a magnifying glass—sent a quiver through her heart, a held-breath tremble, out and over her skin.
“Maybe you’re right,” she said. “I don’t know what it’s like to feel what you feel for Honey. I’ve never allowed myself to trust anyone that much. I’m not sure I’d know how.” She sighed and started up the slope. “But that’s probably all for the best—”
A rustle of leaf litter across the stream stopped her midway. From the trees, Hero bolted towards them and bounded over the rocks of the stream, racing up her leg and onto the back of her neck, planting his feet on the top of her head.
“Look!”
He dropped over to her shoulder as her head cocked back.
“What is it?” Kaelan asked.
She shaded her eyes, searching the clouds that were fading from pink to white as the sun climbed higher. But she saw nothing out of the ordinary. Her heart drummed in her ears, and that’s when she realized the birds had fallen silent. Never a good sign.
She unleashed her knives. “We have to go.”
He nodded and hurried up the hill. She backed up after him, still scanning the trees. Nothing moved. The only sound, water rushing over stone.
Hero remained burrowed under her collar, digging in his claws.
As she turned to follow Kaelan, she was about to question Hero, but the crash of leaves and the snap of branches drew her attention back across the stream.
She spun as a beast dove down at her, breaking through the tops of the trees, burying her in its shadow. All she could see was a human-like face, a female, with a monstrous mouth full of many jagged teeth.
Diving, she rolled down the hill as the creature—leathery wings beating against the air—slammed into the ground where she’d stood, burying its lion-like claws into the earth.
Digging her daggers into the ground, she stopped her descent. Hero took the opportunity to flee.
Before she could pull herself upright, the beast’s scaled tail whipped around.
Magda pitched herself aside as a venomous stinger the size of her forearm pierced the earth, sending up a spray of dirt that could’ve easily been Magda’s flesh and blood.
She scrambled to her feet, daggers out, panting.
The beast turned her human face towards Magda, bearing numerous rows of razor-edged shark teeth.
“Pixie Rae,” the manticore said with a lashing, forked tongue. “His Majesty sends his regards.”
Just then Damion launched from the top of the slope, driving one sword down through the manticore’s shoulders and then hacking off the stinger with the other. He lit from her, swords dripping with blood, landing poised and on guard next to Magda.
The manticore hadn’t been given a chance to defend herself. She collapsed with a ground trembling thud, blood running over her fur and down her crumpled wings.
Honey and Kaelan stood above, gawping. Gur joined them, surveying the scene with impassive brown lion eyes.
Damion lowered his rear sword and frowned. “Just cleaned this.”
“That was amazing,” Honey breathed.
Damion lifted a shoulder. “Actually—”
