Shit.
Movement in the air above it caught my eye.
Yudh and Dhoona!
They dropped onto its back.
The nagrata stalled, twisting and turning, trying to get a bite out of the brothers.
But the real threat was below it in the form of Kalani. She hurtled across the snow and buried her blade into the nagrata’s belly. Once. Twice. A third time. Her bellow of rage echoed across the distance, through the rising blizzard, striking a sharp clear note in my chest.
Grief.
Loss.
Vengeance.
Raja was dead.
C’ael was gone.
My stomach trembled as the beast keeled over in the snow.
The following silence was deafening, and as if offended by it, the elements rose to fill it with sharp whistling and eerie moans. My gaze met Pashim’s, joyous warmth bursting in my chest. I bridged the distance between us and fell into his waiting arms, a half sob breaking from my lips as he crushed me to his chest, enveloping me in his familiar scent. He cupped the back of my head, pressing kisses to my crown. How was he here? How was he alive?
I pulled back to look up at him, questions burning a path up my throat.
“Later,” he said. “Right now, we need to find shelter.”
The others joined us, eyeing Pashim not with wariness but with curiosity. He’d just saved my ass, after all.
“This way,” Kalani shouted over the rising wind. “I found a cave.”
Pashim took my hand, and we followed Kalani through the burgeoning storm.
Later couldn’t come fast enough.
Chapter 12
NOT EVERYONE COMES BACK FROM THE DEAD
The cave was an odd shape, with nooks and alcoves leading off it, and a tunnel that led goodness knew where. There was evidence of prior occupation. A bag of supplies and the remnants of a fire. The leather pack didn’t contain much of use: the shriveled remains of some kind of fruit, not fully decayed due to the chill, an empty flask, and a dog-eared book, the pages dried and stuck together after getting soaked. The only useful item was flint to start a fire. Yudh and Dhoona got to work immediately, using the dried wood and kindling piled in another part of the cave.
“Leela, I’ll be right back.” Pashim squeezed my hand then let go, striding toward the tunnel.
For a moment, there was only the clink and scrape of flint on flint as Yudh worked to summon a blaze.
Kalani’s gaze drifted to the cave entrance, her shoulders dropping slightly.
My heart squeezed. “I’m sorry about Raja.”
She visibly swallowed and nodded. “Yes. Me too. He was…He was my friend.” She took a shuddering breath and looked toward me. “We will not let his death be in vain.”
“No. We won’t.”
She exhaled and nodded. “Do you think C’ael will find us here?”
It was my turn to glance at the cave entrance. But I doubted he’d come strolling in that way. He’d materialize among us. What if he was already with us now but unable to manifest?
