Please, don’t be Mallory.
Noble crossed the room and opened the door.
An ashen-faced guard stumbled in, covered in dried blood. His eyes were wide, and he worked his jaw, but no words came out.
Fur rippled down my arms at the sight of the older shifter, and I looked him over for injuries. “What happened, Simon?”
He was a guard from before my father’s time even. He shook his head, and when he spoke, his voice was hoarse. “Kirkland is … gone.”
Kirkland and Simon had been in the royal guard together for decades. They were two of the contingency I’d sent with Justice to Dark Row last night, two of the best—because I knew they’d take their responsibilities seriously.
Justice and I exchanged a look, and I could see the guilt in my brother’s eyes.
‘This isn’t your fault,’I told Justice. I knew my brother; he was a protector, sometimes more so than me. These men were probably attacked right after he left, and he’d feel guilt over that.
Justice turned from me to Simon. “Was there an attack?”
It’d take a strong force to bring these two men down.
To my surprise, Simon shook his head.
“I don’t really know,” he said. “One minute, Kirkland and I were patrolling the east side of Dark Row, talking about the alpha fight, and the next thing … he wasgone. There was a rustle of leaves, and I followed after it, but he was pulled away by something so fast my eyes couldn’t track it.”
I frowned, considering what could take one of my most seasoned guards. “Bear shifter?”
They weren’t that fast, but I had no other explanation.
He shook his head and swallowed hard. “No, there are a couple bear shifters helping guard the mages down by Dark Row, so I don’t think it’s them.”
“Bears?” I bristled. “They don’t usually help mages.” Shifters tended to stick to their own kind after Declan exiled them all.
Justice nodded, rubbing at his face. “Forgot to tell you last night. The mages pleaded for their help as well, and the bear king sent them.”
Bears and wolves working to protect mages at Dark Row? Unheard of…
I shook my head and turned back to Simon. “Tell us what you remember of the attack.”
He nodded. “As soon as he was dragged away, I tore off into the woods to find him. Only took a couple seconds to shift, but by the time I got to him … he was dead.”
“How long did it take you to find him?” Justice asked.
I knew what he was looking for, and I waited to hear the guard’s response. If it took Simon more than a couple of minutes to track someone, then his skills were suffering—either from age or neglect.
“Seconds, sir. Less than a minute after Kirkland disappeared, I found him—or rather his body. But … it didn’t look right.” Simon blanched, his ashy-gray coloring going even more pale, and he swallowed repeatedly before he managed to speak again. “His body was … husk-like, all around his neck, face, and chest.”
The room swam, and my stomach sank as I considered what could cause a death like that.
“A husk?” Noble asked, shooting me a look of horror.
Simon nodded. “Completely … drained of blood.”
What thehelldid he just say?
“Drained of blood?” Justice parroted.
My brothers both echoed the guard’s statements as all three of us reeled with disbelief. Because there was only one thing that could drain blood that fast. Only one species who would—
The guard’s lip quivered, and then he started to shake. “His skin was all shriveled…” Simon swallowed, and tears dripped down his weathered cheeks. “Stuck to his bones…” He sniffed. “Like he wassucked dry.”
