I climbed up as Kage disappeared and got on behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
Amari stood silently with his sword, looking between it and Val. If he’d had his other arm, he wouldn’t need a sword or horse.
Val looked at him. “What are you doing?”
Amari didn’t answer, just shook his head. His eyes locked with Val’s for a long moment before he handed him the sword. He awkwardly pulled himself up behind the vampire, squeezed his thighs to stay in place, and reclaimed the sword.
I had to give it to the panther. He was handling things way better than I would have. I’d probably be in a ball on the floor, not casually mounting a horse.
Val took the lead, guiding us out of the stables and onto a path that wound through the village. I scanned our surroundings, hyperaware of every shadow. Kage trembled behind me, his face pressed against my back.
We made progress quickly, the village quiet in the late hour. Too quiet. My instincts screamed that something wasn’t right.
As we approached the village square, the hairs on my arms stood up.
“Val—” I started to warn him, but it was too late.
They emerged from all sides at once, about twenty guards stepping out from alleyways and doorways, surrounding us in a tight circle. Swords glinted in the moonlight, and I counted at least four with crossbows trained on us.
We were grossly outnumbered.
My mind raced, calculating our odds. Winston could barely stay on his horse. Amari had one fucking arm. Val looked unstable. And Kage... well, Kage was terrified.
Which left me.
Adrenaline pumped through my system, and I patted my pouch, feeling the reassuring shapes of my collection. I grabbed a handful and handed the pouch to Kage, watching it disappear. I chewed quickly, and the familiar rush of energy flooded my veins as the power from the nuts spread through my body.
“Stay invisible.”
Without waiting for a response, my shift rippled through me. I launched myself from the horse’s back, my momentum carrying me directly toward the nearest guard. The man barely had time to raise his sword before I was on him, teethsinking into vulnerable flesh. Blood spurted as he went down with a gurgled scream.
I was already moving, ricocheting off his falling body and onto the next guard. My size, speed, and strength made me an impossible target to fend off when I landed.
Behind me, I heard Val shout something and the clash of metal on metal as the others joined the fight. But I was in my element now, a blur of fur and fury, leaping from one enemy to the next.
Those bastards had threatened Sammy. It was time they learned exactly why no one should fuck with a squirrel shifter.
CHAPTER THIRTY
SAMARA
Raphael waited until after breakfast to tell me he’d gotten a message from his contact. My stomach twisted at the thought of Nico locked up somewhere and Amari hurt. And Val... what was his role in all of this?
The food I’d eaten churned in my stomach as I followed Raphael into his backyard. He said we’d need to fly somewhere safer to enter Hell.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, but I didn’t have many options if I wanted to go home.
“You’re quiet. Too quiet.” Raphael’s wings snapped out, and my attention was on something other than worry.
“Sweet baby hell serpents.” I reached out to touch his feathers.
He jerked backward, his wings snapping tighter against his back as he practically launched himself skyward. For a split second, he was suspended above the ground before his feet touched down again several yards away.
“Don’t touch them.” He sounded almost panicked.
“Well, then.” I kicked at the ground and adjusted thestraps on my backpack, which was rather heavy with my contraband. “Let’s get this over with so I can get to my men.”
“Your men… there are four.” It wasn’t a question but a statement of fact.
