Page 120 of Realm of Dreams & Shadows

Kali.

Chapter

Thirty-One

“Hello, little Bride.”

Her smile is slow and tinged with malice as she steps from the shadows into the orange glow of moonlight. Her wolves follow, fanning around her like a deadly honor guard.

I rise as carefully as I can, bracing Chase’s weight. His body is stiff against mine, his skin now burning up. His muscles are tight, and I know he’s fighting the pain. The wound is deep, and though the bleeding has stopped, the skin around it is dark now, a strange orange color that seems to mimic the moons, and that really doesn’t seem like a good thing. What if it’s infected? What if he loses the leg?

I force myself not to think about that. Instead, I hold tight to Chase’s hand, take a deep breath, then meet Kali’s eyes. It’s easier than I expected. She terrifies me, yes, but right now, I’m furious. And I’ve always been a little reckless when I’m scared.

“You sent the wolves,” I snap. “And now Chase is hurt and Whistler—” My words cut off on a sob, and I want to kick my own ass for showing weakness to this bitch.

“You came without invitation. And it is the wolves’ duty to patrol the kingdom and destroy those who encroach upon our peace. This realm holds many dangers, and those who come do so at their own risk.”

I draw a breath, then force myself to speak just as slowly and casually as this bitch in black speaks. “You say your king won’t care that your little buddies took a chunk out of his brother? Maybe you’re right.”

“Cora.” Chase’s voice is low and tinged with pain, but I hear the order underneath—don’t poke the beast.

But I’m too scared and pissed off to listen. “Do you know what Adric will care about?” I ask, emphasizing his name as I take a step toward her. “Me. And I’m thinking he’s going to be a little bit peeved when he learns that you set your puppies on us.” I offer a wistful smile. The kind I learned from the bitchy girls in boarding school. The kind that translates to fuck you. I shrug. “But I guess you don’t know Adric as well as I do.”

Her expression never changes, but her tone is all ice when she says, “I did not send the wolves after your friend any more than I sent them after you or my prince’s brother. These dunes are their habitat, and much of what lives here is dangerous. You should know that better than most. You’ve almost died so many times in this realm. It’s as if death were meant to find you here, and your Hunter has simply been marking time. Still,” she adds, tilting her head as she examines me. “You burn bright. Much brighter than the last one.”

“Last one?”

“The Bride,” she says, with a glance to Chase. “You shine brighter than all the candles he’s snuffed. Your entire maternal line is dead because of him. And still you stand with him. You’re either a fool, Cora Lyte, or you’re—well, actually, no. You’re simply a fool.”

I stand frozen, unable to find the words to answer. Beside me, Chase starts to pull his hand from mine, but I hold tight. Almost too tight, as I picture the park. The candles. The Brides.

And the world that he’s so desperately trying to save.

That’s when I lift our joined hands and brush a kiss over his knuckles. I see the relief—and the love—in his eyes and am rewarded with his own lips brushing over the pulse point at my wrist.

“That’s me,” I say, my voice as sickly sweet as I can make it. “A fool for love.”

Her face goes tight, but when her gaze dips to the oozing wound on his thigh, she smiles brightly. “We should get you to the castle. That wound requires care, Hunter. And I know my lord is anxious to speak to you both.”

She turns and begins to walk. I reach out to steady Chase, but he shakes his head. “It burns, but I can walk on my own.”

I want to argue, but I know what he’s doing—refusing to show any weakness to Adric’s right-hand bitch.

I want to stand still. To tell her we’re not going anywhere with her until we know that Uncle Finn is safe.

But I can’t. I have absolutely zero leverage. Despite desperately wishing otherwise, I know that Whistler must be dead. And Chase is in obvious pain. It’s only me running this show now. And I’m no match for Kali.

There’s no way we can survive here. And by now, Kali must have put up wards preventing Chase from summoning his dragon—though right now I doubt he has the strength for even that. Nor can we run. We’d be lost in the wilds of this realm, and I’m no match for the creatures that thrive here.

But more than that, his leg needs tending, and I need to find Uncle Finn. And that means we need the castle. Besides, the sooner I see Adric, the safer I’ll feel.

And isn’t that ironic as hell?

The desert changes as we walk. The dunes slump into ridges of iron-colored stone. A smear of mist gathers low to the ground, sliding over the rock in ghostly skeins. The air grows heavier, the silence thicker, and the sky turns the shade of old bruises as darkness comes. Above us, the five moons climb and hang like lanterns, their light broken by the dark, erratic sweep of bats circling the horizon. Bats. Because, of course.

“He’s really getting into it,” I say before I can help myself.

“Into what?” Chase asks, leaning hard against me as we walk.