I ran faster. My heart felt like it was going to explode. The murky outline of the forest appeared on the horizon, and I fixed my eyes on it as I ran.
The death fae and his hound finally stopped appearing in the corner of my eye, but I heard his low, raspy voice drift over from behind as I sprinted across unseelie land, the guards’ heavy footsteps still behind me.
“Until we meet again, Ash.”
Fuck. I didn’t know what that meant. I didn’t know why he’d followed me but then stopped. Did that mean I wasn’t going to die? I didn’t have the capacity to think about it, because I was somehow keeping ahead of the guards, but I wasn’t getting any further from them. They were keeping pace, and there werelotsof them.
A crow soared over me, its wings beating frantically until it vanished up ahead. I ran, my heart spasming when the cottage came into view. Part of me still wanted to get my dagger and turn back—to fight to the death just to relieve some of the murderous rage still boiling inside me, but self-preservation won.
The forest. I needed to get to the forest. I prayed that shedding my mortal skin would let me finally leave unseelie land. Would let me finally get away.
I nearly tripped when an enormous black wolf leapt out of the darkness, snarling at the guards and snapping its teeth. It paced to keep them back, giving me precious seconds to get ahead of them. I didn’t know why it was helping me, but I didn’t question it.
I flinched when I heard a shout from one of the guards and a sharp, pained whimper from the wolf, but I didn’t stop or look back to see what they’d done to it. I was so close. So close to the cottage, so close to the forest.
It looked brighter in there now. Everything did. The land was bathed in muted blue light, and in the depths of the once impenetrable forest I could see dozens of eyes watching me. All different kinds. Huge white ones, tiny yellow ones, red ones that glowed with hunger.
My frantic gaze locked onto a bright green pair directly opposite me, my heart jumping when they blinked sideways.
“Run, Ash,” Nua screamed, his golden face coming into view, strained and terrified. For me.
I realised I could hear the forest now. It wasn’t blocked to me anymore. A cacophony of life teemed in there, faint whispers, excited screeches and snarls as the creatures among the trees watched my mad dash for my life.
The door to my cottage burst open, and then the Carlin’s eldest son was striding towards me, a heavy sword already gripped in his pale hand and his face twisted with fury.
He started running, impossibly fast, directly towards me. Already raising that sword into the air.
“Ash, run,” Nua screamed.
My heart spasmed hard. My bare feet slipped in the wet, icy grass. Balor was practically flying towards me, sharp white teeth glinting in a snarl.
I reached out desperately to Nua as I got close to the treeline, and time slowed down when I saw the sword arc down, glinting in the moonlight, directly over my outstretched arm.
I was running too fast to slow down when the blade cut my arm off cleanly, just above my elbow, and I was distantly aware of the sickening, horrifying thud as it hit the grass before I was tripping over it. Tripping over my own fucking arm. For a second, I thought I felt warm fingers curl round my ankle.
I thudded onto my belly with a pained grunt, but I didn’t stop, already scrambling back up, trying to ignore the numb feeling in my left arm and the hot wetness coating my side, dripping down my legs.
A cold hand snatched at my hair, choking me when it yanked my head back and used the grip to throw me onto my back. I kicked out at Balor, my bleeding stump flailing and spraying blood as I tried to push him away, to scramble back from his snarling fae face.
His hand was wrenched from my hair when the huge wolf slammed into his side, knocking him to the ground with a heavy thud. It was injured. Dark blood made its fur glisten and sprayed onto the grass with its ferocious movements as it fought with Balor.
I didn’t stay to see which of them would win.
My breath hitching from the pain that was starting to throb in my arm, I stumbled to my feet, slipping, feeling weak from blood loss already. Nua was still screaming at me, but my head was spinning and I could barely see which way the forest was at first.
I could hear the heavy, thumping footsteps of the guards racing towards me. The snarls and pained whimpers of the wolf as it fought with the Carlin’s son.
The forest swam in front of me. I was so close—so close—
My entire body tingled and broke out in goosebumps when I made it past the treeline and into the forest, directly into Nua’s arms. He immediately tugged me forwards, not letting me stop or slow down, even though I wanted to beg him to. I needed to rest. My stump throbbed with agony, my feet were frozen. I could hardly breathe, my heart pounding in my chest like it was about to explode.
“Keep running,” Nua snarled, his fingers like claws in my good arm. “Don’t stop, Ash. Keep running.”
I forced myself to, half propelled by Nua, whose skin felt feverishly hot against mine. We ran until my legs shook and threatened to collapse, until black spots started winking into my strange night vision and my head felt like I’d spent an entire night drinking fae wine.
“I can’t,” I gasped. “Please—”
Nua dragged me to a gigantic fallen log and stuffed me into it. I cried out in agony when my bleeding stump grazed the bark, the pain making me collapse onto my belly.
I panted shallowly, breathing in dirt and moss and wet, rotting wood. I couldn’t move when I tried to heave myself up with my one good arm, and as my fingers curled weakly around wet leaves, a shining golden hand appeared in my failing vision.
“I’ll protect you as best I can until Gillie arrives, Ash.” Nua’s raspy voice was low and trembling as he clasped my one remaining hand. “I promise. I won’t let them hurt you.”
I couldn’t bring myself to say anything back, my breaths too short and shallow. I heard him let out a low sob.
“Ash, I’m sorry I failed you in the end. I’m sorry I was too late.”
The hand let go of mine, and I felt long, warm fingers brush over my hair.
“I’m sorry, my brother.”