“Yessss,” Kella's voice hissed with satisfaction. “That's it, Shendri. More, give me more!”
With a feral roar, Josselyn was flying, her weapons moving with impossible speed as one soldier after another came after her, only to be cut down by her lethal blades. Arrows flew in her direction, but she cut them to pieces before they could touch either her or the man she stood sentinel over. Streaks of black whirled around her, as Kella fed off of her energy, tearing through the men at full force, her fierce growl harmonizing with Josselyn's own, gut deep war cries.
And then, at last, there were no swords, no arrows, no one charging in to take the place of their fallen comrade. Silence spread across the courtyard, and Josselyn looked around at the carnage that surrounded her, her shoulders heaving with exertion. Her eye caught on a familiar face, and she paused, a pang of regret hitting her at the sight of Francis, laying motionless on the ground. She turned to find Kella and found her prowling towards her, her fur matted with blood. They locked eyes, and Josselyn could almost feel their bond strengthen in that moment.
A moment that was broken by the annoyingly smooth voice of Prince Stefan.
“Very impressive, Princess. You've managed to put quite the dent in my men, but I would suggest you drop your weapons and subdue your beast before I'm forced to have both your aunt and fiance here killed.”
Slowly, Josselyn turned her head toward the castle doors, where the prince stood between two guards, one of whom was holding her aunt, Lady Merridale, and the other holding Edmund, each with a knife pressed against their hostages' throats. The prince crossed his arms as a smirk spread across his arrogant face.
Josselyn lifted her blood-splattered face, staring the prince dead in the eye.
The smirk slipped, and he took a step back, so that his guards stood in between them. He cleared his throat.
“Well, Princess? Are you going to do as I ask, or do I need to bloody your fiance's neck in order to get my point across?”
Josselyn tensed, not moving from her position over Alex's body. The prince raised an eyebrow, the smirk reappearing as he glanced first at Alex then over to Edmund, who seemed to be watching her just as carefully.
“Or perhaps it is the injured guard dog who has caught your eye. You could stay where you are and let the mutt slowly bleed out or...”
He waved his hand at Kella with a shooing motion, which she answered with a snarl. He narrowed his eyes at the beast. “You could put your hellcat back where it belongs and surrender yourself to me before anyone else is hurt.” His eyes flickered back to Alex, his lip curling in distaste. “I will have the castle physician attend to the mutt's wounds and refrain from cutting open the other two's throats.” Now it was Josselyn's gaze that he sought out, his eyebrows raising in expectation.
“That is, if you agree to lay aside your arms and consent to becoming my wife.”
Edmund let out a muffled snarl from behind his gag as he struggled against his restraints. His guard rewarded him by jerking on his chains and pressing the blade of his knife close enough to draw blood.
“Stop!”
The words flew from Josselyn's mouth before she even realized she'd spoken. A heavy weight settled in her stomach as she laid her sword and dagger down on the ground, throwing Kella an apologetic look before whispering, “Return.”
The hellcat glared back at her before letting out a loud huff and dissolving into shadows.
Josselyn faced the prince, giving him a look filled with deadly intent. “I will agree to your terms, provided you follow through on your end, and that my citizens remain unharmed.” She narrowed her eyes. “Should you fail to uphold your side of the agreement, we will kill you, I promise you that.”
The prince appeared unnerved for a moment, but he quickly recovered his mask of cocky arrogance, a toothy grin spreading across his face.
“I like a woman with a little fire in her blood.” His gaze roved over her body, and his nose wrinkled in disgust. “Although, perhaps not so much blood over her body. A bath and a change of clothes are in order, I think, before we gather for the nuptials. As eager as I am to officially make you mine, I can wait long enough for you not to resemble a living corpse.”
He stepped aside, waving his hand in a sweeping gesture toward the door.
“After you, love.”
Josselyn grit her teeth, glancing down at Alex. “He needs treatment now. I'll go nowhere until I'm certain he's being taken care of.”
The prince sighed. “Fine.” He stepped toward the door, opening it wide and peering into the main entry way. “You two, come here. I have an injured man that needs to be brought in.” He turned his head. “And you there, go fetch the physician. And be quick about it.”
Turning back to the princess, he smiled. “See? I am good to my word, after all. Your guard dog shall have the best treatment possible. Now, I must insist that you go prepare yourself for our wedding, before I lose my patience and decide to kill them all, consequences be damned.”
Josselyn pursed her lips in distrust, before dropping down beside Alex and pressing a kiss against his forehead, her fingers automatically seeking out his pulse to reassure herself that he was, in fact, still alive.
Feeling the weak flutter of life beneath the tips of her fingers, she let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding and stood. Walking with a confidence she didn't
