A searing pain shot through my left wing, and I veered crazily. I knew without looking that the vampyre with the scar and the arrows hadn’t missed this time. The treetops rushed up to greet me as I desperately tried to stay in the air, but I wasn’t strong enough or acclimated enough in this new body to know what to do. My muscles spasmed and I dropped like a stone. Branches beat at my body as I fell, whipping my face, my arms, my back and my legs. I couldn’t do anything to stop my descent, the space too narrow for me to risk flaring my remaining wing, lest I injure that too. The ground finally caught up to me and I met it hard, knocked unconscious before I could even think to release a distress call.
Someone was with me.
I fought the instinct to open my eyes or call for help. I focused inwards, intent on observing whoever stood over me, one finger gently stroking the skin on my arm. Whoever it was, they seemed more curious than harmful. I gave a small prayer of thanks that I had shifted into my human form while unconscious—it was a small mercy.
“Shiny skin! Pretty like the snow.”
A child’s voice—a female. I listened closely as she stepped around me with a smoothness that didn’t fit her bubbly voice.
“Grandmother would want to see the sparkly girl.”
Panic seized me, and I shot straight up, ignoring the pain in my body.
“Don’t tell anyone I’m here!”
The little girl jumped, then clapped her hands as though I had just played a rather clever joke on her. She looked younger than Georg, but I wasn’t exactly an expert. I had only ever seen human children as babies. Her hair was a ring of fire, tied up high and secured with precious jewels and ornaments. It nearly reached the ground, as she looked at me with startled eyes so black and dark that it was unnerving. She wore a simple, shapeless white gown with no shoes. I took a deep breath and tried to remain calm.
“There are bad people looking for me, who want to kill me. I fell here when they hurt my—I mean, they chased me here.”
I was acutely aware that my continued survival depended on no one discovering what I was. The girl frowned, and I pushed ahead, my tone falsely bright.
“Is there somewhere I can hide? You live here—I bet you know all the good places!”
Her face lit up.
“I know the best places!” She grabbed my hand and pulled, and I tried to stand. My muscles screamed in protest, but I managed to stumble after her. She led me through the thick undergrowth as I hobbled and limped along, trying not to gape at the lush forest around us. We stopped along a small, bubbling stream and a massive willow tree that stood over it like a regal guardian. The woods here were surreal—quiet and soothing. The sun peeked out between the thick leaves that stretched overhead, and I breathed in the scent of the trees and flowers. It was so good to be outside again and hear the birds.
“Follow me.”
The girl jumped and flung her body at the tree, claws extending from her fingers and toes as she stuck into the bark a good six feet above the ground. I jerked, realizing there was no way she was human. I shifted enough to unsheathe my claws and climbed after her, slithering up the tree easily as if I’d been doing it my whole life. She tilted her head to the side, confused.
“You aren’t a witch, but we match!”
She held out her black claws, which were long and elegant, tapering off into a razor-sharp edge. My own were sturdier; thicker and more rounded. Did she say witch? As with anything outside of the breeding manor, my knowledge of witches was non-existent. Were they allied with the Overlord, or one of the neutral species Domik had mentioned in his history lessons?
We reached the split in the center of the trunk and she leaned down, carefully cutting into the bark with one claw. I watched in interest as she pried open a hidden door and pointed down in the darkness. A bird nearby let out a loud squawk, and I jumped. The girl giggled at me and pointed down again.
“You first.”
I was skeptical but didn’t have much of a choice. I jumped down and landed in a crouch, soft moss and rotted wood meeting my hands and feet. Dark, cloying air greeted me, and my draken instincts immediately panicked. Trapped! Closed walls! Can’t fly! Get away! I clamped down hard on my fear as the little girl landed next to me, pulling on a string to close the door above us. It was tight. The bottom of the trunk was completely hollowed out, barely large enough if I wanted to curl into a ball and lay down. With both of us there, it was hard to keep my draken’s claustrophobia in check. The girl was almost flush against me, her dark eyes appearing as vacant holes in her head. She smelled of chaos and ashes. I breathed out, dismissing such foolish thoughts, and felt around the trunk. A few indentations were cut into the bark, allowing for a few candles. The little girl lit them easily with a wave of her hand. I tried to control my surprised reaction and failed. The girl didn’t seem to mind.
“This is the best place to hide.”
I swallowed, not wanting my fear to overcome my gratitude. This was better than
