We walked onward as the sun grew paler, and the air became cooler as we drew closer and closer to the magnificent but holy palace walls. I could already feel its light energy wafting through the air like thick smoke, and it left a sour taste in my mouth and an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach. As the sunset grew nearer, I still couldn’t help but feel like we were being followed, and the idea tugged viciously at my every nerve.
When I could no longer take the warning sensation any longer, I whipped around, and this time, I thought I saw a group of shadowy cloaked men dive into an alleyway.
“Shit,” I muttered before I reached for my blade. “I knew it. We are being followed.”
“Fuck,” Vanessa said before she also reached for her weapon. “Whatever we do, we need to be as discreet as possible. No magic if we can help it.”
“Understood,” I said before I headed toward the alleyway. “Everyone, keep your eyes open and your senses on high alert.”
“Yes, master,” my women responded.
When I neared the mysterious back road where the shadows had dipped into, I pressed my back against the edge of the pale stone wall and waited a moment before I pulled out my blade. Then I swiftly turned the corner, but something deathly cold wrapped itself around my neck like an icy skeletal hand, and the last thing I heard before I was pulled into the darkness was the sound of my name.
Chapter 6
“Take whatever he has on him,” a chilling voice croaked from behind me, and whoever it belonged to still had his icy, skeletal fingers wrapped tightly around my throat. His grip hardened, and I gritted my teeth in disdain and repulsion as he leaned closer to whisper into my ear. “We’ve been following you for a while now, and any man who can afford more than five wives must be a very, very wealthy fellow.”
The alleyway was dark, but I could still see another cloaked figure about to reach inside my waistband.
“I wouldn’t recommend that,” I growled through my assailant’s tight grip, and before either of the thieves could respond, I threw my head back and hit my captor with all the strength I could muster.
A loud, satisfying crunch followed, and he howled before he released me. His counterpart, whose back was now turned to the opening of the alleyway, tried to run at me, but before he could, I saw a flash of movement from behind him. Then I heard the faint sound of a blade retracting from a sheath, and suddenly, my opponent stopped right in his tracks as his glowing eyes widened with surprise and agony. He fell down to his knees as blood dripped from the corner of his pale, thin lips, and when I looked behind him, Akira stood there with a satisfied grin on her face.
The black-eyed beauty quickly pulled out her blood-covered blade from my attacker’s back and kicked him so he would land face-first into the filthy cobblestone street. Then she spat on his corpse, and when her eyes lifted to meet mine, she swiftly pointed behind me.
“Master, look out!” she warned.
I quickly yanked out my own blade, twisted around, and stuck it right in my first attacker’s gut. Even in the shady alleyway, I could see his glowing eyes widen like dinner plates, and I pushed the weapon deeper into his soft flesh. He spurted a mouthful of blood and spittle in my face, and as I plunged my dagger in even further, the glow of his eyes slowly began to fade. Finally, I wrestled my knife out of his stomach, smiled, and took a step back as he fell dead to the ground.
“Fuckers,” I grunted before I wiped my blade off on my dark cloak and then tucked it back into my waistband.
“Master,” Morgana panted as the other women ran up behind Akira, and judging by their drawn weapons, each one was prepared to take out whatever had pulled me into the darkness. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” I said, and a bigger smile spread across my face when I looked at Akira. “Thanks for that.”
“Of course, master,” the confident Wicca replied before she also sheathed her own blade. “Besides, I’d never miss a chance to stab a holy worshipping motherfucker.”
“Come on, let’s get out of here,” Vanessa ordered in a sharp tone. “We need to keep going before the sun sets.”
We nodded in agreement, but when we stepped back into the dim light of the street, Faye took one look at me and gasped under her breath.
“Hold on,” she said before she took a step closer toward me. “You have blood all over your face, master.”
The redhead softly rubbed her thumb along my rough, scaled skin, and I couldn’t help but stare at her gorgeous, glowing hazel-green eyes. Even under her fish-like facade, I could see her beauty and dark grace, and my heart beat wildly for her as she continued to touch me.
“Thank you,” I said after she took a step back and smiled at me.
Before Faye could even answer, Vanessa sighed impatiently and looked toward the sandstone castle.
“Keep your sentiments for later,” she snapped coldly. “We’re running out of time.”
“Professor,” Penelope said as we headed toward the palace, which was only a few more leagues away. “What will we do if we can’t reach the room in time? What if we’re caught?”
“Then we fight,” I replied before Vanessa could open her mouth. “As we’ve done many times before.”
“Cole’s right,” the professor responded, and I knew it pained her to admit it aloud. “We’ll have no other choice. Let’s just thank Penelope and Beatrix for their combined magic, which has gotten us this far. I’d rather take on a league of royal soldiers than an entire
