Kael’s POV
The forest thinned but the air didn’t get lighter.
If anything, it grew heavier.
I could feel the magic pressing against my skin. It was crawling over my arms like a thousand tiny claws. My wolf bristled beneath my skin. Valric’s growl rumbled inside me.
We stepped out from the trees and the ruins rose before us.
The fortress was massive, even broken by time. Towering walls of blackened stone loomed high above us. Jagged cracks ran through the masonry, and vines as thick as my arm coiled over them like snakes. The air smelled of old dust, rot, and something darker….like burnt iron and death.
Several of the towers were nothing but hollow shells. Their tops were shattered as if something had clawed its way out. But others still stood tall. Their narrow windows were glowing faintly with red light. The gate was broken. It was hanging half off its hinges. Even so, the place radiated danger.
I stopped and stared up at it. “This is it?” My voice was low, almost a whisper.
Morana nodded. She didn’t look at me…her eyes were fixed on the fortress. “This is the place I saw in the vision. Lisa is inside. Fenric keeps her somewhere deep, where the walls are strongest and the shadows are oldest.”
Valric’s voice was sharp in my head. This place stinks of death. We shouldn’t be here.
We have to be here, I told him. We’re not leaving without her.
Behind me, my pack shifted restlessly. Jared stepped forward. His eyes were on the walls.” We going in?”
I turned to face them. “No. Not past this point.”
Alex frowned. “Why the hell not?”
I looked each of them in the eye. “The fortress is crawling with Fenric’s people. There are witches and warlocks. You wouldn’t make it ten steps without being torn apart. Morana and I can get through, but only with the cloaks. They won’t hide a crowd.”
Jared’s hands curled into fists. “So we just sit here?”
“You hold the perimeter,” I said firmly. “If something goes wrong, you’ll know. You’ll hear the signal.”
“And if we do?” Alex asked quietly.
I met his gaze. “Then you attack with everything you’ve got. Keep them busy. Give us a chance to get out.”
No one spoke after that. The silence between us was heavy. My pack didn’t like it, but they trusted me. They had to.
Morana stepped closer to me. Her cloak was already draped over her shoulders. The hood shadowed her face. “Once we’re inside, stay close to me. Step where I step. Breathe softly. Speak only if you must.”
I pulled my own cloak around me. The fabric settled over my shoulders like a second skin. It was cool and heavy. It seemed to pull me into the shadows. It was muting the sound of my heartbeat and muffling my presence.
I looked at her. “You can see me?”
She nodded. “The cloaks don’t hide us from each other. Only from them.”
I glanced back at my pack one last time. “If we’re not back by dawn, you know what to do.”
Jared’s jaw was tight. “Bring her home.”
I gave him a short nod. Then, Morana and I stepped through the broken gate.
The air inside was colder and sharper.
The courtyard was a wasteland of rubble and black stone. Grass had tried to grow here once but had withered into brittle stalks. The ground was cracked, and pools of stagnant water reflected the glow of torchlight from above.
Fenric’s people were everywhere.
Witches in dark robes patrolled the walls. Their eyes were glowing faintly. Warlocks stood near the inner gate. They were leaning on staffs carved with runes. I could hear the low hum of their magic, like the sound of bees trapped in glass.
Every instinct in me screamed to move fast, to get in and get out. But Morana’s hand brushed mine. It was a silent warning.
Valric’s voice growled inside me. They can’t see us, but they can still smell us if we’re not careful.
I know.
We moved like shadows. We slipped between pools of torchlight and hugged the broken walls. The cloaks worked….none of the guards‘ eyes followed us. Still, my heart was a drum in my chest. It was so loud that I was sure they would hear it.
We passed close to a pair of warlocks standing near a collapsed archway. They were muttering in a language I didn’t know. Their voices were low and rough. The smell of their magic made my skin crawl: burnt herbs, old blood, and something rotting.
Morana led the way. Her steps were so light that I couldn’t hear them at all. Every so often, she would glance over her shoulder to make sure I was still with her. Her eyes were sharp
and alert.
We slipped through a narrow doorway into the fortress proper.
Inside, the air was heavier still. The corridors were narrow and lined with cracked stone. Old banners hung in tatters. Their symbols had long faded. The floor was uneven and scattered with bits of rubble. In some places, the ceiling had caved in, forcing us to duck under broken beams.
My wolf paced inside me. This place is a tomb.
No, I told him. It’s a cage. And Lisa’s in it.
We passed more guards here. Some stood at intersections. Others patrolled the halls. There were warlocks with eyes like black glass and witches with faces pale as bone. The air around them shimmered faintly. There were wards, shields, and spells I couldn’t name.
Every time we got close, I held my breath. Every muscle in my body was tense. My hands itched for my claws, my teeth, and the fight I knew I couldn’t start.
Morana’s voice was barely a whisper. “Left up ahead. There is a stairwell that leads down.”
I nodded once and followed her.
We were halfway there when it happened.
It was stupid. A crack in the floor, half–hidden in shadow. My boot caught, just enough to throw me off balance.
I stumbled forward and my shoulder slammed into something solid.
Someone solid.
The warlock I had bumped into staggered sideways and caught himself on the wall. His head
< Chapter 110
snapped around and his eyes scanned the hall.
I froze and my breath caught in my throat.
Morana’s head whipped toward me. Her eyes were wide and her face was pale.
Valric’s voice was a snarl in my skull. i***t!
Claim
The warlock straightened slowly. His nostrils flared. His gaze slid past me at first, but then… he paused.
His head turned back, and his eyes narrowed.
He knew.
1
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