get into my head, and now the entire Academy knew about it.
The silence seemed to stretch on for ages. Just when I thought I could take no more, the glass window exploded behind me. Shards rained down on the stone floor, and Lila jumped up with a scream. I scrambled back just as another window crashed, the massive claws of a Redcap shooting through the hole left behind.
With a sharp gasp, I stumbled back. The windows at the other side of the Great Hall faced a similar fate, and two more Redcaps jumped through. They landed on every side of us, their sharp claws glinting off the light of the candles lining the walls. Changelings were screaming and racing toward the tall double doors that would lead to escape. But a Redcap jumped in front of them just in time, trapping every single soul in this place.
Finn and Rourke were by my side within an instant. One behind me, one in front, forming their arms in a circle to keep me protected from the creatures. I wanted to argue, to tell them to go help anyone else but me, but the terror in my heart had my mouth glued shut.
There were four Redcaps in the dining hall now, slowly circling the fae and changelings. I glanced around, desperately trying to find Sophia, Lila, and Sam. They were all huddled together, ducking low behind the table where we’d just been sitting. One of the creatures was bearing down on them. Its claws were only inches from their heads.
“Rourke,” I whispered, my heart beating madly in my chest. “Help them. Please.”
“I’m not leaving your side,” he said through gritted teeth.
“Neither am I,” Finn added. “Kael took Liam to get some weapons. He shifted away the second the first window broke.”
Indeed, he and Liam reappeared within seconds. Both were wielding swords that matched the ones they’d held that day in New York, that night that now felt so very, very long ago. Kael whirled and tossed a second blade into the hands of our Head Instructor while Liam tossed a sword to one of the third year instructors. Together, the four of them converged on the nearest Redcap, their blades swinging through the fear-filled air.
I found myself clinging tight to Finn’s arm as I watched Kael and Liam battle the creatures. My heart was in my throat, and my blood roared in my ears. They were so strong and so brave. Much braver than I was. Of course they were the two who had taken charge to save the day. They were the kind of fae to risk their lives for the sake of others, and I loved them for it.
When the first Redcap fell, it ignited a pure, unbridled anger in the others. They began to launch themselves at the cowering changelings. Claws swiped faces. Blood spilled. Rourke stepped in front of me to block my view of the carnage, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me so close that I could hear his frantic heartbeat in his chest.
The fight raged on. Screams filled the air as well as the gruesome sound of blades slicing into flesh. I wanted to do something. Anything other than stand here helpless, but Rourke kept a tight hold on my body, keeping me firmly out of harm’s way.
When it was finally over, the sight that met my eyes made me fall to my knees. The Redcaps had been defeated, and their corpses littered the hall. With them, three fae had fallen, blood pouring from gaping wounds.
“Who is it?” I whispered to Finn, who had wrapped his arm around my waist to hold me steady.
“I’m so sorry, Norah. Sam didn’t make it.” His lips pressed into a tight line. “We also lost a third-year changeling, along with her mate. He jumped in front of her to protect her from the Redcap, but—”
He sagged against me, and I supported him as best I could.
“Alright everyone,” our Head Instructor called out as she moved to the center of the floor. She wiped sweat and dirt and blood from her forehead and dropped her sword to the ground where it clattered, a steely echo in the sudden quiet of the hall. “I think it’s best if everyone returns to their rooms for the rest of the evening. You’ll be escorted there by your instructors who will stand guard, just in case more of the creatures try to attack.”
Frightened whispers shuddered through the crowd.
“We’ll have extra guards patrol the grounds