An Isle of Mirrors (A Shade of Vampire #88) - Bella Forrest Page 0,38

giants, making it easier for us to hide if needed. Developing this wilderness in the middle of The Shade had been the best thing Derek had ever done. With an invasion like this, our forest was basically an efficient line of defense. “And we pray my parents or at least more of our people are waiting there.”

Branches broke somewhere behind us.

I turned my head only for a second. It was enough to make me want to scream. Footsteps were amplified. A couple at first, but now… there were at least a dozen clones chasing after us. They’d caught up, and I was terrified, unsure of how we’d get ourselves out of this mess. I recognized Rose and Caleb’s doppelgangers. Vita and Bijarki. Dmitri and Douma. “We’re so screwed,” I heard myself say.

Throwing barriers earlier had taken its toll on me. My legs felt heavy. My body and soul weakened. I didn’t have much fight left within me, certainly not enough to take on a dozen clones.

“We can’t stop,” Thayen said, well aware of the newly emerging threat. “We have to reach the Great Dome.”

It was our only option—the hope that our people would be there, and that they would be able to back us against this invasion. The forest was too dense in these parts for Jericho and Dafne to easily move around as dragons, and the enemy would likely take advantage of that fact. Besides, they had foreign magic at their fingertips. I had rapidly depleting Daughter energies and I was terrified.

A horn blew in the distance, low and nasal but loud enough to make my ears twitch. It went on for almost a minute, during which time the shuffling steps of our pursuers subsided. By the time I looked back again, the clones were gone. “Hold on,” I said, stopping for a moment.

“We have to keep moving. They’ll…” Thayen’s voice trailed off as he also realized what was happening. “Whoa. They left?”

“It was the horn,” Soph said. “I don’t know who’s operating that thing or the purpose it serves, but… I think it made them leave.”

“Could it be our doing? Maybe Lumi or my dad?” I asked, daring to hope. “I mean, maybe they got to safety and figured out a way to scare the clones off.”

Dafne gave me a doubtful look. “Or maybe one of the clones came up with a way to communicate an order to the others while our channels and Telluris are still down.”

“We have no way of talking to our people. Meanwhile, they’re openly invading The Shade,” Thayen concluded. “We’ll figure out what that horn is once we find Mom and Dad. For now, we can’t stop anymore. Whether the clones have left us alone or not, we have to get to the Great Dome!”

I didn’t linger. Despite my exhaustion, I started running again. Thayen, Soph, Jericho, and Dafne followed. We were left with few reasonable options and no means of communication. Just like Soul had suspected, I feared we were now dealing with a second wave. The clones we’d seen in the clearing were part of it. I wondered if that was the only portal that had opened up, or if they’d pushed through other access points simultaneously. If I wanted to lay siege to The Shade, that was how I would’ve done it. Multiple entries, smaller groups, highly organized incursions.

My only hope was that we’d actually find our people at the Great Dome, and not more of these wretched clones.

Kelara

My head was a blur. I hadn’t felt like this since… since Corbin Crimson had trapped me and cursed me with the ghoul sickness. Dread replaced the numbness as my eyes peeled open. I wasn’t sure what had happened, but I’d clearly been out of it for a while. Someone or something had managed to turn my lights off.

Everything ached, as if I’d run a marathon. But I hadn’t experienced sensations like these since I was alive. It didn’t make much sense. I was lying down on my side. The ground felt hard, though there was a patch of grass tickling my cheek. “Ugh…” I pushed myself into a sitting position, my weakened arms struggling to support my weight. Pain persisted somewhere between my temples, making me cringe whenever I moved my head.

My entire circumstance was unusual for a Reaper. I didn’t lose consciousness. Not usually, anyway. I wasn’t designed for it. But still, here I was, dazed and confused and wondering what the hell had happened. A pentagram with entrapment symbols