Keeper of Storms (The Fallen Fae #3) - Jenna Wolfhart Page 0,111

be looking down on them now.

They pressed out into the streets, joining the chaos of the battle. Warriors rushed past, screaming. Swords clashed against each other while arrows whistled through the air. Blood splashed against the black stone buildings. Bodies littered the ground.

Swallowing hard, she ran beside Lorcan as they dodged clusters of fighting fae. Her feet moved despite her weariness as a strange new lightness filled her limbs and heart. With her breath in her throat, she raised her eyes to the looming castle cast against the harsh red light of the sky. Ulaid Molt was squatting inside that castle, hiding away from the fight and likely feeding on another fae’s blood.

Anger rose like a storm, blocking out her exhaustion. She gripped the dagger tighter, just as a cluster of wood fae leapt in their path. Lorcan grunted, swinging his sword before they could react. Wingallock leapt into the sky, circling overhead.

“Reyna, stay back!” he shouted as the trio surrounded him. His first blow made contact, felling the wood fae with little effort. But the two others had seen him now, and they would not be so easily caught off guard.

“I mean, of course I’m not going to listen to you,” she shot back, whipping the dagger sideways, slashing it toward the nearest wood fae’s neck. The warrior leaned to the side, easily dodging her blow with a suspicious speed.

Reyna narrowed her eyes and sized him up. His pupils were dilated, and fresh blood painted his lips. Her stomach turned. “You know what my theory is about all these wood fae who drink blood before a battle?”

“You’re Reyna Darragh. And the High King.” The wood fae smiled, displaying teeth coated in crimson. “I can’t believe my luck.”

She ducked down as he swung his sword at her chest. The heavy steel shuddered past him, knocking him off balance. Reyna whipped back up, whirled behind him, and slid her dagger against his throat. He stilled.

“I think,” she said with a smile, “that only cowards drink blood. Too scared to fight us without it?”

He grunted, his neck bobbing against her blade. “I could say the same thing about you. Aren’t you the one who fought us in Fomorian Square with powers that aren’t your own?”

“That’s different,” she hissed, digging the blade in deeper. In the background, she heard the heavy thunk of Lorcan felling another enemy.

“How is it different, princess?” he hissed back. “Because from where I’m standing, it’s the same damn thing.”

“Because I fought you all with ice. And I already had that power flowing through my veins.”

The wood fae frowned. “But that’s impossible. You can’t—”

Reyna was done talking. She sliced her dagger through the wood fae’s neck and watched him crumple to the ground. Something about his question had unnerved her, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on why. Despite her newfound energy, the fog in her mind had yet to clear. She was only going through the motions, relying on her training and her instincts to get her through this fight.

Lorcan stepped up to her side, his chest heaving. Blood dripped from his sword. “I said to stay back.”

“And here I thought you knew me better than anyone else in the world.”

“You’re injured, Reyna,” he grumbled as he knelt to grab a second sword from one of the fallen warriors. “Your wound might be internal, but that doesn’t make it any less real.”

The distant clatter of swords grew louder. Reyna glanced over her shoulder toward the corner of the street. “More warriors will be here soon.”

He pushed up from the ground and tossed her the sword. Smiling, she took it and pocketed the dagger. “We should make a move for the castle. But when I say stay back, stay back.”

“Nope.” She twisted the sword this way and that, appreciating the glint of the red light against it. “I will do no such thing.”

He growled. “You really are impossible. You know that, right?”

“And you wouldn’t want me any other way.”

Wingallock swooped down from the sky and settled on her shoulder. He pressed his beak against her face and cooed. Lorcan watched, his eyebrows knitting together. “You both looked like you were on the brink of death a few moments ago. And now he’s flying and you’re fighting. What the hell is going on?”

Reyna shook her head and gazed back at the castle once again. She felt more ready than she ever had. Something had given her hope, even if she had no idea where it had come from. “I