Midnight Lies (Shifter Island #2) - Raye Wagner Page 0,47

wouldn’t have prioritized Justice and Noble without a reason. A very good reason. At this point, I didn’t want to know the details of their torture. Not until I could do something about it.

“What about Surlama?” I asked Kaja. “Have you seen her around?”

“I don’t know anything about Surlama.” Kaja swallowed, and her gaze darted to Rage. “But the rumor is the king’s trying to produce an alpha heir so he can leave Rage’s mom and kill … you know.” She dipped her head to Rage. “We haven’t seen Declan on campus since the games.”

Rage growled low in his throat as we passed through an outcrop of thick trees. “Let him try.”

Fur rose on the back of his neck, and I reached out and stroked him, trying to calm his wolf. I needed levelheaded human Rage right now, not his instinctual wolf. Although that part of him would come in handy later.

We reached the castle, halfway between the entrance we’d used when I first arrived and the back entrance I knew led to the infirmary. The solid stone wall had been repaired since the selkie attack, and I watched as Rage took several steps to the left, trailing his hands over the stones.

‘What are you doing?’ I asked. ‘Is there a secret entrance?’ I joked. Speaking to Rage’s mind was like second nature now.

Rage turned and grinned at me. ‘If I told you, it wouldn’t be a secret.’

Then, he pushed on a rock, and the stones slid away silently, revealing a secret passageway, and my jaw dropped.

“That’s so cool,” Kaja whispered.

As soon as we were all inside, Rage released his hold on the rock and darted in as the stones slid back into place. Rustling in the darkness, Kaja muttered something about a torch.

A spark flared, and Rage raised a small fireball in his palm, giving just enough light to illuminate the passageway.

To our left sat a large chest, its lid propped open. Clothes, shoes, and weapons filled the container. Above it, bows and quivers of arrows hung on the stone wall as well as several broadswords. Rage waved at the cache and said, “Let’s get armed. Declan may decide an heir can wait.”

I strapped blades to my thighs and grabbed a short sword while Kaja took several blades as well.

Rage grabbed a torch and tipped it to the flame in his palm. With the increased light, he was able to extinguish his fireball.

Kaja and I looked at each other, fully armed and ready to save Justice and Noble, as Rage stepped between us and waved the selkies forward.

“Gray and Harp, if you want swords, come get them,” Rage said.

First Gray and then Harp stepped forward and picked through the blades. It was still wild for me to think we were about to attack the alpha king with two selkies. My, my, how the tables had turned. A few minutes later, we slunk through the passageways, armed to the teeth.

Rage led us through the corridors, heading east.

‘Where are we going?’ I asked.

“We’ll go to my mother’s room first. I don’t want Declan to use her,” Rage answered aloud so everyone could hear. “Never again.”

“Weapons out,” Rage growled to all of us. “But be careful.” He narrowed his eyes at the selkie warriors. “Don’t you dare kill my mother by accident.”

Then he pushed another invisible button and led us into a large bedroom.

“Mom?” Rage said, halting just inside the room.

I stepped to his side and scanned the room, relieved when I spotted the headmistress alive and well, sitting at a writing desk despite the lateness of the hour. Next to her sat a large gray wolf. She’d turned toward her son when he called for her, her eyes wide, but she didn’t get up from her seat. A heartbeat later, the wolf became a man.

“Aww, Nai,” Herpes Beo said, coming to stand behind Elaine, hand on his sword. “So nice to see you. You too, Rage.”

I froze, knowing that at one time, Rage and his brothers had considered Beo a friend.

“The king will reward me greatly for bringing you two to him.” Beo sauntered forward, and a low growl rumbled from Rage next to me.

“What’s the matter—?” Beo didn’t finish his sentence.

Rage flicked his wrist, and in one fluid movement, a small dagger lodged in Beo’s neck. The Midnight Pack guard dropped to his knees.

Grey and Harp stepped out of the corridor, and one of them grunted, but his words were lost to me because Elaine stood then and swung, twisting