a guard shouting and waving his arms on the balcony. Boom! A loud explosion rocked the castle and every glass window of the throne room blew apart.
“What was that?” Jared asked.
“The queen must have done it,” Farah replied.
“Something’s wrong.” Kendric nodded at Alfred. “You’re in charge here.” Not that there was anything left to do, he thought as he dashed to the castle. He tore off his shirt, then shifted into an eagle, leaving his breeches behind as he flew to the balcony.
The guard was shaking in his boots as he pointed toward the throne room. “T-t-tiger!”
Tiger? What was the fool talking about? Still in eagle form, Kendric landed in the passageway. The scent of shifters wafted toward him. Cahira, Maeve, and Gavin, no doubt. But the first two could only shift into sea animals, and Gavin was a small cat.
Brody? Dammit, was he here? Kendric shifted into his human form. “Your breeches and your sword. Now!”
The guard quickly obeyed orders.
Kendric pulled on the breeches and grabbed the sword. He’d fought Brody as a tiger once before in Norveshka. Damn, but he was sick of that other shifter always getting in his way. Thankfully, the Light was on his side today. Rupert and Leo would die. And soon, Brody would, too.
Chapter 25
On a rocky bluff near the forest, Nevis watched in horror as the armada began to sink. All fourteen ships. His father was onboard. Leo, his best friend. Rupert. Soldiers that he’d known all his life. All dying and drowning right before his eyes.
Elinor took his hand and stood silently beside him.
“There has to be something we can do.” He racked his brain. “Catriona! Can you blow up the sea monsters?”
“I can only do fish.” She sighed. “And those are too far away.”
Hannah stopped raining on the Embraced army and collapsed on the ground in tears. “We lost. We tried so hard, but we lost.”
Nevis winced. Now was the time to encourage the children, but with Leo and his father about to die, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
A boy shot through the forest and skidded to a stop in front of them. “Hannah! I found you.”
“Logan!” Bettina strode toward him. “What are you doing here?”
“I-I’m supposed to make Hannah stop . . .” He looked around the clearing at all the Spiders. “What are you doing here?” His eyes widened at the sight of Nevis and Elinor on the rocky bluff overlooking the ocean. “Who are you?”
Nevis glowered at him. “Come here, boy, and see how many men you have killed.”
Logan gasped. “I-I didn’t . . .”
“You’re one of them!” Hannah cried.
“No, I . . .” Logan looked around at all the angry faces. “Kurt? Wh-where’s Naomi? Is she all right?”
“She’s fine,” Kurt growled. “She’s with the little ones.”
Catriona leaned close to Nevis to explain. “Logan grew up in the nursery with Kurt, Naomi, and Mikayla.”
At the sound of Mikayla’s name, Logan fell to his knees. “They made her fly over the wall!” Tears ran down his face. “She’s gone!”
Everyone gasped. Bettina doubled over, her face in her hands.
Dammit to hell. Nevis dragged a hand through his hair. “Those damned bastards, using children to do their dirty work.”
“I’m a bastard, too,” Logan cried. “Alfred always said I was only good for running away, and that’s what I did. I ran away!”
Elinor walked toward him. “Dry your tears, young man. Refusing to be a villain is nothing to be ashamed of.”
“She’s right,” Catriona said. “We know you never harmed anyone.”
Logan wiped his face. “Th-then you forgive me?”
Kurt gave him a slap on the back. “Are you joining us now?”
“You can be a Spider!” Quentin jumped up and down, and the others cheered.
Nevis glanced back at the ocean and the floundering ships. It made his heart ache, but there was nothing he could do for them. However, he could still help Brody.
Boom! An explosion sounded in the distance.
“What was that?” Elinor asked.
“The castle. You all stay here.” Nevis ran as fast as he could toward the castle. The Sea Witch must have caused the explosion. And that meant Brody was in danger.
* * *
In the crow’s nest, Leo watched the ocean rising and could think of no other solution. The seamen and soldiers in the water were already struggling to stay alive. He couldn’t kill them all.
Tears sprang to his eyes as he thought of Luciana. He’d promised her that he would return. Now he would never see Eric and Eviana grow up, never see the newborn babe.
Luciana, I