Sharon Ashwood - Enchanted Guardian

Tramar ran his fingers down Nimueh’s face. It was a purely clinical touch, accompanied by a whispered spell. Nimueh trembled with what looked like genuine terror. A high, thin, keening sound escaped her lips along with a wisp of pale blue smoke. She began to shudder, the muscles in her neck corded with pain, the noise she made escalating to an agonized scream.

The sound tore through Dulac, but Tramar was deaf to it. His eyelids flickered, an ecstatic expression suffusing his features. When his gaze returned to Dulac’s, there was mockery in them that had been lacking just moments ago. Real, savage emotion.

The emotion Nimueh should not have had to give.

“I didn’t think she had any soul left to take,” Tramar said with a slow smile.

Nimueh sagged in his grip, suddenly limp.

The sick feeling in Dulac’s gut snowballed to rage. He jerked forward a step, the bone-crushing pain suddenly irrelevant—but it was still like forcing his way through solid brick. That single move had taken him within yards of the fae, but it wasn’t enough. Dulac snarled, his voice dropping deep into his chest. “Step away.”

“Oh, come, it’s barely a sip and the queen will destroy her. Why waste it?”

That was too much. Dulac was human, with no magic, but he was Camelot’s knight. With an act of will, Dulac shut down the pain in his body and sprang into the air. The fae’s eyes widened in affront, but he was too surprised to respond in time. Dulac hauled him away from Nimueh, wrenching him off balance.

Nimueh fell to the ground, but the impact seemed to wake her. With no wasted movement, she covered her head with her arms and rolled away from the fight. Dulac wanted to check on her, but Tramar was on him again, forgetting his magic to deliver a cracking punch.

With a swipe of his foot, Dulac knocked Tramar to the dirt and gravel, planting a knee on his chest to keep him still. The attack was quick and brutal, leaving the fae no time to resist. Dulac’s knife sliced through the chain of the amulet and kissed the soft flesh beneath Tramar’s chin.

The amulet fell with a clatter and skidded into the shadows. Dulac paused for the barest sliver of a second. As far as he knew, fae did not age. There was no telling what wonders Tramar had seen in his long life, what knowledge would be lost with his death. But he’d learned in a few short weeks how badly Merlin’s spell had destroyed the fae, and Tramar had tried to consume what was left of Nimueh’s soul. That had earned him his death.

Tramar’s eyes held Dulac’s. There was understanding in those cat-green depths, and the fae gave the slightest of nods. Dulac saw bravery, but also relief. Perhaps the worst tragedy of the fae was that under the influence of a stolen soul, they knew just how far they’d fallen.

Dulac slashed the blade, quick and sure. The skin of Tramar’s throat parted with a flare of red. Hot blood sheeted from the wound, slick against Dulac’s fingers. The fae gasped once, and it was over.

The fae’s body fell. Dulac remained where he was, breathing hard.

“Stand back.” Nimueh’s voice came from behind him.

He looked up to see her standing barefoot, her limbs smudged with dirt. Her eyes seemed too huge for her face, her cheekbones sharp against the frame of her coal-black hair. The buttons had torn from the tight skirt of her dress, giving him a flash of slender, olive-skinned thigh.

Though she shook with the aftershock of the fight, in every other way Nimueh seemed calm. She raised a hand, fingers spread, muttering words beneath her breath. The breathless summer night grew thick and close, almost as if an invisible fist were crushing them. Her hair fluttered around her face in a breeze that he couldn’t feel. A faint blue glow gathered around her, sparking and twisting as if it were alive.

Dulac felt a faint pop in the air. A sudden wave of heat made him spring aside. Moments later, Tramar’s body burst into white-hot flame, releasing an acrid cloud of smoke. They both stared at the fae’s body for the few moments it took for it to turn to a smear of ash. He could hear her panting as if she’d run a race. “Are you hurt?” he asked.

“It doesn’t matter,” she replied.

He spun to face her and grabbed her shoulders so he could look her over, but he never made it past her face. Tears tracked down her cheeks. “You’re in pain.”

“It hurt,” she said, her voice husky. “Losing my soul was agony the first time, like someone ripping my bones through my flesh. This time it was even worse. I knew what it would be like.”

He pulled her close, needing to hold her even though she would surely push away. To his surprise, she simply rested her head against his chest, her faint exhalation almost a sigh.

They’d stood together this way once before, the morning he’d left her. She’d curled against him just like now, her hair the color of the palest dawn light and her eyes wet with a grief she’d refused to admit. Go. Her voice had been soft. I cannot keep you to myself anymore.

He’d never returned. Shame burned him like white-hot fire.

As if Nimueh shared that memory, she drew away, putting space between them. She shook herself slightly as if recovering from a temporary lapse. “I’m fine,” she said coolly. “Thank you for your assistance.”

The formal words checked him before he could gather her back into his arms. He bit back sudden anger. “Why was Lightborn following you?”

“The queen sent him to kill me.” She met his eyes, her own defiant. “He’s tried before. LaFaye blames me for her son’s death. In truth, it was only partially my doing, but that does not matter.”

He’d heard the story from Gawain, but it wasn’t what he wanted to discuss now. “You’re not safe. Eventually she’ll send another assassin.”

“I know.”

“Nimueh,” he said, the word turning to a plea.

A moment passed, the night falling into a hush so complete all he heard was his own heartbeat. He could sense the pull of Nimueh’s presence, as if her blood and bones called to his. Perhaps it was mutual because, unexpectedly, she reached out her hand and clasped his. Her cool fingers were so slight they barely covered half his palm. He froze, certain that the smallest movement on his part would collapse the bridge she’d permitted between them. It was the first time since they’d met tonight that she’d reached out.

Dulac took a breath, but let it escape without speaking. Once, words had flown between them with barely a pause as if there wasn’t enough time in all eternity to share everything they’d wanted to say. Now he wasn’t sure what to say beyond the obvious: assassin, kill, danger. A barking dog could have imparted the same thing. He squeezed her hand gently, trying to give comfort.

She allowed the pressure, though she didn’t return it. Then her fingers slid away and she took three quick steps, scooping up something from the ground. When it flashed in the errant light, he saw it was the amulet. She slid it into a pocket, then paused to regard him, her expression matter-of-fact. “Don’t tell anyone this happened. Don’t even mention you saw me.”

It was then he saw the dark stain on the side of her dress. He hadn’t seen blood on Lightborn’s knife, but somehow she’d been cut. Adrenaline jolted him one more time and he lunged forward, but she was too quick, sidestepping him with fae grace.

“You are wounded.” The words came out angry, but Dulac was past caring about manners. “You need a healer.”

“Let me go. You’ve done enough.” The words were quiet, her face utterly composed. “The only thing more you can do is keep silent, even to Arthur. A careless word will only help the next killer who comes looking for me.”

He knew that already, and knew these days Arthur would be merciless when it came to any fae, even her. An overwhelming need to keep her safe sped his already pounding heart, but frustration made him savage. “Then tell me where you are at all times!”