I threw my head up, plunging myself through the ceiling. From how hard it had been to get the door open in my human form, I thought I needed a lot of force to explode through it.
I found myself sailing through the door with surprising ease as wood exploded to either side around me. I landed in the remains of the hallway. It had caved in. Most of the house seemed to have been obliterated, and I searched frantically through the rubble, looking for the physician.
When I saw his slack face, I transformed back into a human.
I checked his pulse. He was gone.
Dust was so thick in the air that it was hard to see, and harder to breathe. I finally fought my way outside.
I was just wearing a tunic and leggings, and the bracing wind carried soft flakes of snow. I shivered as I blinked out at the bright white expanse of snow, trying to understand what had just happened.
The beautiful, peaceful winter landscape looked surreal with the castle disintegrated into nothing but trash. I turned and looked behind me, searching for whatever had destroyed the castle. There was no hint in the tranquil landscape of an earthquake or a landslide.
Had this been the assassination attempt that my royals feared? A shiver ran down my spine, wondering if I was being watched, if assassins were creeping through the snow toward me for a second attempt at murder.
I had to get help for Lucien. I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving him trapped down there. Maybe now that his castle had just been blown sky-high, Lord Joachim would come to survey the damage.
Unless Lord Joachim was the one behind the assassination attempt, trying to take down both Lucien and me in one stroke. Family holidays with the Olds as my in-laws were going to be strained.
I shivered so hard my muscles ached. If someone was going to try to kill me, it’d be nice if they let me grab my winter coat first, maybe a pair of mittens.
I set off for Alina’s castle. Every step away from Lucien ached, knowing that he would be waiting to know what was happening. But the sooner I reached Alina, the sooner we could help Lucien in some way.
I pounded on the front door, even though it couldn’t be opened.
One of Alina’s servants threw open the window. She looked white faced and shaken.
“Can you get Alina for me?” I called.
Alina crowded her at the window a moment later.
“Honor, what are you doing here?” She squinted behind me, as if she were searching for the ruins of the castle. “I heard a racket, was that you?”
“It wasn’t me, personally. The castle’s destroyed.”
Alina frowned. “What did you do?”
Everyone always assumed things were my fault.
“I’ve got to go find the royals,” I said. “I’m afraid they could be in danger too. Could I borrow some winter clothes?”
I wanted to get away from her as quickly as possible in case I posed a danger to her. I could fight best as a dragon if there were a follow-up assassination attempt.
“Of course,” she said, “You should stay here. Branok and Lynx will be so worried about you.”
“I doubt that very much.”
She spoke to her servant, who bustled off. A moment later, Alina tossed a long thick coat down to me. “I don’t know why I even have this damn thing. It’s not like I get to go any farther than the rooftop. Are you going to be all right?”
“Don’t worry. I have a plan.”
She looked deeply skeptical at the thought. “Honor, it’s likely the Elders are trying to kill you, right? And you think you have a plan to defeat the king and his lords who are the most powerful men and magicians in the kingdom—as well as the most powerful dragons?”
“Wait and see,” I said, trying to sound mysterious, because my plan still largely revolved around petty theft and good luck.
She leaned her elbows against the windowsill, knitting her fingers together. The cold wind that teased her long golden hair didn’t seem to touch her. “Honor. Do you know why Lucien hasn’t come for me yet? I don’t understand…”
The fingers pressed into my mind, and I gritted my teeth, trying to struggle through the fog that slowed my brain.
Her eyes widened. “You’ve been enchanted by Teris. That’s one of the enchantments you carry.”
“Lucien can’t reach you,” I managed. “But I’m going to dig him up for you.”
The hint was the closest I could come.
Her gaze flew to the demolished castle, and her lips parted in shock. “Father never bricked the dungeon up, did he?”
I shook my head, and pain jolted through it, an instant migraine sparking behind my right eye. I pressed the heel of my hand into the eye as my stomach churned from the pain, but even though I was about to puke, I felt a glimmer of pride.
I was slowly fighting my way through Teris’s magic.
Maybe I’d be strong enough to fight him one day.
“Get me out of here, Honor,” she begged. “Let me see him. Please.”
“I will,” I promised. “I’ll fix everything.”
Those were pretty lofty promises when I was about to trudge toward the encampment, leaving the wreckage of the castle behind and a body in the snow.
Chapter
Forty-Five
Lynx
When I saw the devastated castle, a shot of fear ran through me, followed by a jolt of anger.
Was Honor in there? The thought sent something frantic scratching through my chest and I was surprised by the way my stomach suddenly turned with fear.
I took off running for the castle. Ahead of me Jaik was already transforming into a dragon, jumping off the ground. His wings burst from his body in mid-air and he soared through the air toward the castle.
The five of us frantically hunted through the castle, finding only the dead body of the physician. Honor was gone.
“She’s probably still alive,” I said, wanting it to be true.
Jaik turned on me.
“And how would you know that?” he demanded. Despite his clipped, furious tone, I could read him well enough to know how worried he was for Honor. “Maybe whoever destroyed the castle took her body as a prize.”
“If she’s alive, we’ll find her,” Arren vowed.
Jaik cursed. “My father promised he wouldn’t hurt her. I don’t trust the old man, but I thought his reasoning, at least, would keep her safe. Unless he doesn’t care at all anymore, with Faleen…”
“Honor’s been keeping secrets from us,” Branok said. “One of those might very well be the reason someone’s trying to kill her. And it might have nothing to do with the elders.”
“I wonder why she wouldn’t trust all of us with her whole truth,” Talisyn mused. “It seems absolutely irrational.”
His sarcasm was always so heavy handed. But even though Talisyn sounded like his normal glib self, his fury was written across his face, in the tightness of his jaw and the lines suddenly formed around his eyes.
Just then, a group of horses came galloping up, with several shifter students on their backs. Wolves were running alongside them.
And then, peeking over one of their shoulders, I saw a beautiful determined face and familiar long red hair.
One of the wolves shifted back, and Caldren strode confidently through the snow.
I was at the horse’s side in a moment, as the rider drew up abruptly.