The Fractured Soul by Nicolette Andrews

Author:Nicolette Andrews [Andrews, Nicolette]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Magpie Publishing
Published: 2020-01-29T06:00:00+00:00

17

The yuki onna fanned out around Rin and Hikaru. The temperature dropped, and her breath came out in clouds of vapor, and a shiver ran up her spine. Hikaru was trembling with the cold. If it got any colder, he might end up a solid block of ice like the tengu prince. Behind her, the Queen of the yuki onna continued her speech, for now, the bulk of the crowd’s attention was on her. If she could just get through this group, they could get away unscathed, but that meant abandoning their mission to rescue the tengu prince.

“Follow my lead,” Rin whispered to Hikaru.

He gave her the barest nod of his head.

“Sisters, I think there’s been a misunderstanding.” Rin held up her hands in surrender, she’d talked her way out of worse predicaments. Maybe she could get out of this one as well.

The yuki onna in front of her smiled and revealed rows of jagged pointed teeth.

“There is no misunderstanding. One of our sisters wouldn’t be affected by the cold as you are,” said the yuki onna directly in front of her.

With each breath Rin took, she exposed herself, none of the yuki onna’s breath clouded in the air.

Rin forced a laugh and shook her head. “What do you mean?”

They closed in closer around them, their faces transforming from pale and deadly beauties to pupiless eyes and mouths too full of sharp teeth. Their hands were tipped in long claw-like fingernails that they reached for them with.

Rin and Hikaru backed away, but the yuki onna who had been previously watching the yuki onna queen had turned toward them, hunger in their gazes.

“It seems we have a guest, sisters,” the yuki onna queen said.

Rin took hold of Hikaru’s hand and squeezed and, with her other hand, reached into the sleeve of her kimono, where she had hidden away a leaf.

“Looks like we came at a bad time. We’ll see ourselves out then.” She tossed the leaf into the air before striking it with her fox fire. It exploded in a blue smoke that filled the air. For anyone but her, it would blind them for several minutes. Just enough time to escape.

Rin pulled Hikaru through the smoke, weaving their way through the yuki onna, who were scrambling to find her in the dark, while colliding with one another.

“Find them. Don’t let them escape,” the queen screeched.

Past the fumbling and howling yuki onna was the door out of the audience hall. The smoke was starting to thin, but it should give them enough time to escape. Once they were out of the palace, she could transform and run far away, from the yuki onna and from even the tengu and the alliance.

Hikaru must have sensed her indecision because he squeezed her hand. Saying without words that he trusted her decision, whatever it might be. If the yuki onna had allied with Ai, The Dragon’s rule would be threatened. And until there was peace, neither she nor Hikaru could rest. As much as

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