Heir of Shadows and Ice: (Claiming Elfhame Book 1) by J.M. Wallace

Author:J.M. Wallace [Wallace, J.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2022-04-17T16:00:00+00:00

She was drowning. At least, that’s what it felt like. Like she was trapped underwater and could not swim to the surface no matter how hard she tried. She gasped for air, but instead of warm water, she was met with ice. It burned as it filled her lungs. She opened her eyes.

When she did, she was faced with a cloudy, wintry sky. Snowflakes fell gracefully onto her face, sticking to her lashes. The rider. She sat up, sure that a sword would meet her flesh as she did. Nothing came. The clearing was empty. There was no sign of the rider or the nightmarish steed on which he rode.

She scrambled to her feet. Disoriented, she walked toward the warm glow where the tree line split. Each painful step she took brought her closer to the greenish-brown grass that awaited her in the Autumn Court. Her vision was no longer blurred when she reached it. It was then that she broke into a run.

She ran at a break-neck pace until she arrived at the blackthorn trees. When she made it to the tree line, Cierine met her with tear-streaked cheeks and bloodied hands. The blood trickled from her fingers and down her wrists. “I couldn’t break through. I tried but…”

Horrified by her friend’s pain from her failed attempts at clawing her way through the thorny brush, Kelera embraced her. “It’s okay. I’m here now.”

Mira’s voice trembled. “What happened back there?”

Kelera answered her honestly, “I have no idea. One minute, th-that thing was attacking me and the next…” she trailed off, unable to find the words. It didn’t make sense to her. One instant, she was at the mercy of that monster and the next she was engulfed in heat.

Mira gulped. “No one has ever defeated them.”

Did she defeat the beast? She had no memory of what happened. The last thing she remembered was the overwhelming intensity of power and the certainty that it would consume her in one fell swoop.

Mira pried. “How did you do it?”

Kelera swallowed her irritation. “I don’t know. And I don’t think this is the time or place to discuss it.” Mira eyed her suspiciously. Something about the way she was looking at her made Kelera nervous. Mira seemed to know more than she let on. And she’d offered no help when Kelera had stayed back to sacrifice herself. It wasn’t fair to blame her, though. You couldn’t judge someone for their actions when staring death in the face.

Kelera looked around at the frightened women. “Let’s go home.”

Cierine waved a hand at the women, urging them to follower her toward the brush. Before they could move, a stampede of hoofbeats came their way. Kelera turned to find that she and the others were surrounded by the Fae. The men were heavily armed with swords and axes, all dressed in expensive armor. It had to be the king’s guard.

Kelera felt a breeze as an arrow flew past her face and into the neck of one of the mortal women.

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