Mist's Edge (The Broken Lands Book 2)

by T. A. White

  She carefully turned onto her back. Above her a deep purple flower opened and closed. There were other flowers intertwined with it, each a varying shade of purple. Some were tightly closed, the bud bulging in odd places on the side. She had a guess as to what was causing that, and it was enough to make her break out into a cold sweat.

  Voices reached her. “I think she came this way.”

  “Are you sure? It could be another false trail. She’s been laying them all afternoon.”

  “She didn’t have time to lay one this time. She would have been fleeing for her life.”

  “If you say so.”

  The vines perked up at the voices. They snaked across the ground, barely causing a rustle against the dead leaves, their movements as sinuous as they were graceful.

  Shea held her breath as one moved across her stomach. They must be attracted to sound and movement. Otherwise she’d be dead already.

  All she could do was wait as her hunters came closer. They could be part of the game, hunting her as the beast. Something told her to wait. Something in the way they spoke made her think they were the ones who had shot at her.

  She waited.

  Two men stepped around a tree and exclaimed when they saw her on the ground. The smaller of the two raised a bow and arrow and started to point it at her. Guess that answered that question.

  All the while the vines crept closer. From above another vine dropped down.

  Shea waited.

  The man drew the arrow. The vines attacked. Shea moved, exploding from the ground and sprinting away from the men.

  There were twin screams behind her as she fled. She didn’t hesitate. There was nothing to be done anyway.

  She ran until she couldn’t run anymore. By sheer instinct, she had managed to run toward camp instead of away. The forest around her began waking up again and the air lightened as if a cloud had passed.

  Finally, she slowed and then stopped. She needed to catch her breath and figure out where she was. A twig cracked behind her.

  Shea froze and then sprang away.

  Her hesitation cost her. Arms wrapped around her before she could even take a step.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  SHEA LANDED on the ground with a body on top of hers. She twisted and turned, using her elbows to strike at the person behind her. She kicked back, gratified when she heard a grunt behind her.

  “Shea, it’s me. Fallon. Quit fighting.”

  Shea stilled. She turned her head to see an irate pair of whiskey colored eyes looking down into hers.

  “Fallon.” All of the fight left her. She collapsed onto the ground, her body boneless with relief. Her limbs had a fine tremble in them, a remnant of the adrenaline that had driven her body until now and the fear from when Fallon had grabbed her.

  He looked down at her with puzzlement and then looked around them. “Where’s Trenton? Tell me you didn’t ditch your guard again.”

  “We got separated after someone shot an arrow at us.”

  Fallon’s attention swung back to Shea. His body went from relaxed against hers, to hard as granite. His gaze swung to the forest around them, taking on a watchful look.

  He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet before setting off into the woods with her towed behind him. One hand rested on the long dagger at his waist.

  “How long ago was this?”

  Shea tried to think. Time had gotten away from her while she’d been playing cat and mouse. “An hour maybe. I’m not sure.”

  “Did you see them?”

  Shea winced as his words reminded her of the last time she’d seen those two. With sleeper vines wrapped around them, screaming in pain and fear.

  “You could say that.”

  His stride didn’t hesitate, covering the forest floor quickly. Shea kept up easily. He still hadn’t let go of her hand.

  “They’re probably dead right now. They followed me into a nest of sleeper vines. I don’t think they made it out.” Because of Shea.

  “Good.” Fallon’s words were curt as they moved through the forest at a quick clip. “That saves me from having to kill them. When we get back, you can give us a general idea of where you left them, and I’ll send some men to retrieve their remains if there are any. It would have been nice to be able to interrogate them.”

  Shea’s reply was faint when it came. “I’ll endeavor to remember that next time.”

  Fallon looked back and flashed her an amused look. “You do that, and Darius will worship at your feet.”

  “What every girl dreams of.”

  “More women than I can count have expressed that desire,” Fallon said. “He’s considered one of the best catches in my army by man or woman.”

  “No wonder he’s so arrogant,” Shea said. She was beginning to feel better. Stronger and less shaky. She felt more herself again.

  If she remembered correctly, they were close to where Clark and she had stashed the tools to make the beast tracks. They shouldn’t be more than a few minutes from the field where the game had started.

  They entered the clearing at a near run. Several of Fallon’s Anateri, including Caden, waited in a clump next to the table of refreshments that had been set up for the end of the game. Trenton was among them, his clothes disheveled and stained with dirt and blood. He had a bandage wrapped around one arm.

  The Anateri were armed and looked like they were organizing a search party.

  Fallon hailed them as he and Shea came out of the forest. Caden whistled and his men surrounded them, providing a barrier. Anyone attempting to shoot an arrow would not find Shea an easy target.

  “Get men into the forest to perform a search,” Fallon ordered as soon as he was in hearing distance of Caden. “Shea said her attackers disturbed a nest of sleeper vines, but there may have been others. I want everyone still out there rounded up and questioned.”

  Caden turned and made a few gestures to his men.

  Trenton stood straight, relief in his eyes at the sight of Shea. “When I realized we’d been separated, I returned to organize a search. It’s my fault she was in danger. I’ll accept any punishment you deem fit.”

  Shea rolled her eyes. The gods save her from arrogant nitwits who wanted to fall on their swords.

  Trenton saw her and frowned, his expression stern.

  “Oh please, you were in no way responsible for us getting separated. If anything, I know you stayed behind to try to cover my escape,” Shea told him, ignoring the frown he aimed her way.

  Trenton ignored her and straightened his shoulders and lifted his chin. “Nevertheless, she was my charge and I failed her.”

  Shea narrowed her eyes on him. The stupid idiot was going to get himself into unnecessary trouble for something he couldn’t control. If anyone had been at fault, it was Shea. After those first few arrows, she had run without paying much attention to anything but escape. It was a stupid mistake that a daisy would make. She should have kept her head and wits about her.

  “That’s a ridiculous claim,” she said. “Stop being noble. It wasn’t your fault we got separated or that a couple of lackwits with arrows put me in danger.”

  Fallon looked between the two of them with a thoughtful expression on his face. “I agree with Trenton.”

  Shea scoffed and turned to him with anger dawning on her face.

  He held up a hand to forestall her coming words. “His punishment will be to train you to prepare for all sorts of situations that might come up so that next time you can react with more skill. I also think continuing as your personal guard will be punishment enough for his transgressions.”

  Fallon gave her a pointed look. Her mouth snapped shut as she frowned at him. She resented the fact that he had made it seem as if guarding her was a punishment, but she couldn’t argue with him without putting Trenton’s neck back on the chopping block. Fallon had unreasonably high expectations for his guards. She didn’t want to be the one responsible if anything happened to Trenton.

  Tricky, tricky Warlord.


  She’d like to argue against the need for more training but the events of today had shown a huge gap in her skills. She’d survived because she was lucky. There was a good chance she wouldn’t be the next time an enemy came for her.

  She turned to Trenton. “I guess we’ll be spending more time in the training arena once you’re healed.”

  “There are people she can train with until you’re cleared for duty again,” Caden told Trenton. He turned his head towards her. “I will take over your training until Trenton can work with you.”

  Great. The only person worse than Trenton was Caden. She’d seen him train with Fallon. The man was a dictator. One who was relentless and tireless. She nodded her agreement. Arguing was useless, and a little time spent with him could make a difference down the road.

  “I’ve dispatched several teams to sweep this section of the forest. They’ll report back when they’ve finished,” Caden told Fallon.

  Before Fallon could respond, a large shadow blotted out the sun streaming through the forest branches as screams rose from the encampment. Shea looked up to see golden feathered wings as large as a house.

  “Golden eagle.”

  Shea hit the ground, pulling Fallon down with her. Caden and Trenton followed, landing with a thump.

  The eagle swooped down, overshooting Shea and the rest to pluck a horse from an enclosure. The horse screamed with fear, its legs kicking before it went still as the eagle’s claws broke its neck.

  Another eagle dropped from the sky. This time rising with a person in its clutches.

  Shea’s heart thundered in her ears. The leftover adrenaline that had been in her system earlier flooded through her, erasing any fatigue.

  This wasn’t right. How were the golden eagles here? Their territory was the mountains and plains, where pickings were easy, and their movements unhampered by the giant vegetation of the forest.

  Shea watched as one of the eagles tried to lift off and had to drop its prey when it couldn’t extend its wings because of trees hemming it in on either side. The person it dropped crawled toward an upraised tree root as the bird hopped awkwardly after him. Its talons carved deep grooves in the wood.

  “Attack its wings,” Fallon ordered Caden. “Don’t let it back into the air.”

  Caden let out a roar. The Anateri followed him. Some held spears and others bows and arrows. They circled the bird and worked on bringing it down while it mantled its wings at them and gave a screech of warning.

  Shea grabbed Fallon’s arm before he could run to help. “Its eyesight is incredibly sharp. It can spot prey from a mile away. Don’t let it back in the air. It can be out of the range of your weapons in seconds and dive on you before you can blink. Stay close to the trees as much as possible. It’ll make it harder to maneuver there.”

  Fallon nodded. He brushed her cheek with a gentle touch and then was gone.

  A hand fell on Shea’s arm. Trenton’s expression was grave. “We need to go.”

  Shea nodded. Yes, they did. The second one would come back for its mate.

  As she stood, she glanced back at the forest and paused. A figure stood in its shadows. She could have sworn she recognized him. His shape was familiar, the way he carried himself. Though the distance made her second guess herself. There was no way it could be him. He was dead. Had been since their trip into the Badlands.

  An eagle screamed, just as it dived into the camp. The Trateri split, some racing to meet the coming danger while the young and non-warriors raced to find shelter. Shea followed along, knowing that she’d just get in the way. She wasn’t trained for combat and had not trained to be part of a team.

  She ran beside Trenton, trying not to get swept along with the press of humanity.

  There was a war cry above her and a villager from Airabel flung a spear at one of the eagles. Another leapt through the air, freefalling until he landed on the back of an eagle, taking a knife to the beast’s neck until blood dotted its feathers.

  The eagles were swarming. Shea had only seen the like one other time in her life. The Badlands. This scene was as bad as any she fought there. Terror was a wild beast in her chest.

  Another eagle dived, while its companion fought off the man from Airabel. This time there was no scream as it rose, blond curls draped over its talons.

  “Mist! Trenton, it has Mist.” Shea pointed at the eagle that struggled to flap its way to safety. It turned as villagers shot a hail of arrows at it.

  Trenton looked up and cursed. “Shea, wait.”

  Shea didn’t wait. She ran along the ground keeping the eagle in sight as it careened through the forest, its wings too big. They brushed the sides of the trees as it fought to rise.

  Shea found a ladder leading into the trees and started to climb. One hand over the other as fast as she could. Reaching a rope bridge above, she pulled herself up and ran along it, shadowing the eagle below.

  She leapt into empty space when she ran out of bridge and barely landed on another tree’s oversized branch. They were in the mid canopy. The branches weren’t as tightly woven as they were in the world above. She had to pay attention to where she placed her feet. It would be easy to fall here.

  The eagle flapped as it fought through the dense forest and gave a battle cry as Trateri soldiers forced it back. Shea turned, following a branch.

  There. That was her chance.

  She leapt, grabbing a hanging vine and swinging out into air. She let go and fell, her heart in her throat and utterly focused as the eagle grew in size beneath her. She landed on its back, sliding down until her hands managed to grip tight onto its feathers.

  The wings flapped, hitting her on the side of the face. She bit her tongue but held on.

  Mist whimpered from where she was clutched in the beast’s claws.

  Shea clung to the bird. She hadn’t thought this plan through before she implemented it. Impulsiveness was really going to get her killed one day.

  She couldn’t kill the beast with Mist clutched in its claws. It would mostly likely result in Mist’s death as well as Shea’s when they all went crashing to the ground.

  Shea waited, drawing the dagger she’d grabbed when the beasts first attacked. She’d need to time this very carefully.

  An eagle could open and close its claws at will. Right now, it held Mist lightly enough that the girl hadn’t been killed. Probably because the eagle wanted its prey alive for whatever reason.

  Shea waited until they were over a soft-looking copse of tangled branches and vines, interwoven, thin and flexible enough that they might slow Mist’s fall but not be as hard as the ground.

  Shea struck, sinking her blade into the eagle’s side again and again. The beast thrashed beneath her. There was a short gasp of breath as it released the girl. Shea buried her blade one last time before pushing off.

  Her freefall was cut short as she crashed into the branches, lacerations forming where her skin dragged along the sharp wood. She fell through the first layer, each branch flipping her a different way as they broke under her. She came to a stop, hanging upside down, her leg caught between two branches.

  That was such a bad idea. On the scale of bad ideas, it was probably one that would go into the history books.

  Shea groaned. Every bone in her body felt that fall. “Let’s never do that again.”

  There was a rustling in the branches next to her and then blond curls coupled with watery blue eyes peered out at Shea.

  “Hey, sweetie. Are you hurt anywhere?”

  Mist shook her head.

  Shea closed her eyes. “That’s good.”

  “Shea! Shea, where are you? Answer me.” Trenton’s voice came from below. He sounded frantic.

  “Here, we’re over here!” Shea yelled back.

  Curses sounded from below them and then the sound of a man grunting and hacking at the branches they were incased in.

  They’d landed in a copse of boughs that grew tightly together with very little space between. It looked like a priso
n made of very thin wood.

  Shea used her abs to lift up, grabbing a branch near her foot with one hand to redistribute her weight as she wiggled her foot free. There would be no living it down, if Trenton discovered her stuck upside down. She yanked her foot once more and then fell, landing hard on her back. A sword cut through some of the boughs next to her.

  Trenton peered in, taking note of Shea sprawled on her back and Mist above her.

  “Help Mist, first,” Shea ordered.

  He didn’t argue, turning his attention to the little girl. “Come here, child. Let’s get you to safety.”

  “It’s probably safest here,” Shea said, sitting up with a grimace.

  “The soldiers drove off the eagles they didn’t manage to kill. It should be safe for now.”

  That was a relief.

  Trenton held the girl as he and Shea worked their way back down to the forest floor. They weren’t as high up as Shea had thought. Her previous calculations had been off.

  It was a relief to reach the ground, though she kept one eye on the forest above them. The fear of another attack was ever present. She wasn’t the only one feeling it either. The Trateri they passed were preoccupied with the world above. Much more so than she had ever seen them before. Several soldiers kept watch on the canopy as others tended to the destruction on the ground. Healers assisted the wounded.

  Trenton, carrying Mist, opened a path before them. The Trateri moved out of their way as they walked, some giving Shea a bow, others clasping their fist to their chest. Shea gave a small nod in acknowledgement before turning her eyes ahead. The attention made her skin itch.

  “Why are they bowing?” she whispered to Trenton.

  “They saw what you did for Mist. They’re paying you their respects.”

  “I thought she was an orphan, not worth anything to the clans.”

  “You put your life on the line for the least of us. It means something.”

  She disagreed with the thought that Mist meant less than the rest of the Trateri, but she could see what he meant. She fell silent as they made their way to Fallon’s tent.

  “Send a healer inside, now.” Trenton gave the order as he walked past the two Anateri standing guard. Both men looked at Shea, their eyes widening and shock turning their faces pale before one took off at a run to do his bidding.