He saw the burning eyes in the night a bare moment before one of the Dirae<\/i> tore him from the saddle.\u00a0 Jacqueline shouted at him, her horse rearing again as his began to panic.\u00a0 Cameron hit the ground rolling away from his mount, yanking a knife out of his boot and stabbing at the clawed hands that grabbed for him as he tried to roll out of their reach.\u00a0 He heard an angry hiss and knew at least one flailing strike had hit is mark.<\/p>\n
“Ride on!” he yelled to Jacqueline as he came to his feet, trying to get his bearings.\u00a0 “Phelan needs you!\u00a0 Ride on!”<\/p>\n
There were three Dirae<\/i>, one of them now nursing a slashed arm, and they were creeping toward him with malice in their eyes.\u00a0 Jacqueline squinted at him past the shadowy figures, almost invisible in the night.<\/p>\n
“What about you?”<\/p>\n
“I’ll be fine,” Cameron lied.\u00a0 “Go!”<\/p>\n
Caliburn rasped out of its sheath and glowed with a fire all its own.\u00a0 He sucked in a pair of breaths, risking one more glance toward Jacqueline, who was making no moves to ride on.\u00a0 “Dammit, Jac, go<\/i>!\u00a0 If these bitches are here, Phelan’s got bigger problems than the skinchangers!”<\/p>\n
She stared at him for half a moment, then kicked her horse into motion again and rode on.\u00a0 Cameron sucked in a deep breath.\u00a0 Thank god.<\/i>\u00a0 He squared his shoulders, fingers tightening around Caliburn\u2019s hilt.<\/p>\n
He focused on the golden-eyed hags just in time because they were on him as one, screaming in a language he didn\u2019t understand and threatening to drag him under like an undertow.\u00a0 He backpedaled with a curse, feinting to his left and leading with an edge of the blade, leaning toward the nearest of the Dirae<\/i>.<\/p>\n
What the hell are they doing here?\u00a0 We weren\u2019t supposed to see them again anytime soon.<\/i><\/p>\n
The blade bit into the Dirae<\/i>\u2019s flesh and she shrieked, leaping backwards as he jerked the blade back and free of her ribcage.\u00a0 He shifted slightly, just barely ducking a swing from one of her companions, one threatening to open his throat.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t let them hit you.\u00a0 Remember what happened last time?<\/i><\/p>\n
He yanked the knife free of its sheath and threw it at one of them as he backpedaled, blood dripping from Caliburn\u2019s tip.<\/p>\n
He heard the sound of shattering glass not far away.\u00a0 His opponents shrieked as one, their gazes suddenly turning south, down the roadway.<\/p>\n
Cameron took the opportunity to spin and throw himself back onto his horse\u2019s back.\u00a0 Before the trio of Dirae<\/i> could react, he was on his way down the road again.<\/p>\n
Damnation, could this night get any worse?<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
He saw the burning eyes in the night a bare moment before one of the Dirae tore him from the saddle.\u00a0 Jacqueline shouted at him, her horse rearing again as his began to panic.\u00a0 Cameron hit the ground rolling away … Continue reading