Authors: Donna Grant
Aunt Beatrice stepped to her side after the servant went running to do as she commanded. “Katrina, you’re worrying me. Come sit down until your father arrives.”
Katrina’s head swiveled to her aunt. “Father is coming?”
“Aye, my darling girl. I sent word to him yesterday after the attack. He’s come to take you home.”
Katrina felt as if someone had yanked the earth from beneath her feet. “I’d love to explain everything, and I know it appears as though I’ve gone daft, but I need this weapon.”
“Why?”
“Sorin lost his yesterday battling the beast.”
Aunt Beatrice’s eyes narrowed. “You mean the men who attacked you.”
Katrina shook her head. “Nay. Aunt, forgive me for lying to you. It was a beast, a beast come to kill me. Sorin saved my life, and he’s gone to kill it. He needs this weapon.”
She waited one heartbeat, two as her aunt debated her words. Finally, Aunt Beatrice nodded and reached up to grip the sword.
“We’ll pull together,” she said.
It took three tugs, but they finally got the sword free. Katrina could barely lift it, but she would do what she needed to get to Sorin.
She walked to the door when her aunt’s voice stopped her.
“What do I tell your father?”
Katrina looked back at her aunt as an unusual calm overtook her. “Tell him I love him, and if I haven’t returned, send an army to the grove.”
“Katrina,” her aunt murmured as she covered her mouth with her hand.
But Katrina couldn’t wait a moment longer. She had to get to Sorin. With the help of a servant, she mounted the mare and settled the sword across her lap.
She didn’t glance back at the door as she nudged the horse into a run.
The rain came before she made it out of the city.
In a matter of moments her clothes were plastered to her skin. The howling wind made hearing anything difficult, and the lightning spooked the mare each time it forked across the sky.
Katrina blinked against the blinding rain and saw a shape come at her. Her heart jumped into her throat as she thought it might be the Tnarg until she saw it was a horse. A riderless horse.
“Sorin,” she whispered, urgency making her blood pump quicker.
She tried to nudge her horse faster, but the mare refused to move forward.
She turned in circles, trying to get Katrina to go back to town.
“Just a little farther,” she urged to the mare.
The horse snorted and grudgingly walked to the grove, though its body began to tremble.
“I’ve lost my mind,” Katrina mumbled to herself. “Only a daft person would be out in this storm to face a magical beast that wants me dead.”
But she knew she wasn’t daft. Sorin brought her there. She knew next to nothing about the man other than he quickened her blood and made her feel whole. It wasn’t something she could explain, but there was truly a connection between them that even that mark on her arm couldn’t compare with.
She wiped away the rain from her eyes to see she reached the trees. With her hand wrapped around the hilt of the heavy sword, she had begun to dismount when a loud roar filled the air. Katrina managed to descend from the mare before she reared and bolted back to the city. Katrina turned to the trees, her entire body shaking with cold and fear.
She lifted the sword with both hands and kicked at her wet skirts as she walked into the grove. All she had to do was follow the roars to find Sorin and the Tnarg. She just prayed she wasn’t too late.
* * * *
Sorin clenched his jaw at the Tnarg’s voice. The sword wouldn’t budge, so he’d have to fight the beast with something else.
The rain, wind and thunder muffled all sounds, but Sorin knew the creature would strike fast. He released his grip on his weapon and dove to the side to roll away. He wasn’t as quick as he should have been for the beast’s claws caught him on the back. Sorin hissed in pain and rose to his feet, a dagger in each hand that he’d taken from his boots.
The Tnarg laughed as it looked at the daggers. “I’ll cut you in half before you get close enough to put those small blades in me.”
Sorin knew the beast was right, but even though he would most likely die, he wouldn’t go down without giving a few wounds himself.
“If you kill me, you’ll leave Katrina alone?”
The Tnarg laughed and shook its oblong head. “I could’ve killed you a hundred times over as I followed you here. Nay, my target is your mate. Whether I kill you or not, she dies.”
Sorin’s gut tightened. How had he not known the Tnarg was tracking him? How could he have been so careless?
The Tnarg tilted back its head and roared. Its red eyes narrowed on Sorin, and its claws extended as it prepared to strike.
Sorin crouched on the balls of his feet, ignoring the rain and the near constant lightning as he began to circle the Tnarg. The beast was taller, faster, and deadlier, but Sorin had a slight advantage. He’d been raised with the intent of battling anything that might get in his way of returning home. He’d learned to be light on his feet and think quickly.
His whole life, he’d been preparing for this day.
Sorin smiled and turned the long blades of his daggers against his forearms. The Tnarg raised its arms and leapt at him.
There was no way Sorin could get out of the way quick enough, so he stepped into the beast and sunk both daggers into the Tnarg’s sides.
The creature screamed in fury and backhanded him. Sorin managed to hold onto his daggers as he flew back against a tree, hitting it so hard his head slammed against the bark. He shook off the pain and rolled his shoulders as he stepped away from the tall pine. He ducked and lunged to his right just as the Tnarg swung a massive claw at his head. As Sorin turned, he raised his arm and slashed the beast’s stomach.
The Tnarg bellowed again, but this time he sunk his claws into Sorin’s back. Sorin bit back a yell as he jerked away from the beast.
Blood ran in thick, sticky trails down his back and into his trews. He leaned against a tree to catch his breath and shook his head to move his hair, which was plastered to his face from the driving rain.
This time, he decided he would be the one to attack. He rushed the Tnarg, but before he could get close enough to use his daggers, the beast punched him in the gut. Sorin reeled backwards and crashed into a tree again.
The slick pine needles slipped beneath his feet and he fell to the ground. He tried to keep upright with his fist, but he fell to the side and on his back. His entire body ached, but he couldn’t give up. Not yet.
Something smooth and warm touched the back of his hand.
“Sorin.”
Hope blossomed in his chest at the sound of Katrina’s sweet voice. He wanted to thrash Katrina the same time he wanted to kiss her. But there wasn’t time for him to chastise her, not when the Tnarg didn’t know she was there.
“I brought you this,” she whispered.
He struggled to open his eyes.
Her hand opened his and removed the dagger only to have something heavy and hard replace it. Sorin wrapped his hand around the pommel of the sword and turned his head to her.
His eyes cracked open to see her smile.
“Kill it,” she urged.
Sorin slowly rose to his feet no longer feeling the pain that had overtaken him just moments earlier.
Katrina was there.
He would end the Tnarg once and for all so Katrina could be safe.
“You want more?” the Tnarg taunted.
Sorin grinned and lifted the sword. “I want more.”
“Poor choice,” the beast said as it flew at him.
Katrina choked back a scream as she watched the Tnarg and Sorin slam together.
Her hands bit into the rough bark as they battled.
Time and again the Tnarg attacked with deadly swiftness, playing with Sorin as it slashed his arms, chest, and stomach before hitting him.
And every time Sorin would climb back to his feet and challenge the Tnarg again.
He hadn’t spoken to her, but Katrina knew he wouldn’t want her witnessing the battle. Yet, she wasn’t about to leave him. Not now.
Not ever.
The realization made tears prick her eyes. To live the rest of her life without him wasn’t an option. She had to have him. She wished she could give what little strength she had to Sorin as he tried to lift the sword several times before he managed to raise it.
He was weak from the blood loss and his injuries, and it infuriated her to see him being played with by the creature.
The Tnarg just laughed and swung a mighty fist at Sorin’s head.
Sorin tried to duck, but he wasn’t fast enough. He landed several feet away on his back, his sword flying from his hand.
His eyes were closed as he lay unmoving.
Katrina bit her lip as the Tnarg walked to him. It leaned down and looked Sorin over. She had to listen carefully over the rain to hear what the beast said.
“You should’ve left. There was no way you could win.”
Sorin chuckled defiantly as his eyes opened. “I’ll battle you until the last breath leaves my body.”
“It won’t stop me from killing her. And now it’s time for you to die.”
The world slowed to a crawl as the Tnarg raised a claw. Katrina didn’t think about what she was doing as she put herself between Sorin and the Tnarg.
“It’s me you want!” she yelled over the driving rain at the Tnarg. “Leave him alone.”
“Katrina, nay,” Sorin bellowed and struggled to sit up.
She kept her gaze locked with the red eyes of the Tnarg. It studied her a moment before it grinned. “Stupid wench.”
Katrina shut her eyes and waited for the blow that would strike her, but the only sound she heard was the howl of the Tnarg. Her gaze flew open to see a group of men racing for them on horseback with several crossbows aimed at the Tnarg.
It screamed and turned in the direction of the riders. Katrina took one look at the arrows sticking out of its back and fell atop Sorin.
“How badly are you hurt?” she asked him.
“No’ badly enough that I can no’ wring your pretty neck for putting yourself before that beast.”
She smiled into his dark eyes and kissed him. “We’re safe.”
“For now,” Sorin said and tried to sit up again.
Katrina helped him to lean back against a tree. By the time she turned around, the Tnarg was gone and the men were nearly upon her. The wind suddenly stopped and the rain halted to just a drizzle.
“Katrina!”
She leapt to her feet at her father’s voice. “I’m here, Father,” she said and ran to his horse as he dismounted. His strong arms came around her.
“Lass, I thought I’d lost you,” he said into her hair.
She leaned back and smiled. “Aunt Beatrice told you where I was?”
“Aye, though I still doona believe what I saw.”
She sighed and took his hand. “I’ll give you an explanation, but first I need you to help me get Sorin back to Aunt Beatrice’s.”
When she turned back Sorin had gotten to his feet and used the sword and the tree to keep himself standing. She rushed to his side and let him lean against her.
“You’re badly wounded.”
He chuckled and winked at her. “Nothing that a few kisses willna heal.”
“Katrina?” her father asked.
She moved her gaze from Sorin to her father. “Father, I want to introduce you to the man who has stolen my heart, Prince Sorin Sinclair.”
“Prince?” her father repeated.
Sorin grinned. “It’s nice to finally meet you, my lord. I know you have many questions, and I have all the answers.”
“Not until you are cleaned up,” Katrina told them.