A Shield of Glass (A Shade of Vampire #49)(51)

We all nodded, and I felt a wave of relief wash over me. We’d passed another major milestone in our mission to take down Azazel. We’d brought the alliance together and established a clear plan of action.

It sounded extremely dangerous, but our chances of success seemed high.

With newfound confidence and strength, I watched Draven as he engaged in different conversations with the allies, answering questions and asking some of his own, making sure everyone knew what they were doing and occasionally glancing my way with an indecipherable expression.

All I had to do was figure out a way to stop Asherak’s darkness from taking over his soul, once we got to that point.

That’s all, I said to myself. Should be simple.





Aida





Once the meeting was concluded, our guests were invited to a late dinner and then shown to their private quarters. The Dearghs were obviously too big for any of the rooms, but they insisted on keeping watch outside anyway, positioning themselves at three key points outside of Stonewall and setting themselves firmly into the ground. They looked like massive slabs of stone, quietly watching over the citadel.

I left everyone in the grand hall to feast. I figured I could use some time alone to process the entire campaign against Azazel, and to adjust once and for all to the idea that those I loved were going to put themselves in harm’s way. As heavy as it weighed on my shoulders, I had to accept that Jovi and Field were strong and brave enough to see this through till the end. If anything, I needed to channel the inner-beast I’d unleashed during our escape from the mansion into a more permanent version of me.

I had to toughen up and—

I was suddenly swept off the stone floor, and found myself flying at a low altitude down the wide hallway leading outside.

“What the hell?!” I yelped, then realized Field had flown in from behind and taken me in his arms.

I held on tight, wrapping my arms around his neck as he gripped me close to his chest and shot toward the cloaking spell’s wall. The two little Bajangs I’d run into the other night were waiting there, grinning at us as we got closer very fast.

“Field, what are you doing?” I mumbled, barely able to utter complete words.

If a Bajang didn’t use a drop of their blood to grant us permission out of there, we were going to crash into the cloaking spell’s limestone wall. My heart pounded as the distance between us and said wall got alarmingly shorter with each second.

“Relax,” Field said. “I’ve got this.”

The corner of his mouth twitched, probably in amusement at my alarmed expression. My gaze darted back and forth between his face and the wall.

“Field, I don’t think we can—”

He whistled sharply, once, and the Bajang cubs stepped aside. I held my breath.

One of the kids bit into his palm and slapped it against the wall.

Only a couple of feet.

I nearly screamed, but instantly shut my mouth as the limestone surface rippled and we darted through it, unscathed.

“You crazy bas—” I started saying, but stilled in Field’s arms, mesmerized by the charmingly childish smile he’d put on.

He flew us out of the castle, then shot up and headed for one of the watchtowers in a tight arc. He held me tight, and I could almost hear his heart echoing inside my ribcage as we reached the top of the tower, where dim lights flickered beneath its wooden roof.

He put me down, then leaned against the circular stone balustrade with a satisfied smirk, his black wings retreating beneath his shoulder blades.

It took me a couple of seconds to catch my breath, my muscles vibrating and my legs shaking from the adrenaline. It was like that every time we flew together—not so much from the altitude or insane speeds, but from the proximity of our bodies.

I looked around and noticed he’d prepared a little picnic area in the middle, complete with food he must have snatched from the buffet downstairs, a couple of blankets, and candles. I looked out and took a deep breath, stunned by the incredible view, with the ocean sprawling on one side and the mainland unraveling its meadows and forests on the other side, beneath the night sky.

“I had the cubs waiting by the wall, in case you were wondering.” Field grinned.

“All to give me a good scare?” I lifted an eyebrow at him.

“I asked them if they wanted to play a prank on you, and they jumped at the opportunity. They’re quite obsessed with you, wolf-girl…”

The look on his face stirred all kinds of fires in me, especially a mixture of playfulness and arousal that I hadn’t experienced before. Field had this way about him of leaving me speechless and exhilarated, taking me from one extreme to another and making me enjoy every second of it. If anything, I could feel myself becoming addicted to the walking and talking adrenaline rush that was the Hawk.

“What’s this, though?” I asked, motioning toward the food and blankets.

“Well,” he said with a sheepish smile while scratching the back of his neck. “I’ve never really taken you out on a date. Not a proper one, at least. You know, candlelit dinner and all that. And given that we don’t know what will become of us over the next few days, I figured now was as good a time as any.”

He paused for a moment, his turquoise gaze soft as it settled on my face.

“I’d like to be realistic at this point and acknowledge that we might not make it out of this alive, Aida. And I want to make the most of the little time we have left together before we begin the siege.”