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"Don't worry about me," his violet eyes meet mine. "No matter what happens to me, keep yourself safe, do you understand?"
I want to argue with him, but there isn't time. The Ongok sic their hellhounds on us and Atlas slides on his knees toward one and slices his shadowy swords across the beast's chest and neck. Atlas flicks his head up at the two remaining hellhounds as three chunks of the beast he's cut up skitter across the ice. I'm so mesmerized watching him fight that I nearly miss the two Ongok circling toward me.
I throw up my shield. Then I realize, if I don't fight back, I'll run out of energy to maintain the forcefield, and they don't look to be in any rush to abandon their quest to claim me. It's time to quit being on the defensive and start showing my enemies why they should fear me. I slam my shield down as they get closer, slicing into the ice and watch as the crack zig zags toward them, widening the further it goes. One Ongok's foot gets caught and even though he attempts to recover from the fall, he isn't fast enough and slips into the icy water beneath us. The second one is more agile, and I dare say, faster than his companion, and hops over the crack and zooms toward me.
I spare a glance at Atlas to make sure he's ok only to find three dead hellhounds at his feet, and him dueling the third Ongok. I breathe in relief knowing he's holding his own, but when I turn my gaze back to the creature, I'm surprised and terrified he's not there.
"What the hell?" I mutter to myself, fear gripping my heart and squeezing.
"She said you might give me trouble," the monster whispers from behind me. The second I spin around, his bony hand seizes my throat, and he effortlessly lifts me off the ground. "Honestly, I'm disappointed. I thought you'd put up more of a fight."
I kick, but don't make contact with him. Wrapping my hands around his arm, I allow my anger to flare up and char his forearm just like I did Vesper's. He bellows in anguish, dropping me from his vice-grip.
"You bitch!" he seethes, crumpled on the ice, nursing his burn.
"How disappointing," I say, taking a few steps away from him. "I thought you'd put up more of a fight." I blast the ice underneath him and watch as he falls in, flailing and screaming. I don't move until I watch the Ongok's head dip underneath the water and wait to make sure he doesn't come back up.
The last Ongok punches Atlas, drawing a pained groan from him. Atlas scurries to stand to his feet, but the demon has no intention of letting Atlas get back up to defend himself and kicks him square in the chest, sending him flying. Landing on his back with a crunch, Atlas holds his ribcage to catch his breath. The creature he's fighting stomps toward him, looking to finish Atlas off.
I slip and slide, but do my best to sprint to Atlas, disregarding what he said about taking care of myself above all else. I don't have a clean shot at the creature's chest, and if I blast the ice under him, Atlas is sure to fall in too. So, in a last-ditch effort to save him, I throw a shield around Atlas and tackle the Ongok from the side. Without thinking things through, I blow through the ice, and we fall in together.
The water is so cold, my body immediately goes into shock. A gasp of air escapes me, and panic rises within me. I have to remind myself that I'm an excellent swimmer and begin to make my way back up to the surface, but I'm stopped short when a bony hand wraps around my ankle and drags me deeper into the darkness.
I refuse to let this be my end. I kick, but once again find myself short of hitting my mark. I think of Atlas and how desperate I am to see him again. With that one thought fueling my body and distracting me from my aching lungs, I aim my glowing hands at the demon and fire a ball of light at him. The attack works, and his hold on me is broken as he sinks deeper. I kick, stroking and fighting my way to the hole I fell through, but my eyes grow heavy, and my frozen limbs refuse to do as I command.
I'm sinking and there's nothing I can do to stop it from happening.
Suddenly, a shadowy tendril spears through the water and slips around my torso, pulling me to the surface. Once my head breaks the surface, I gasp in the deepest breath of air I can before I'm pulled out of the water to see Atlas hovering over me.
"Stay with me, Shaye," is all I hear before everything goes dark.
Twenty-Seven
Atlas
"Shaye!" I shout. "Shaye, stay with me!" Her eyes close and I know I'll lose her if I don't get her to the cabin.
I rip my jacket off and wrap it around her, before scooping her into my arms and following the frozen river upstream to where the village is, and subsequently our cabin. She's shivering against my chest and her lips are turning a dangerous shade of blue. I quicken my pace, going as fast as my feet will allow. I need to get her out of these wet clothes and warm her up before her body completely shuts down from the shock.
Unfortunately, the cabin will be freezing since no one has been there for almost a year, but I can provide her with some clothes I left there to warm her up and fight frostbite.
Her light groan spurs me to hustle.
"Stay with me, Shaye," I mutter, kissing her icy forehead.
I can't help but feel guilty that she is in this position because she saved me. Had she not done what she did, I might have been severely injured or worse, killed. The Ongok's blow to my chest stole my breath, and even now my ribs scream in anguish. Finn will be able to help with what I'm assuming are bruised ribs, but I try not to dwell on my pain. Shaye needs me to be calm, to be clear-headed, and to make it to Haverness.
By the time we make it to the sleepy lakeside village, it's so late that I'm able to get to our cabin without delay from the locals. I kick open the door and spear up the stairs to the loft bedroom. It's a small place that our family uses once in a while, but I can't remember the last time all five of us were here at the same time. It's hands down my favorite place to escape to when I need time to myself. It's quiet, remote, and peaceful, and I don't have to worry about anyone but myself. I'll be up here for a week at a time, fishing, attempting to cook, painting, and most importantly, resting.
On the other side of the lake, you can see the city of Elowen and the famed ice castle, which would typically be an enviable view, but all I see when I look at the city is danger. Something isn't sitting well with me about this trip, but I can't focus on that right now. I make it to the loft bedroom where an enormous, quilted bed, two nightstands and a dresser are, which connects to the only bathroom.
I'm obviously not as knowledgeable in medical practices as Finn, but I was trained in how to care for someone who has hypothermia whilst going on camping trips with my friends. The two things I need to do is get her out of her wet clothes and raise her temperature by applying warm compresses to her head, neck, chest, and groin area. She's not unconscious, but she's groggy, meaning I don't have much time left.
I place her on the tiled bathroom floor and turn on the hot water, hoping the steam will heat the small space quickly. I grab several washcloths and throw them in the tub to soak in warm water and turn my focus to her wet clothing. I pat her cheek several times. "Wake up, Shaye, wake up. I need you to stay with me. We're at the cabin and I need to get you out of those wet clothes."
She stirs, but her eyes are still closed, and her words are muffled.
"Shaye, I need you to listen to me carefully. Are you listening?"
