Page 81 of The Dead Queen

“What are those things?” My voice has an edge of terror that I can’t mask.

“Wraiths,” Tristan says, panting. “Lost souls who died in terrible, unforgivable ways.”

“What do they want with us?”

His eyes are worried. “Revenge.”

We leap over a forgotten cart blocking the road.

“But we had nothing to do with their deaths!” Hunter yells this behind us, as if he thinks it might help persuade the specters to leave us alone.

“They don’t care.” Tristan grabs my hand fiercely. “Whatever happens, don’t stop, Red. Keep going.”

I nod. Fear makes tears prickle at the corners of my eyes.

Suddenly, Tristan stops running. He pushes me forward, then charges back toward the creatures at full speed.

“Tristan, no!” I reach out, but catch nothing but air.

Hunter grabs my shoulders. “You heard him, Sienna. We have to keep going!”

But I can’t. Something inside of me pulls, refusing to leave the Wolf. Several yards away, he digs his heels into the ground and thrusts his palms forward. Thick, black mist spews from his hands. The wraiths pause momentarily, as if considering him, but then charge right through his shadow power.

Tristan turns to look back at us. “Go!” he yells. “Go!”

Hunter pulls my arm. “The horses!”

The wraiths gain on Tristan, their long black tongues licking the air in insatiable hunger. I can’t let them take him. A panic rises in me, stronger than I can rationally explain. Tristan is sacrificing himself, so I can escape. I won’t let him.

I charge forward, wrenching my arm out of Hunter’s grasp. Just as the wraiths reach Tristan, he crouches to the ground, ready for the attack.

But it doesn’t come.

Instead, I throw every ounce of power I have outward. There’s no controlling it, no channeling it through my palms like I do for healing. An unexpected thrill swells through my veins as my light pulses from my skin in an explosion of power. I don’t think, I just surge with energy, like a mighty wave.

A brilliant wall of light blows the wraiths back. They screech in alarm before they dissipate on the spot, turning to ash and leaving the scent of smoke in the air. My light fades along with them and we are once again thrown back into silent midnight.

In the quiet that follows, both Hunter and Tristan stare at me, wide-eyed.

“Sienna,” Hunter whispers. “What was that?”

My vision goes black before I hit the ground.

Chapter 26

When I finally wake, it’s daylight. Hunter is holding me close to his chest as we ride Marigold through a dusty field, empty of harvest. Marigold’s hooves crunch over rocks and dried weeds.

Voices lull me back to awareness.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Hunter whispers above my head.

“It’s not unheard of for someone to manifest new abilities,” Tristan says, his words urgent despite his obvious attempt to keep quiet. “Her ancestors drew the night from the sky and blinded entire armies with light.”

A grumble rumbles in Hunter’s chest. “Maybe. But those were stories, not proven facts.”

“Stories all start somewhere. Look at the Dead Queens. The power to reanimate had to be born first.”

When I open my eyes, the late-afternoon sun makes me squint. I groan, startling Hunter.