“Try what?” Kevin asked. He didn’t know anything about princes or princesses. About the only part of it he understood was Archer. Perhaps the dragon would know something about what had happened to Briony.

  “To save them, of course,” the dragon-shifter said. “If we do not, then King Waltham wil try it himself, and he is not wel enough. So it fal s to us.”

  Kevin wasn’t sure why it fel to him. As far as he could see, the whole situation had nothing to do with him. On the other hand, he wasn’t about to leave anyone in the hands of vampires if he could find a way to free them. “If it’s against these vampires aimed at destroying Wicked, then I’l help.”

  “Good,” the dragon-shifter said. “We should have the advantage of surprise. The master vampire, Marcus, stil thinks he can see me in the alchemist Malwinn’s bal , which shows that I am stil in Wicked.

  But he does not know that I have tricked the bal ’s seeing eye. It wil continue to show me there, even while we sneak up on those who hold the royal family.

  They wil not see us coming.”

  He started forward towards the castle, and Kevin stopped him.

  “Wait.”

  “What is it now?”

  “We’re about to assault a castle, and I don’t even know your name.”

  The dragon-shifter shrugged. “Is that al ?

  People who spend so much time in human form are strange. I am cal ed Fletcher. Now, can we go?”

  Fletcher didn’t wait for an answer, but set off towards the castle. Kevin fol owed. The dragon-shifter led him to a smal side gate, the lock of which didn’t last long under the dragon’s hands. Sticking to the shadows, they made their way into the main rooms of the castle, keeping a careful eye out for vampires.

  Twice, Fletcher had the two of them stop, staying out of sight while footsteps passed nearby.

  Kevin had other things to think about beside the closeness of vampires though. There was a scent in the air, part sweet honeysuckle, part warm vanil a, that Kevin recognized. That he would know anywhere.

  “Briony. Briony’s here.”

  Fletcher rol ed his eyes. “What did I say? The Princess is here. Now hurry up.”

  Princess? No, there wasn’t time for that. Kevin had to find her. Had to find Briony. He practical y raced through the castle, the dragon-shifter in tow, fol owing that oh so familiar scent every step of the way.

  It led them to a large room furnished opulently.

  The kind of place that might have held guests, not prisoners. Kevin had little time to think about that though, because Briony was there. She was dressed in the most elaborate outfit Kevin had ever seen her in, looking every inch the Princess Fletcher said she was.

  Wel , except for the bit where she was holding a stake and facing up to a white-haired vampire while being flanked by Archer and a burly young man dressed in armor and wielding a large sword.

  There were other vampires there too, and almost as Kevin arrived, they attacked Briony and the others. They were fast. Very fast. So fast that Briony looked utterly out of her depth as the two young men beside her struggled to fight them off while simultaneously keeping Briony safe. The white-haired vampire in particular seemed to be focused solely on her, so that both of the others had to keep breaking off from their own fights to keep her alive.

  the Some quirk of the battle turned Briony’s features so that her eyes met Kevin’s, and in that moment, Kevin saw the love and relief in them. Then Fletcher rushed past, blocking his view, and threw himself at the white-haired vampire. It spun, catching him and turning him into a hold designed to snap the dragon-shifter’s neck, but Archer intervened with a kick to the stomach that did little real damage, but at least al owed Fletcher to wriggle clear of the vampire’s grip.

  Briony took advantage of the distraction, rushing over to Kevin. Kevin eased past her, punching a vampire with bone-breaking force. Then, while it was stunned, Briony moved through to stake it.

  “Fancy seeing you here,” Briony said with a smile.

  “You know I’d fol ow you anywhere.”

  “I know.”

  They fought together, Kevin using his greater strength and speed to immobilize vampires long enough for Briony to stake them, Briony helping to fend off a few of the blows aimed their way. They fought their way back to the other three, and together, the five of them held a rough circle against the vampires.

  More vampires poured into the room, and more stil . So many, that it seemed that the five of them would never be able to kil them al . So many that they didn’t even bother attacking, because they were so certain of victory when they did. Kevin thought he recognized some of them, dressed al in black as they were. They had to be some of Sloane’s vampires. The ones who had gotten through the gate. They must have fol owed him and Fletcher, and now, they had obviously found the part of Palisor where they most belonged.

  Kevin looked down at the brush of a hand against his, and found Briony squeezing his hand tightly. That brief touch said so much; how she missed him, and loved him, and how they would get through this. At least, that was what Kevin wanted it to say.

  That was certainly what he meant when he wrapped his own fingers over hers.

  With the vampires holding back for the moment, Archer, Fletcher and the young man who had to be the Prince looked around at the two of them. The latter looked pointedly at the spot where Kevin and Briony’s hands were intertwined.

  “You must be one of those the Princess left behind.”

  “I’m Kevin.”

  “And I am Vigor, Prince of Palisor, and protector of the realm while my father remains il .”

  Kevin glanced around at the vampires who stil surrounded them. He got the feeling that they were waiting for someone to make the first move, knowing that, though their numbers would overwhelm the five, the first few of them to attack would probably die.

  “How is that going, do you think?” Kevin asked.

  The Prince didn’t answer at first, but looked Kevin up and down. “It could be worse. You are a wolf.”

  It wasn’t a question.

  “Be welcome, wolf-shifter. Palisor is for al those who do not carry the dark in them.”

  The white-haired vampire chose that moment to move to the front of the creatures surrounding them. He smiled savagely, red-eyed and long-fanged. “Palisor wil be ours soon enough, Prince Vigor.”

  “I think not.” The Prince opened his mouth, baring fangs of his own. Kevin was glad that he had heard about the fanged elves before he came there.

  “You have been here for too long, Marcus, if you cannot even remember about werewolves.”

  “What’s to know?” the vampire demanded.

  “Just another thing to kil .”

  “To be kil ed by,” Vigor corrected him.

  “They are guardians of the gate as much as dragon-shifters are, except that where the skil of dragons is to cal forth the gates, werewolves exist to slay your kind.”

  One of Sloane’s vampires laughed.

  “Werewolves aren’t so strong.”

  Vigor’s smile broadened. “Not in your world, where they are cut off from the magic, maybe.

  But here? Here in Palisor, where there is magic enough to spare, you wil find them a little more difficult. They are poison to your kind, vampire. One bite, one scratch in their wolf form… that’s al it would take.”

  “You’re lying,” the white-haired vampire, Marcus, said. “What would you know of the world beyond, Hugtandalfer prince who does not look beyond his realm? What would you know of creatures that fol owed my kind through the gates mil ennia ago?”

  Prince Vigor shrugged. “If you do not believe me, you have only to attack.”

  For a moment, just a moment, Kevin thought that they might not risk it. He did not know if this story was true, but if it proved to be, who would want to fight him? To emphasize the point, he transformed, growling at the vampires there. It stil wasn’t enough.

  “Get them,” Marcus ordered. “Kil them.”

  Chapter 19

  When Marcus gave his instruction, Briony felt Kevin’s wolf form tense beside her. She knew, without having to ask, exactly what he was planning to do. He would leap into the vampires, snapping and snarling, trying to drive them back long enough for her and the others to run. It was suicidal, but for her, he would do it.

  “Kevin, no,” Briony begged. “Please, no.”

  It was too late though. Kevin leapt at the first vampire to move forward in a blur of fur and aggression, jaws open to bite, body arching through the air. The vampire raised an arm with casual confidence, jamming it forward to block the bite and give it time to attack Kevin while he was occupied, apparently unconcerned until the very moment when Kevin’s teeth closed on his forearm.

  The vampire screamed.

  It pul ed back, wresting clear of Kevin’s grip as it did so, but it seemed that the damage was done.

  The vampire’s whole hand and arm were swol en to abnormal proportions, and it was holding them with its other hand as it cried out in pain. It fel to its knees, the veins on the arm standing out and almost black against its skin. And worse, that blackness was spreading. In a matter of a few heartbeats, every vein in its body was like that, and a second after that, it fel back onto the floor, blue flames claiming it as it died.

  The rest of the vampires looked on in horror, and Briony had to admit, she could understand it. That was a horrible way to die. It was more than that, though. It was a way that meant vampires, ancient, powerful vampires, were more vulnerable than they had ever been before.

  Even Marcus seemed impressed. “So it is true,” the savage vampire said. “The werewolf’s bite is poisonous to vampires.”

  “Of course,” Vigor said. “You thought I had lied?”

  “You are a hugtandalf. Weak. Pathetic. You would do anything to save your skin. Not that you have.” Marcus glared around at the vampires in the room. “I told you to kil them.”

  The vampires seemed reluctant to start

  forward.

  “I wil kil any of you who does not fight,”

  Marcus bel owed.

  They attacked then, charging forward out of sheer fear of their leader. Vigor leapt forward to meet the first of them, his sword cleaving right through the startled-looking vampire. Vigor looked almost as shocked as it was and swung his sword at another. It fel as quickly as the first.

  “It’s too easy,” he said above the noise of the battle.

  Briony looked at the dying vampires in the instant before they burned. Their clothes weren’t the oddly medieval ones of Palisor. “It’s because they’re from my world,” she yel ed back, dodging an attack from a vampire before Kevin tore it from her. “They’re weaker than your ones. Younger.”

  Young enough, in fact, that Briony might have some hope of fighting against them. Brandishing her stake, she picked out a vampire in modern clothes and struck out at it. It was stil fast, stil deadly, but at least this time it was slow enough for her to see what it was doing. One movement, another, and then Briony was driving her stake up into the creature’s heart. It fel back, already dead.

  Behind her, Archer and Fletcher were fighting their way through the horde of vampires, moving in almost perfect unison. There wasn’t room in the opulent suite for them to transform, but they were stil able to whirl and move, step and strike, leaving a trail of dead vampires in their wake.

  Vigor, meanwhile, seemed to be enjoying himself, using Pietre’s vampires to distract the older ones of Palisor, shoving them into the way while he fought with strength and cunning, sword to sword with some of the most dangerous creatures in the room.

  Even he didn’t create the kind of havoc Kevin did, however. He tore through the vampires like they were barely there, lashing out with teeth and clawed paws, delivering scratches and bites to any vampire foolish enough to get in his way, so that vampire after vampire died with their veins bursting with the black poison. The ones who remained unbitten scrambled over one another in a bid to keep out of Kevin’s way, only coming forward when Marcus shoved them in his direction.

  Al except one. Briony spotted Pietre from the corner of her eye, moving towards Kevin with predatory grace and a sword in his hand. She didn’t have time to reflect on how cruel it was that he should have been one of those to get through to Palisor, but instead started to move to intercept the attack. A black clad vampire stepped into her path. Briony lashed out, not wasting a second as she staked it in a single movement, but by then…

  The sword swept up and then down, plunging through the shoulder of the wolf and sending blood spraying.

  “You should never have come through, wolf.

  With that bite of yours, you are far too dangerous to leave alive here in Palisor.”

  “No!” Briony charged towards Pietre as

  Kevin slumped to the floor, thrusting her stake at the master vampire’s back. He deserved to die. More than any vampire Briony had met, Pietre deserved to die.

  At the last minute, Pietre spun, catching Briony’s wrist easily and twisting it painful y up behind her back. “Hel o, Briony. Tel me, how does it feel to know that you can’t save your precious wolf? He is wounded beyond al help, you know.”

  “Let the Princess go.” Vigor stepped between them and Kevin, his sword held level. The vampires around them seemed content to leave him alone while he did it. They had seen what he could do with a blade, after al . “I wil make your end quick, if you do.”

  Pietre laughed. “I’m sorry, I must have misheard. Excuse me for one moment.” He looked around the room. “Everybody stop.”

  Amazingly, they did. Perhaps it was just that so many of them were Pietre’s vampires. Perhaps it was simply that strange charisma he seemed to have, but they stopped. Marcus didn’t seem happy about it.

  “What are you doing, youngling? Who are you to say that my vampires should stop?”

  “Oh, shut up. If you want to argue about whose vampires they are, we can do it later. Though you might want to remember that I have more vampires than you. For now though, I want to listen to what the young man in the armor has to say.” He turned his attention to Vigor. “Did you cal Briony a princess?”

  “She is her royal highness, Princess Briony of Palisor,” Vigor said, “and this is your final warning.

  Release her.”

  “Now this is surprising,” Pietre said. He leaned close to Briony. “Who would have thought it?

  You, a princess. Which makes the idiot with the sword what? Your knight? Another young man for your col ection?”

  “I,” Vigor said, “am Prince Vigor of Palisor.

  You are in our lands, stranger. Release the Princess.”

  Pietre laughed. “You keep saying that. Why should I, boy? I have Briony and you’re tel ing me to let her go, but real y, why shouldn’t I just snap her neck if you don’t drop that sword of yours? Go on. Drop it.”

  Vigor’s face flushed, but he dropped his sword. “Very wel .”

  “You see,” Pietre said with a glance across at Marcus, “al this ‘kil them al ’ nonsense is total y unnecessary.”

  Vigor smiled and brought his hands together. Blue light flared between them, reminding Briony of nothing so much as the flames that consumed vampires when they died. “But then, I don’t need a sword to kil you.”

  let Briony’s eyes widened as Vigor drew his arm back like a basebal pitcher.

  “I can easily break her neck before you can throw,” Pietre pointed out.

  At that, the Prince stopped. But he did glance off to the side with a faint smile. Archer and Fletcher cannoned into Pietre, tearing him away from Briony and throwing him back into the horde of vampires.

  Fletcher plunged after Pietre, while Vigor snatched up his sword again and fol owed suit. It seemed that the battle was back on again.

  Briony didn’t care. She knelt by the prone form of Kevin, stil bleeding on the floor of the suite, hardly noticing the violence taking place around her.

  “Don’t you dare leave me, Kevin,” she whispered.

  “He doesn’t have to, Princess,” Archer said, moving to kneel beside her. “Not if you heal him.”

  “Heal him?” Briony asked. It was hard to think with Kevin there like that. “Heal him how? I could get some vampire blood, I guess, but-”

  Archer shook his head. “You don’t need to.

  Hugtandalfers can heal, Princess.”

  “So we need Vigor.” Briony looked across to where the Prince was fighting at least three vampires, including Pietre. Somehow, she doubted that he would be done any time soon. But if it meant Kevin’s life, she would go over there and drag him out of the battle herself.

  “You aren’t listening,” Archer insisted. “Al of the Hugtandalfers can heal to some extent. You can heal him, Briony.”

  “Me?” Briony leaned forward, trying to keep pressure on the wound to Kevin. It was what you were supposed to do, wasn’t it? She tried not to think about the blood slipping between her fingers. Slipping out of Kevin as his life dripped away. “What can I do? I’m not even ful y Hugtandalfer. Vigor has been quick enough to point that out.”

  Archer shook his head, stood briefly, and shoved a vampire who was getting too close away from them. “He doesn’t know what he is talking about.

  Or he wants it to be true, so that he can claim you aren’t Hugtandalfer enough to rule. Your Hugtandalfer side is more than strong enough for this, though.

  You’re of Waltham’s blood. He’s the oldest, strongest Hug in Palisor. Trust me, Briony. Palisor needs a ruler who is of Waltham’s blood. He alone was the Champion for Palisor against these vile creatures.

  You are his only blood born. You just have to ful y realize it.”

  “What do you mean, ‘realize it’? Like Aunt Sophie did?”

  “Exactly that,” Archer said. “If you become your ful , Hugtandalfer self, you wil be able to heal Kevin. You wil know how to do it instinctively. I hadn’t wanted this for you so soon though. It means becoming more Hugtandalfer than you might be ready for.”

  And less human. Archer did not mention it, but Briony knew what he meant. Was she ready to accept that? To give up on the thought that she might ever be just a simple human girl again. Briony looked down at Kevin, whose breath was coming in short, shal ow gasps now, and she knew the answer to that without even having to think about it.