"Walker, no-" Orrtyn shouts.

  "Go!" Walker barks out again and it clicks in what he's saying. He's telling the men to leave us, to save themselves.

  Orrael's eyes meet mine and his mouth opens.

  "Go!" I cut him off before he can say anything, already having an idea of where he’s going with this. Pain flashes in his eyes before he gives a sharp nod and then the three men are disappearing, and Walker and I are surrounded.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  "You better learn how the fuck to summon that fire soon or I'll hurt you until it appears," Walker grumbles under his breath as we're pulled by the ropes the men have wrapped around our wrists.

  The fight against the guards was a well fought one until it wasn't, and we found ourselves being tied up.

  Who would have thought that the two of us would be captured, of all people? And together?

  I glare at the man, not liking his tone. "Yeah, and where are your magical fucking creatures that can help us?" I ask the man. My gaze lands on his shoulder which looks so damn empty without that fucking bird on it. "Your protector bailed ass once everything started going on."

  He turns his head, his green eyes burning as he stares at me. "You don't know what you're talking about," he says.

  I shake my head. "So your bird didn't tuck feathers and fly off?' I ask him, raising a brow.

  He glares at me. "Ragna has her reasons and I know what she's doing which is the only thing that’s important."

  "Sounds like a lot of excuses if you ask me."

  "Shut it," one of the guards barks, pulling at the rope attached to my wrist. He moves in my direction, as if trying to threaten me with his presence.

  It's his mistake.

  I throw my head forward and listen to the satisfyingly, sick crack of my head slamming against the guard’s.

  The man rears back and places a hand to his head. I move forward and kick out with my foot. When the man hits the ground and I kick out at his chest, there's a sound from somewhere behind me that’s strange. I pay it no attention though as I kick out again and there's that unfamiliar sound again.

  Hands wrap around my arms and then I'm being pulled off of the man. I turn to find amusement written across Walker's face as he watches me and I realize it's the weird sound I heard. The man was laughing. A part of me feels satisfied as I watch his lips turn up at the corner and I believe it's the first time I've seen the man smile without any sarcasm.

  My eyes meet his and he shakes his head slightly. "What?" he asks, catching the look that I'm sending him. "It's nice to see you beat on other people that aren’t me."

  I roll my eyes at the man, opening my mouth to protest his words when pain rips through the side of my face and my head whips to the side.

  "You think you can just hit a royal guard and get away with it," A man snarls and I glance up to find it's the man whose ass I kicked. There's rage on his face and a bruise is forming in the middle of his head.

  Walker lets out a growl and I watch as he jerks against his ropes, but other guards run around him, holding him down before he can get to the other guard. "How about we make this an even fight, pretty boy?" he spits out, snarling at the man.

  The guard lets out a guffaw, his eyes widening in amusement. "You want me to untie you?" he questions as if Walker has lost his mind.

  Walker lets out another snort, his eyes holding the guards. "No, I mean, untie her," he nods at me and my bound hands.

  The guard looks at me in surprise, his lips turning down before his gaze returns to Walker. "I thought you said it'd be a fair fight."

  "You're right, it wouldn't be fair because she'd kick your ass if you didn't have her trussed up like a pig for supper."

  My mouth falls open in shock.

  It almost sounded like Walker just gave me a compliment, one that wasn't backhanded.

  And he earns a reward for his compliment as the guard walks over to him and punches him in the face repeatedly.

  I struggle against my bindings, jerking at my arms even as I feel hands holding me down. Blood pools from Walker's lips from the one sided fight and the guards on either side of him hold his arms to make sure that he can't fight back even in the slightest.

  My skin starts to tingle and my fingers twitch.

  I'm going to fucking fry them-

  "That's enough, soldier." Comes a sharp voice and I watch as the guard stills and the energy below my skin is dashed. The guard steps away from Walker whose face is full of fury, but he doesn't look weak in the slightest. If anything, the blood trailing from his busted lip and the bruise forming on his left eye only make him look more fierce, angrier.

  Walker's gaze lifts but he isn't looking at me, he's looking past me. I turn, dread taking over my body even before my eyes land on the man.

  Samir stands tall a couple of feet away. He's trapped down with knives and daggers, a sword at his side. My eyes travel along, searching for any signs of weakness.

  Surely, he's still hurting at least a little from the knife that dragged through his back.

  But he isn't showing any visible signs of distress.

  His cold eyes snap to me and his lips twist into a cruel smile. However, he doesn't say anything to me, turning on his heel and walking away instead.

  The soldiers fall in line behind him, dragging Walker and I behind like sacrifices, which I suppose we are.

  It's not long before we get to the camp and it's as Walker described with six big tents, one of them in the middle and bigger than the others. However, there are more than a dozen guards when you add in the men who ambushed us.

  It'll be a fight to get out of here.

  I turn to look at Walker and the man is also studying the camp as if he's already calculating an escape plan.

  At least for once we're on the same page.

  He turns his head and our eyes meet. His green gaze holds mine and something passes through his gaze before he gives me a small, almost indistinguishable nod and I know what he means. Despite the fact that the man and I have never gotten along, but disagreed about practically everything, including the air, I know we're in agreement this time.

  We'll get out of here together and then we'll go back to not being friends.

  Because once we get out of here, we'll be enemies in a stronger, more fierce, more competitive way. Because in the gauntlet, only one can survive and there's two of us and neither will ever give up a fight.

  I push the throught to the back of my mind, refocusing on the scene in front of me.

  We'll get to the other bridge when we get there and not a moment before or I'll lose my sanity.

  The men drag us and then we're in the tent in the middle of the camp, the biggest one, the one that belongs to Samir.

  My eyes instantly land on the man huddled on the ground. My heart skips a beat as I take in the red, matting Brielyn's orange hair and making it appear darker.

  The man's shirt is ripped and drenched in blood. I can't see his face because of the way he's laying with his back to us. I watch him closely and when I see the slow, uneven rise and fall of him I take a breath of relief.

  Walker is shoved to his knees next to Brielyn and I brace for the same treatment, but instead I feel a hand wrap in my hair and then I'm being pulled back so abruptly and sharply. Pain screams through my head and I try to find the tingles from earlier, the spark, the feeling of fire burning under my skin, but there's nothing.

  My hair is pulled back again, even harder, and then I'm being pressed sharply against something.

  "Fucking let her go," I hear Walker bark as my vision clears slightly.

  Samir is in my face, his teeth bared and his eyes hot as he watches me, completely ignoring Walker. Something hard is pressed against my lower back and it takes me a while to realize it's a desk of some sort.

  They had furniture and shit shipped here, so clearly they didn't plan on leaving until they had me.

  Samir gives another yank as he presses me further into the desk and when his body melds completely against mine another fear rips through me.

  He wouldn't try to rape me, would he?

  But as I look into the cold man's face, I realize that of course he would. This is a merciless man who sat around while an entire family and kingdom burned. He wouldn't have a problem assaulting me.

  But I'd fucking burn him first, I'd find a way, just like earlier when I felt my gift rearing its head as the men beat on Walker.

  Samir leans closer and when his breath fans across my face, my stomach curls in revulsion and I draw back. "I know that those royals are working with you," the man says, surprising me. He shakes his head. "I don't know how they got here or how you convinced them to work with you, but rest assured, that I will let the queen know after we’re done killing you," the man spits out.

  How does he know that they're working with me?

  But the answer isn’t hard to come to. The men who took Brielyn reported back to Samir about the twins being there, and no doubt one of the guards had to have told him they saw the twins and Elyjah disappear from the middle of the scuffle.

  "And that isn't the only thing I know about you, girl."

  As his eyes meet mine, my blood runs cold in fear and something just tells me, something lets me know, that the man knows, that he's aware of my secret. Yet it doesn't even prepare me for when the truth actually falls past those crude lips.

  His mouth is pressed right against my ear and it sends a shudder of disgust through me. "I didn't see it at first, but it makes so much sense. Your fighting style, I've only seen one man use it before, the technicality of it and the way in which you move. I know who trained you. And that hair and those blue eyes oh so clear and bright, but very distinct to one family if you've seen it up close before. Too young to be the older girl, though.” His skin presses against mine as he leans in even closer to my ear. “Yes, I know just who you are, Amelia Deightyn."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  After he makes the revelation, Samir tosses me to the ground before turning on his heel and leaving.

  I crumble next to Walker and for a moment I just stay there as my heart pounds in my chest. It's one thing for Brielyn to know, for me to want him to know, but this... this is something completely different and much more dangerous.

  Samir Luick knows who I am and that means he's going to tell Pamula the second he gets off this island. Unless he knew from the beginning and that's why he’s after me in the first place, why the queen wants my head on a platter.

  Are they keeping me alive for a public execution?

  "What did Samir say to you?" Walker questions, his eyes narrowed as he leans over me where I'm still sprawled on the ground. "What else does he know about you."

  My lips press firmly together, and I turn my head, avoiding the man's gaze.

  "Roxanna-"

  "Brielyn? Brielyn are you okay?" Yes, I'm purposefully cutting Walker off, but I'm also concerned for my friend who hasn't moved since we were thrown into this room. I study his hands which are also tied behind his back but there seems to be something wrong with his shoulder, the way it hangs. In an unnatural way

  I move closer to the man and when he doesn't move, I nudge him with my knee, trying to rouse him. I keep pushing, hoping for a reaction. Finally, he rolls over to his back, rousing slowly as he mutters something incomprehensible.

  As I look at his face close up, I can see the smattering of cuts and scratches along his pale skin.

  He blinks slowly, his brown eyes looking up at me. "Hurts," he mutters and my gaze shoots to his arm. I cringe slightly.

  "Does it feel broken?" I ask.

  "Don't know, just hurts," he mutters before his eyes fall close slowly.

  "No, wakeup," I bark at him, nudging him harder with my knee until his eyes snap open again. "Stay awake, we have to get out of here and I'm not going to carry your ass."

  He lets out a laugh, but it sounds pained.

  "Okay," he finally says.

  I turn my gaze to Walker, who's studying us. I can tell he's still puzzled over what Samir said to me, but we don't have time for that and I'm not going to tell him what the man said anyway.

  "We need to work on a plan to get out of here," I state the obvious.

  His eyes narrow slowly and his jaw clenches. He tilts his head back slowly before looking at me. "Already on it."

  "What do you mean, already on it?" I question, glaring at him. "We've been within arms-length of each other since we were captured, and I haven't heard you say anything or seen you do anything other than get your ass kicked."

  He snorts, his lips twitching. "Of course, you forgot to mention that I was getting my ass beat for defending you."

  He has a point, but I refuse to let the man look like a savior when he's anything but. "Yeah, defending me only a day after you nearly killed me while I was sleeping."

  He rolls his eyes, but I swear I see something that looks like regret flashing over the man's face. "I wasn't going to kill you."

  "Oh really?" I ask, raising a brow. The cool sharp press of something sharp digging into my skin pushes to the forefront of my mind as I think about what the man did. "What would you have done if my fire wouldn't have scorched you?"

  His body jerks slightly as his eyes narrow. "I would have stopped before I could have done any real damage to you."

  This time it's my turn to be the one rolling their eyes.

  "Roxanna," his voice is sharp and it's the first time I've heard him say my actual name in this tone, so serious and concerned, lacking hate. My eyes meet his and his gaze is strong. "I would have stopped," he repeats, and I'd be a liar if I said I don't believe him because the man's face is more genuine than I've ever seen it.

  The air between us feels heavy, serious, and I watch as Walker takes a large gulp before looking away. When he looks back at me, I can't read the look on his face. "And believe me when I say I have a plan and we should be out of here very soon."

  I open my mouth, not sure whether I'm about to argue with the man, or what, when there's suddenly a scream that slices through the camp, followed by a dozen more screams.

  I look at Walker, blinking as a cold smile curls the man's lips. He pushes to his feet effortlessly, even with his hands tied behind his back and I follow his lead despite feeling confused.

  I look down at Brielyn whose eyes are open, but he doesn't look like he plans on getting up anytime soon.

  Another scream meets my ears but this one is closer and then the tent is being pulled open and Ragna walks in in her pale, naked, bloodied glory. One short, bloody knife is clenched in her left hand.

  The woman looks like a war goddess, blood covering her hands and her face as her dark hair flies in the wind. She turns her eyes to Walker and when her shoulders relax slightly, I recognize the relief on her face.

  She moves over to Walker and gestures for the man to turn around. In seconds, she's cut through the man's rope and his hands are free.

  Ragna steps away from Walker and turns her dark gaze to me. "Are you sure that we have to take her with us?" She questions as she glares at me.

  Walker hesitates far too long for my comfort before he finally blows out a breath and nods. "Yes, we have to take her and the boy as well." He nods at Brielyn and I refrain from telling him that the two of them are nearly the same age.

  Ragna huffs out a breath and it sounds so much like the way it does when Walker does it that I have to blink an eye. And then the woman is behind me, roughly turning me around. I feel the cold steel of the knife brush against my skin as she places it against the rope. It starts to move back and forth as she cuts and then the pressure on my hand releases and I'm set free.

  I instantly turn around and kneel next to Brielyn, taking a dagger out of my booth and untying the man. The guards didn't take our weapons when they untied us, far too arrogant for their own good and I quickly cut the rope on his hand. I pull him to his feet even as he groans. "I came all this way for you, so you better get your ass up, Brielyn," I snipe at him.

  His head hangs low and my eyes land on his limp shoulder again. There’s definitely something wrong with it. He’ll be lucky if it isn’t broken.

  I'll take a better look once we get out of here.

  "Did you kill Samir?" Walker asks Ragna, his expression pinched.

  The woman shakes her head sending those long black locks swaying. Her dark gaze narrows and her jaw clenched. I know her answer before she gives it. "No, I didn't see the coward. He probably ran when he saw me destroying his men."

  "We'll come back for him," Walker says adamantly. "After we regroup with the others."

  I don't ask him how exactly we're going to do that.

  Ragna gives him a nod before the woman shifts forms again. She gives her black wings a flap and then she’s landing on the man's shoulder which seems to be her fucking home.

  I glance at Brielyn and the man seems to be so out of it that he didn't even notice the naked woman standing feet away from him or the fact that she just turned into a fucking bird.

  As we leave the camp, I study all the bloody bodies. None of them are moving any longer. I don't do an exact count, but I can tell at a glance that this can't possibly have all the men. It's a good portion, but some of them had to have gone off with Samir.

  Walker's head is tilted slightly, and I have to guess that he's silently communicating with Ragna. So that's how he always knows what the woman is thinking and why they seem to be so cohesive.

  I drag Brielyn along and I don't stop to check his shoulder until we've been walking for at least an hour.

  I cringe when he lets out another groan as I touch his shoulder slightly. I instantly pull my hands away, not wanting to cause the man more pain.

  And isn't that something new, I don't usually have a problem with causing others pain. I'm usually happy to do it.