Eno stepped over the dead cat and grabbed Rayne’s elbow, helping him to his feet. He lifted his gaze when Eno’s fingers continued to dig into his arm even after he was standing. The look in his lover’s eyes said it all. Fear and relief were threatening to choke him. He wanted to pull Rayne into his arms and hold him tight, but he couldn’t.
“I’m okay, I swear,” Rayne stated and pulled his arm free. “You?”
“I’m good. Thanks for the save.”
Rayne smirked at the man who owned his heart. “Anytime.” He stepped past Eno and pulled free his last two knives from the other dead beast. He shoved both into holsters on his hips and pulled out the bo staff from the holder at the base of his spine.
“Cael and Drayce?” Eno inquired.
Rayne shook his head. “I haven’t seen them yet, but they’ve got to be on their way here.”
“Then let’s see if we can draw your king out,” a voice that sent a chill down Rayne’s spine mocked. His head snapped around to see Safa perched on a nearby building rooftop, watching the action in the square. Rayne’s heart stopped as he stared at the vicious woman. She didn’t appear to have changed since their last encounter with her in the caves under Brightspire. If anything, she seemed more at ease in her surroundings. They’d finally caught sight of her in her natural habitat, and that made her more frightening.
Rayne didn’t hesitate. He pulled up the protective shield, wrapping it about himself and Eno within the square. They were the only ones left alive in the area. Fire crackled and ate at the buildings to the east. There were cries to the west and south, but nothing to the north. That direction led to the cave behind the waterfall. He prayed to any god who would listen for the people of Hidden Falls to escape to safety.
Safa jumped from her perch with ease and paced along the edge of the shield, a wide, fang-filled grin stretched across her harsh face. Something about seeing her here made the woman seem even more feral and wild, as if the last shreds of civility that she’d pulled on while traveling had been shed.
Lifting one hand, she dragged black claws along the protective dome, sending up a snapping cascade of green sparks.
“Can you keep the barrier up until Caelan reaches us?” Eno asked.
“Yeah, I’m okay,” Rayne panted. Pain and fatigue wore heavily on him, but he didn’t have any choice. He had to maintain the shield. He wasn’t too sure about their odds of successfully taking on Safa without more help. Eno was skilled, and while Rayne was nowhere near as accomplished, he could hold his own. But Safa was bonded to the Goddess of the Hunt. She could just call more animals to her side, overwhelming them by sheer numbers.
Caelan would reach them in time.
New searing pain shot through Rayne’s head, and a scream ripped from his throat. He staggered to the side as his knees tried to buckle, but he caught himself. Eno wrapped an arm around his shoulders to keep him upright. Rayne blinked away tears, his vision clearing enough to see that Safa had gotten a hand through the barrier.
“No!” he gasped, unable to tear his eyes away as she slashed at the shield with her other hand. She was breaking through. He didn’t know how, but it didn’t matter. He shrugged off Eno’s hold on him, staggering slightly. “Stop her! Get her before she breaks through entirely!”
Eno raced across the square, sword raised to hack her to pieces while she was still trapped. She either had to force her way in or pull back.
Unfortunately, she managed to tear her way inside and rolled away from Eno’s slash. Rayne instantly released his hold on the barrier, allowing it to drop for now. There was no point in wasting the energy on it if it wasn’t keeping her outside. As it was, the pain from her breaking inside had left him shaky on his feet and his vision blurry. His head was pounding in time with his heart.
But he couldn’t just stand there doing nothing. Eno needed his help, even if he wasn’t entirely sure he could hold a blade right now.
With trembling fingers, he pressed the button on his bo staff, extending the spear-tipped pole. He held back for now, watching as the two fighters clashed again and again, navigating over the scattering of dead bodies and around the stone well in the center of the square.
“How did you get inside the barrier?” Rayne shouted at Safa, hoping to distract her and create an opening for Eno.
“My lovely goddess showed me how,” Safa chuckled, not even missing a step as she ducked under a slash of Eno’s blade while swiping at his stomach with her own claws. Eno barely dodged the cut. “She spent plenty of time studying your little spell so I would have no trouble breaking inside.”