The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

Casteel couldn’t even communicate that way. But hadn’t I
heard Delano’s voice earlier? I’d been asleep, though.
“Are you okay?” Emil asked, his concern evident.
“Yeah. Yes.” I quickly bent, picking up the wolven dagger
from where I’d placed it on the ground. “I’m ready.”
Quietly, I followed Emil through the thick stand of trees,
returning to the firelight of the pavilion. I stopped when Emil
lifted a hand for silence. We were still several yards from the
pavilion, but I could see Casteel.
He stood in the center of the structure, arms at his
sides, his head cocked just a bit, revealing only the striking
curve of his cheek and a tilt of full lips. Dressed in all black,
he looked like a spirit of the night, one called forth to carry
out vengeance.
I slipped the dagger under the fold of my cloak as I saw
the Guardians lead about half a dozen men out from the
back of the Temple, all of them bound with their hands tied
behind their backs. Muscles stiffened as Naill led the last
one. Alastir’s scarred face was devoid of emotion as they
lined him up with the others.
Hatred seared my soul as he and the others were forced
to their knees. My parents. Casteel. His parents. Me. All of
us had trusted him, and he had not only planned to hand
me over to the Ascended but had also ordered my death.
And in a way, he hadn’t failed. I had been killed. Casteel had
saved me, and I had awoken as something else.
What Alastir believes about me doesn’t matter, I told
myself as I watched Casteel prowl forward, moving toward
the nameless men who bled the bitter taste of fear into the
air. I hadn’t done anything to deserve what Alastir and they
had done. I had only defended myself. My parents had only
trusted him. My grip tightened on the dagger.
Casteel was so incredibly fast.
I didn’t even realize what he’d done until the man
farthest away from Alastir toppled over. Five more followed
like dominos, and I didn’t see the moonlight glinting off his