The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

than usual. I didn’t hear the wolven, but I saw Lyra and the
other three wolven crouched behind Casteel’s parents as if
they were waiting for a command. My gaze swept back to
Vonetta. “Did I?”
She shook her head. “No. No. I just…” She let out a
ragged breath. “That was wild.”
The tense lines of Kieran’s features eased. “You were
very angry.”
“You could feel that?” Casteel asked over the top of my
head. “What she was feeling?”
The brother and sister nodded. “Yeah,” Vonetta said,
and my stomach flipped. I knew the wolven could sense my
emotions, that it could call them, but it had seemed like Lyra
and the other wolven were waiting to act. Luckily, I didn’t
think Casteel’s parents had been aware of what was
happening. “I felt that a couple of days ago. All of us wolven
in Spessa’s End did.” Vonetta’s gaze flicked over us while I
looked at Lyra. She and the other wolven had relaxed. “I
have a lot of questions.”
“Great,” Kieran muttered, and Vonetta shot her brother
a dark look.
Casteel lowered his chin to my cheek. “You doing okay?”
I nodded, even though I wasn’t right then. But I would
have to be. I placed a hand on his forearm. “I didn’t mean to
do that—call to the wolven.” My gaze found Casteel’s
parents. Both stood unnaturally still, and at that moment, I
couldn’t bring myself to even wonder what they were
feeling or thinking. I refocused on Vonetta. “My brother is
there? Waiting?”
She nodded. “Him and a group of soldiers.”
“How many?” Casteel’s arms eased from around me,
but he kept a hand on my shoulder.
“About a hundred,” she answered. “There were also
Royal Knights among them.”
Meaning there were Ascended trained to fight among
the mortal soldiers. That also meant that Ian was well