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buoyant than she could remember only Dane s lovemaking had brought her higher.
Six moons came out from behind the cloud cover, turning the blackness into a silvery
day that made it so much easier to see.
Finius suddenly turned and she almost ran into him.
Stop, he whispered. Quiet.
She glanced around, heart in throat. What ?
Figures walked out of the darkness. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty.
Finius, who are these people?
He didn t speak as he put his big body in front of her and drew his sword. She
knew then it was trouble. She d kept Dane s dagger in the long folds of her tunic and
pants, and she didn t hesitate to reach in her pocket and grab it. She peeked around
Finius massive arm. The men coming toward them didn t slacken their pace.
Get them! An unfamiliar voice echoed in the night, guttural and harsh.
Stay behind me. Finius brandished his sword while standing in a half crouch.
Before she could do as he requested, she saw something come over him she d never
seen happen before.
It was utterly frightening.
Though she d seen Dane s eyes turn red with passion and anger, this was different.
Finius threw his head back, a roar leaving his throat that sounded more as if it belonged
to a ravenous, deadly animal. She stumbled back a step as Finius muscles bulged with
power, and the untamed ferocity within him seemed to burst out in a wave.
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Denise A. Agnew
The twenty men yelled at once, their combined voices sending up a charge that
chilled her to the bone. Rushing forward, the men continued their warbling war cry as
their eyes glowed as red as animals.
Her heart slammed in her chest as fear crashed into her. Dane had taken down men
and she d taken down two. There was no way she could escape twenty men, even with
Finius help. Who were they? Frustration made her angry. Damn it all, she d had
enough of this. She was tired of being roughed up, chased, poisoned by vines, stalked
by dragons
Six men came after her, skirting past Finius as the remaining men charged him.
They bashed at him and he countered with strike after strike of his sword, his cry
ragged and filled with rage. He tried to disarm them, but one grabbed his sword and
managed to wrest it away. One man fell upon Finius and threw him to the ground.
Finius roared and threw the man off him.
She slashed with her knife, aiming for arms, groins, necks, anything she could
manage. She half expected to feel the sharp edge of a sword cutting her flesh.
Stumbling, she fell on her butt, and the men fell upon her.
Ketera s fighting instinct didn t matter in this case. She was down for the count and
knew it. These men weren t like the poachers who d attacked her and Dane. They were
fast. So fast. She slashed at one man and the next, growling as she rammed all her
strength into her attack. One man groaned as her knife sliced deep into his biceps.
Someone grabbed her from behind. She kicked back, connecting with the man s
thigh. She couldn t let them get her. She couldn t. She thrashed, struggled, used her
elbows. The man s forearm pressed her throat. Choking, she tried to pull his arm away.
Enough! Finius dropped his sword and held his hands up. Let her go. Don t hurt
her!
The man behind her loosened his grip but didn t release her. He grunted. I m not
going to kill her.
Finius face, what she could see of it in the dark, held pure rage. If you hurt her,
the weight of the Daryk Ones will come down upon you. And you don t want that to
happen.
Come on. You re going with us, another man said.
Where are you taking us? She tore herself out of the man s arms, but he grabbed
her forearm and held fast.
Where are you going, bitch? the man asked.
The biggest Daryk One spoke. Finius here is sloppy. He talked too much and too
loud, and we heard about your venture. Blame him for your failure. We re going to
Drakus Fina s lair.
Her stomach curled with anxiety and anger. No!
Finius looked gut-punched. I didn t say anything to anyone. I swear.
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Daryk Hunter
As they shoved Finius and her along, she wondered if this was the beginning of the
end.
* * * * *
Arrows hailed down upon Dane and the old woman as the enemy unleashed the
hells. Searing pain sliced the back of Dane s right calf as he huddled over the old
woman he d thrown to the ground. He d run hard and fast to reach her, afraid he
wouldn t make it. His body jerked as another arrow found his right biceps, slicing deep
as it went.
Damn all the fuckin hells that hurt.
At least none of the arrows made a direct hit.
As if to prove him wrong, three more arrows stuck, banging off his breastplate.
Good thing the damn armor covered his back as well. He half expected an arrow to slice
off his ear or penetrate his hands and hit his skull. The whish of arrows raining down on
them stopped. He waited, making sure.
The old lady had screamed when he d knocked her down, and now her flailing
limbs proved she wasn t down for the count. Get off me! Get off!
He rolled off her, ignoring his wounds.
Gray-haired, trembling and pale, the wrinkled little woman stared at him. Thank
you, Dane Charger. Thank you for saving my life. She leapt to her feet with surprising
agility, but then started to limp as she ran.
He went after her, but that s when all the hells really did break loose. A fireball
sailed over the curtain wall, looking as big as a wagon. Get down!
The old woman dived behind a wall, and Dane ran her direction, hoping he d make
the same shelter. He veered off at the last minute, diving into an alcove that was closer.
The fireball missed them both, but flames crowded up the curtain wall between them.
Dane saw the old woman dash away. Damn it all, flame or arrow would hit her if she
didn t find shelter. He couldn t worry about that now when his fellow warriors needed
his help. A rush of anger and raw primal warrior rose up inside him, and as he felt the
strange sensation arise, he realized he understood what it was.
A guttural roar left his throat, and a red haze filled his vision. Power rushed to his
limbs, his body surging with power. This was his body filled with a battle rage, and
part of him relished the desire to kill, to protect those who needed him. His muscles felt
larger, fuller, more capable than ever before. Energy sluiced through his body with a
rush that almost knocked him off his feet.
Anyone who came in here without permission would face his wrath. Would face a
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