Shadow Reign (Shadow Puppeteer Book 2) Read Free Page A

reflected off the wall just ahead and the pain was immediate. I cupped my right eye and hissed, wheeling away from the source. What was wrong with my eye?
    She’s so bloody
.
    Gah! Why wouldn’t Amber’s words leave me alone? I was becoming a monster and that was something I couldn’t give myself room to judge, not while I was here in another unknown situation. Still, the battle down in the Ardent Asylum haunted me. I could still hear the Free-String Walkers screaming. They were afraid of me; afraid of the shadows fighting for me.
    The pain in the right socket of my eye was intense. It knocked me off balance and I leaned against the wall, dry heaving. The creature chuckled behind me.
    The bird creature chuckled behind me. “Not so resilient are we?”
    I shoved away from the wall. He still chuckled, but I forced my shoulders back and started walking toward the light. I focused on my movement, because my weak body barely wanted to corporate and I wouldn’t give him something else to laugh about.
    The blue and pink lights grew brighter and I welcomed the mixed scent of sage and lavender. I expected more creatures that smelt like the thing that followed me. The passageway opened into an enormous chamber with crystals dripping down from the ceiling. Globes of light floated about the room in pinks and blue. What startled me, was that they were actually drifting. With my good eye, I could barely make out the wispy body within the glow of light.
    “Will-o-the-wisps. You’ll see them in most faerie caves, but there are no faeries here. They’re easy to catch and their energy source is consistent,” a woman said.
    A solid form separated from the shadow. The woman in question was at least seven inches shorter than me and I thought Starr, my ex-best friend, was short. Starr, my heart squeezed in thought. I couldn’t go there. I couldn’t wage war on my emotions when I had to keep it together.
    The woman was as pale as my left arm. I’m sure it didn’t mean anything. What did bother me was that her eyes had the slight curve mine did. I was Asian mixed, but that was only stating the obvious. I didn’t want to think I was looking at my species. It didn’t mean anything, just yet.
    She pushed her black hair over her shoulders. It was so human an action, but something about the movement spoke mimicry. I couldn’t be fooled by her. Her long maroon dress hid most of that pale flesh all the way down to her feet, but her movement was awkward.
    “Utan, my faithful envoy, thank you for bringing me the girl, though I see you were rough with her.” She fell back in her chair.
    It wasn’t until she made a deal of getting comfy in it, did I realize it was bone. Utan stepped ahead of me and shuddered within the feathers. It was a great deal of black bulk that became detached from his body. One minute he wore it, the next he stood in front of me looking completely human. The fact that he didn’t wear much, helped form that opinion.
    He bowed. “By any means possible, mistress, those were your words.”
    She wiggled her fingers at him, drawing my attention to her sharpened nails. They were as sharp as his talons, but outside the feathered mass, his feet were as normal as the rest of him. He took the steps with grace and for as little as he wore, apparently the cold didn’t bother him. He bent down on one knee, taking her hand and kissing the knuckles. I stared at his lithe form, catching the curve of his bony back. I didn’t like him.
    She petted his head and he released her hand, but didn’t go far. He stood to the side of her chair like the good pet he was. I grinned at the thought and he frowned. Good, I fed off his hate. She was watching me too and though I couldn’t drop my metaphysical shields to read her, I knew that look. Sonya looked at me the very same way when she thought she had the upper hand. There was room for uncertainty and I could openly read that.
    “Since you’ll be spending time here, you should meet the