Page 72 of Nightshade

“Let’s be on our way, then.”

As promised, she walked me out the door and along the path toward the gate at the far end of the property. Eyes constantly scanning for the dogs, I swallowed back the nervous thrum of fear gurgling in my stomach.

About halfway there, I glanced back to find Van Croix staring down at me through the window of the west turret. From the room where I’d slept, by my estimates.

“Why is he so unreasonable and intolerant?” I asked, as we strolled along the stone path.

“I admittedly don’t know much about the man. Could be that he’s always been that way. But he’s far better than the likes of some you’ll find here. Not many saints to be found in Stygian Falls.”

“He seems familiar to me, for some reason.”

“You’ll get a lot of that here, I’m afraid. I find myself suffering from bouts of déjà vu frequently in this pl—” Before she could finish the comment, the sound of a growl from behind sent a shiver of terror down my spine. “Do not make any abrupt moves,” Anya warned.

We both turned around to where all three dogs stood with their hackles raised, teeth bared. What I assumed to be blood stained the muzzle of the beast across from me, and a cold sensation swept over me, tickling the nausea already stirring in my stomach.

“Cerberus, you go back to your kennel, before I call on the master!”

The dog didn’t move, though. Perhaps it was angry at me for earlier, if a dog were capable of holding that kind of grudge.

“Now! All of you. Go back!” She reached down into the neck of her dress and, eyes wide, let out a small gasp. “Oh, no. I’ve left the whistle inside. Go, Cerberus! Shoo! Back home. Back home!”

None of them heeded her words, though, and, instead, prowled closer, just as I watched the one dog do from my window.

“What do we do?” Their eyes weren’t fixed on Anya. All three of them seemed to be heavily interested in me.

“They always obey the whistle. I am at a bit of a loss myself.” The tremble of fear in her voice only goaded my terror, and when she looked back, undoubtedly gauging the distance to the gate, I nearly lost my morning toast. Particularly, when she added, “It might be wise to run for the gate.”

“They’ll catch me before I get there!”

“Which would still be far better odds than standing here. I’ll see if I can get Master Van Croix’s attention.”

“No! Please don’t leave.”

The dogs lurched closer, their growls a harrowing soundtrack to the fear skating down my neck. A quick glance over my shoulder showed the gate only a few hundred yards off. There wasn’t a lick of confidence that told me I’d make it, but adrenaline hammered through my veins at the mere thought of trying.

The dogs seemed to get restless, one of them pacing like a caged lion, and perhaps realizing my intent, another leapt closer to me.

On a gasp, I spun around for the gate and ran as quickly as I could. Muscles burning, I booked it in hopes that maybe I’d be able to scale the fence before one of them could latch onto my leg. It only took a minute for a powerful force to hammer against my spine, knocking the breath out of me. Jagged gravel tore into my knees and palms as I crashed to the ground, choking for breath.

A tearing sound had me rolling onto my back, to see one of the dogs ripping away the hem of my dress with its teeth. The second dog joined the first, both of them shredding the skirt.

It was Cerberus that lunged toward my face, and I let out a scream, lifting my arm to shield it from his bloody maw. More tearing sounds indicated he’d ripped the sleeve clean off.

This dog would be the death of me. One fatal bite to my jugular. That would be it.

Throat burning with the terror humming through me, I stopped screaming, and only then noticed the scuffle had ceased. I no longer felt the vicious tug of my skirt. Certainly, no teeth lodged into my flesh, unless I’d gone completely numb.

I lowered my arm to find Cerberus sniffing it. The spot of my birthmark. He dragged his nose over it in a way that felt invasive. As if it held a particular scent to him.

Trembling, I allowed him to continue his examination. So long as all three dogs remained occupied by it, perhaps I could hold them off long enough for Anya to retrieve Van Croix.

Cerberus licked the birthmark. He licked it over and over, and when that long, wet tongue smacked against my face, my chest pattered with what must’ve been my heart revving up for cardiac arrest. The other dogs approached, as if curious, but didn’t move in past Cerberus. They observed from just far enough away that I could feel the pulses of air from their sniffing against my skin.

Cerberus sat back on his haunches, tongue lobbed off to the side with what I’d estimate to be smile on his face, if the dog were capable of such a thing. Such a morbid sight with all that blood. Blood that stained my arm and my face, no doubt.

The thought sickened me, but more than that, I was happy to still be in one piece.

“I’ve never seen such a thing in all the time I’ve been here.” The awe in Anya’s voice was undeniable, and I lifted my head to see that she hadn’t called on Van Croix.