Icebound (Legends of the Shifters Book 2) by J.B. North Read Free Book Online Page A

down.
    My
muscles tensed. “I'm not your prey,” I snarled.
    He
sneered and looked over his shoulder. “What do you say we take her to camp,
boys?”
    Their
faces glowed as they shouted in agreement.
    Someone
shoved me forward from behind, and the man caught me, digging the hilt of his
blade into my back. “Then let’s go!” he barked as he tried to push me forward.
    That
was enough to send me over the edge. In an explosion of rage, I whirled on him
and hooked his jaw so forcefully that it cracked. He fell to the ground,
suddenly still. I reached down and took his knife while the other men stared at
their fallen comrade in shock, the grins wiped from their faces.
    Taking
advantage of their shock, I kicked the feet out from under the leader and pried
the phantom stone out of his grasp. He was stunned to find himself on his back,
gasping for the air I’d knocked out of his lungs. Before he had a chance to
react, I’d already swiped the gem and pocketed it.
    Realizing
what I’d done, he grabbed my ankle, digging in with his short, stubby nails. “I
want that diamond!” he shrieked, spit flying from his mouth.
    With
a simultaneous roar, the other bandits rushed at me, their weapons raised. The
nearest one carried my sword. I dodged his badly aimed swipe and slashed at the
hand that held it. He moved faster than I’d expected.
    Instead
of me wounding him, he managed to slash through the leather of my glove and
deep into my flesh. I hissed through my teeth, trying not to focus on the pain
as I used the man’s moment of victory against him. I twisted the hilt out of
his hand into mine, and when I hit his temple, he dropped like a fly.
    I
started to turn toward the others, but before I could face them fully,
something sharp plunged into my back. I cried out, faltering momentarily.
    The
bandits didn’t hesitate once I was weakened. One punched me in the nose while
another kicked me to the ground. Blood seeped out of my mouth, but the kicks
kept coming until black spots clouded my vision.
    “NO!”
came a sudden, furious shout. There was a click and the whistle of an arrow
before it embedded itself in flesh with a thud. A howl sounded, and one of the
bandits fell to the ground next to me. His body twisted away at an odd angle so
that I could see the thick arrow shaft sticking out of his back.
    There
were more running footsteps and then the sound of ringing steel. Most of the
bandits knew to run away, shifting into various forms—a squirrel, a warthog, a
cat—but one bandit foolishly tried to get the pendant out of my hand.
    Not
a second after he touched me, there was a click, a whistle, and a thud. The bandit
landed heavily beside me, his face buried in the leaves and mud, one eye
staring blankly.
    “Ivy!”
said Prince Matthias' voice, rushing toward me and brushing the hair out of my
eyes. I stared at his blurry figure, unable to breath.
    “Lochlan,
come here!”
    Another
figure appeared from the other side and rolled me over. I winced and tried to
suck in a breath of air, but was only met with a stabbing pain.
    “She's
badly wounded. See the way the blood foams? Punctured lung, I think,” said Sir
Lochlan.
    “What
do we need to do?” Matthias asked.
    Sir
Lochlan hesitated. “Hold on. Look.” He pulled off the glove that had been cut
through with a sword. Slowly, my vision started to clear. The prince and Sir
Lochlan both stared at my hand as the flesh grew back over it.
    At
the same time, my broken nose snapped back into place, bringing tears to my
eyes.
    Sir
Lochlan narrowed his eyes in disbelief. “Hold her down tight,” he said to
Prince Matthias.
    He grabbed
the knife in my back and yanked it out. I jerked violently and sent the prince
sprawling.
    I
rolled onto my hands and knees as I coughed up blood. It became easier to
breathe as my lung healed itself. My broken and bruised ribs slowly began to
mend. I wiped my face on my glove and tried to stand. Sir Lochlan helped me up
while the prince stood and