Read Wings of Shadow (The Underground Trilogy) for Free Online

bedspread.
    “Oh,” he said, looking more closely at her neck and wrist. “Well, you needn’t worry about that with me. I’m not a bloodsucker. I’m not even a mosquito. Get it? Mosquito, bloodsucker?” He held out his arms and circled the room, buzzing, then fell to the floor, roaring with laughter.
    Her heart slowed a little. She still had no idea who was friend or foe, but she couldn’t imagine the silly, giggling boy as a threat. “You said you were bored. How long have you been in here?”
    Wish scratched his head. “Well, I don’t quite remember. You were sleeping when I first came in. And I thought it wouldn’t hurt to have a drink of tea, since the pot was still steaming. After that, things began to blur.” He spun around repeatedly.
    She needed to keep him focused. “Wish, why are you in my room?”
    “I know that answer! I am your knight in shining armor, ready to rescue the poor damsel in distress.” He bowed, losing his balance and falling to the floor.
    “Um, don’t knights usually wear more clothing?” She couldn’t imagine him rescuing anything in that state. But her heart had given a little leap at the beautiful six-letter word: rescue .
    The door opened a crack. A pretty face peeked in. “Hurry! Shade will be back any moment. I barely convinced him to leave his post. The promise of my dance card being his tonight was the only thing that tempted him to fetch me a latte.”
    “A song for my Raine: Shade is smitten by the pretty maid; he asked for a dance, looking for romance. When the attention does fade, out will come his blade,” Wish sang, reaching a high note on the last word.
    The door opened, and the girl slipped into the room, carefully easing the door shut. Her eyes were fixated on Wish, who still lay on the floor singing. “What is wrong with him?”
    Meghan shrugged. “I have no idea. Is he drunk?”
    Raine shook her head, her long black hair gliding from side to side. She was the girl from the dance last night and still wore her plum-colored, velvet wings.
    “He was sober an hour ago when he came into the room. He is not drunk.”
    Raine began to examine the contents of the room carefully. When she came to the teapot, she sniffed it. “Bloody Faeries! They’ve added something to the tea.”
    “Poison?” Meghan kept peeking at the door. It was unlocked and so close.
    Raine sniffed again. “No, ‘tis some sort of drug. Human-made from the smell of it. The effects should wear off eventually, but we don’t have time to wait. You need to leave now. Shade must be on his way back.”
    Meghan felt sluggish. Her mind tried to catch up with the conversation. Raine certainly had an odd way of phrasing things. “Leave? You’re helping me leave?”
    “This is the bloody problem. Wish needs to help you escape. He knows the back passages better than anybody.” Her violet eyes widened. “Lord Killian would kill me if he caught me helping you escape.”
    “What do I do? Where do I go?” The other side of the doorway, the side that whispered freedom, called to her. Her need to flee was overwhelming.
    “Hurry! I’ll get you to the entrance of the hidden tunnel. Wish is going to have to guide you from there.”
    They supported Wish, holding him on each side. Once in the hallway, Raine closed the door, latched the deadbolt, and peered down the corridor. Every time Wish opened his mouth to speak, Raine clamped her palm over it. They wove in and out of the maze-like tunnels until they reached an enormous framed painting. Scenes of the evolutions of different species were depicted on the canvas. Raine reached behind the frame, and Meghan heard a small click. The frame swung open, revealing a hatch built into the stone wall.
    Wish kissed Raine on each cheek. He opened his mouth as if to sing another song, but Raine pushed him through the hatch before he could make any noise.
    Before joining Wish, Meghan turned to Raine. “Thank you for your help.”
    “You should be thanking me for