Free Daughter of the Red Dawn (The Lost Kingdom of Fallada) by Alicia Michaels

stairwell. The wind whipped his gray hair around his weathered face and a gnarled, wooden pipe was clutched between his teeth. White smoke wafted up into a thin trail against the midnight blue sky. The brightness of the stars astounded her, as did the size and intensity of the moon. Wil shifted and turned to face her as he heard her crossing the deck and frowned, his disapproval clear. Selena ignored him, not caring if he was angry with her. How could anyone expect her to take the fate of an entire world in her hands, a world she hadn’t even known existed twenty -four hours ago? It wasn’t fair and Selena didn’t think it was right for Wil and Jake to try and make her feel guilty about it.
    “Don’t mind him,” said Jake as he came up the staircase behind her. He clutched the same brown leather volume he’d been carrying earlier. “Wil doesn’t understand that you need time to digest all of this information. He’s always been one with a taste for adventure, diving headfirst into things without thinking. His impulsive nature is responsible for most of our adventures. ”
    Selena was not about to get into another discussion about her so-called destiny. Instead of addressing Jake’s statement, she gestured toward the metal grate covering Titus’ prison.
    “How long is he going to stay like that?” she asked.
    “Titus is a shape-shifter and can transform at will, but the dart we shot him with is filled with a very potent Fae potion. It renders him helpless and unable to shift until the dart is removed.”
    Selena gasped. “You mean you left it in him? He must be in terrible pain!”
    “He is the enemy,” Wil said as he joined them. His pipe was gone but the scent of tobacco still remained as he approached. “Or have you forgotten that you were almost h is dinner?”
    “I don’t believe that he wanted to hurt me. I think that if you remove the dart, he would transform back into a human.”
    “For the time being,” Wil consented. “Do not underestimate him, he is dangerous and you are not yet strong enough to fight him off should he decide to attack you again.”
    “I don’t think he had a choice.”
    Selena stepped forward, her eyes locked on the prison carved out into the ship’s deck. Wil’s hand clamped down on her arm, surprisingly strong.
    “Everyone has a choice.”
    Selena shrugged him off and continued forward.
    “Based on what you’ve told me about Eranna, I don’t think that’s the case here.”
    The brothers followed silently, flanking her on either side as she approached the grate and knelt down beside it. The brig was no more than a small square hole in the deck, just big and tall enough to trap the massive beast lying inside. His eyes were open and glowing red in the darkness of the brig. He was curled up on the floor, whimpering and lapping at the wound in his hip with his large, pink tongue. A silver dart stuck up out of the fur and Selena could see teeth marks around it from his efforts at prying it loose.
    “Can he remove it himself?” she asked.
    Wil shook his head. “There is a special instrument for removal. One of us would have to do it.”
    “When will you?”
    He shrugged. “I had not planned on it until we reached Goldun. I must consult Queen Adrah in regards to his fate. We cannot take his attack upon you lightly. Your father will call for his blood.”
    Selena stiffened. “No !”
    Red eyes swiveled upward and focused on her. Selena felt fear rippling up and down her spine, but calmed when she realized that Titus’s whines had increased. She frowned as they increased to full-fledged yips and barks.
    “Well I’ll be,” Jake whispered, bending down over the grate beside Selena. “He’s trying to communicate with you, Princess.”
    “What’s he saying?”
    “I do not know.”
    “Then take the dart from his hip so he can change back. I know he won’t hurt me.”
    “I don’t think—”
    “Am I Princess of Damu or not?” s he interjected, shooting her