The courtyard was still stained with the creature’s blood when its body twitched again.
At first it was barely a movement. A tiny shiver. A trembling in the ribs that I thought was a trick of fading adrenaline. Then the corpse jerked violently, a single convulsion that rippled through its twisted muscles. Wolves recoiled all at once. Warriors who had just battled the monster scrambled backward with raw instinct in their eyes. The air filled with sharp breaths. Scraping boots. The sound of claws clicking against the stone as half shifted wolves braced to strike a corpse that should not have been able to move at all.
Talon stepped in front of me instantly. His body blocked mine as naturally as breathing. His shoulders were tense. His eyes narrowed with the sharp focus he always carried in
