Page 7 of Princess of Vengeance

Between the endless twisting, turning tunnels and the almost rhythmic splashing of boots through the water, I’ve lost track of how long we’ve been down here. I’m grateful for Killian’s voice, since that’s the only thing keeping me from drifting off completely. Finally, Atlas signals a stop and points up at a manhole cover.

“This should be far enough,” he says quietly.

Nico goes up first, his movements nearly silent in spite of his size. When the cover scrapes aside, dim light filters down. Killian sets me on my feet, and I grab the rusty ladder rungs.

“Are you good?” Atlas asks.

“Do I have any other choice?”

My first pull upward feels like someone is shoving Elliot’s knife back into my side. My right arm is basically useless, and I’m trying not to freak out too much over the fact that my muscles are refusing to work right. The only thing I can do right now is grit my teeth and force myself up anyway, one rung at a time.

“Easy,” Killian murmurs from below. He and Atlas bracket me on either side as I climb, ready to catch me if I slip.

Halfway up, my grip starts to fail. But Nico is already reaching down, his strong, steady hands wrapping around my wrists.

“I’ve got you, mia cara,” he says, helping me the rest of the way. “You’re almost there.”

When I finally crawl out onto the street, everything is spinning. Nico steadies me, his mismatched eyes searching my face as he helps me to my feet.

“You’re the toughest fucking woman I’ve ever met,” he says roughly. “You know that?”

I try to smirk, but it probably looks more like a grimace. “You’re just figuring that out now?”

“No.” His hand cups my face, and he brushes his thumb along my cheek. “I’ve known it since the first time I laid eyes on you. Even before that time in your basement when you threatened to shoot me with my own gun.”

“You mean the good old days?” I know for sure that I’m smirking this time. “When all I had to worry about was one of you three killing me?”

He lets out a harsh laugh, pulling me closer. “We never would have. We couldn’t. Già allora possedevi i nostri cuori.”

I’m not sure what the Italian words mean, but there’s a softness in his voice as he says them. I lean into his solid body as I murmur, “It worked out okay for us in the end, didn’t it?”

Atlas and Killian emerge from the manhole behind us, and Nico’s expression hardens again. “Come on. There’s an alley over there. We need to get off the street before someone spots us looking like murder victims.”

He’s not wrong. Between the blood, the sewer water, and god knows what else, we look like extras from a horror movie. But we’re alive. Beyond all the fucking odds, the four of us are alive and together.

I lean against the alley wall while Atlas and Nico check my wounds. Killian gives me a hard, unreadable look, then leaves to scout the area. The brick is rough against my back, but it’s keeping me upright, so I’ll take it.

“Fuck, vicious,” Atlas mutters, lifting my shirt to look at my side. “This is deep.”

Nico’s hands join his, using a torn strip of his shirt to press hard against the wound. The pain makes black spots dance in my vision.

“Jesus Christ,” I hiss through clenched teeth.

“Sorry.” But Nico doesn’t ease up. “We need to stop the bleeding. Tell me if you taste blood in your mouth.”

“What?”

Atlas cuts in. “That’ll tell us if he hit anything vital.” His voice is tight as he adds, “Like a lung, a kidney, anything like that.”

I try to focus past the pain, cataloging what hurts and how. “No… no blood in my mouth. It just hurts like a motherfucker.”

“Good.” Nico’s shoulders relax slightly. “The chest wound isn’t as deep. Imogen must have held back for some reason.”

I remember thinking the same thing at the time, but I can’t focus clearly enough right now to wonder why she would’ve gone easy on me or what advantage she could’ve hoped to gain.

“Lucky me,” I mutter. The pressure on my side is making me nauseated again, but at least the bleeding seems to be slowing. “Do you guys have any idea where the fuck we are?”

“A few miles from Noctura, maybe?” Atlas glances toward where Killian disappeared. “I ditched our phones in the sewer, so it’s hard to be sure.”

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