Page 80 of Dragon Unleashed
“Get up here now. Please. Aries is injured.” The words leave my lips on a choked plea.
“On my way.”
“Bring Blossom,” I add quickly. She may not know exactly where Aries is truly from, but should any of Aries’ fight follow him out, there is no one else I’d want with us.
“We’re coming.”
I throw my phone down then jump to my feet and grab an armful of water bottles from my fridge. Falling to my knees beside him, I open one and pour it over the wound to flush the venom.
He doesn’t even react.
“Please don’t leave me,” I whisper as much for myself as for him.
Less than two minutes later, Hoc is shoving my front door open and rushing inside. Behind him, Blossom’s blade is out, and she scours the room as the man who raised me falls to his knees beside Aries.
“What happened?” Hoc asks.
“Some kind of fight.” I dump another bottle over his injury. The water flushes the wound, but the black continues seeping out. And in.
Please don’t leave me.
“Here?” Blossom looks around at my tidy apartment dubiously.
I nod at the closed closet. “There.”
Blossom stares at me like I’ve lost it. Finally, she traipses over and pulls the closet door open. When she sees the passageway yawning at her from the back wall, her eyes widen. She looks back at me incredulously. “What the fuck is this, Paige? Narnia?”
“Not even close.”
“Who the hell carved this tunnel into your wall?” Blossom demands.
“Morris,” I say grimly. Both their heads whip up to stare at me.
“The one who tried absconding with the Vetus collection?” Hoc asks.
“Yes, but I don’t think he was alone. Aries said something about Morris bringing some friends he extracted from books before he passed out. He gave me this.” I offer Hoc the book.
“His real name is apparently Constantine. This is his book.”
Hoc’s eyes flash with rage as he reads the title then hands the book to Blossom. Understanding flashes, and her mouth thins. “I’m going to see what’s in there.”
“Wait!” Hoc’s order rings out sharply, and Blossom stops, looking at him impatiently. I glance back down again as Hoc eyes the injuries on Aries’s back. “Son of a bitch.”
“What is it?” I demand as Blossom finally walks over to peer down at Aries. Her breath hisses out.
“Basilisk venom,” Blossom answers. “Shit.”
“Get the antidote. In the cabinet in my office,” Hoc orders.
“On it.” Blossom turns and sprints from the room.
“Basilisk? As in giant fucking snake? Shit. What is going to happen to him, Hoc? What’s going to happen to Aries?”
Hoc grips my cheeks and holds my face steady. “Listen to me, Paige. Everything is going to be fine. You have vodka here?”
I nod.
“Go and get it. And clean rags.”
