Page 125 of A Fate of Ice and Lies
“That’s . . .” Ryenne stifled a laugh.
I bit back my own laughter, only feeling slightly guilty at finding humor in all this.
“Anticlimactic,” Everly finished for Ryenne.
I immediately regretted my snort when pain shot through my nose. “What more do you want?”
She ran her fingers through the long lengths of her silver hair. “A little blood would be nice.”
I touched my tender jaw. “I guess a little blood wouldn’t hurt.”
I answered Everly’s grin with one of my own. It was the first genuine interaction we’d had since I told her she and George weren’t welcome at my house. I longed to take backthose words, but she’d lied to me. We’d spent hours together forging a friendship founded on a lie.
Still, she trained me, helped me at the store, and treated me with kindness I wasn’t all that sure I deserved.
Elias slammed the back of his dagger against Austin’s temple. Hard enough to not only draw blood but also knock him out. A little blood, just as I’d told Everly.
Warmth spread through my chest. Not only had he come for me but he’d also waited to see how I wanted him to handle Austin.
“Can you do that?” I asked Everly, motioning to where Austin lay unconscious.
Her eyes wary, she nodded.
“Can you teach me?”
“After you fix all that.” She pointed at my face. “Your nose is broken.”
If I were fae, I would’ve growled. Instead, I sent a resentful glare toward Austin, silently promising myself I’d get better at fighting and defending myself.
From behind me, Donnie cursed, pushing his way past the crowd that had gathered. A crowd I hadn’t realized had formed until now.
Nate went to Ryenne and looked as if he was ready to avenge her, ready to wrap her in his arms and cart her away.
“Elias,” I whispered, but he heard me all the same.
He turned to me and was by my side. With his knuckles, he moved to caress my jaw but pulled back before he touched me. Disappointment settled in my stomach.
“Ry thinks she dislocated her shoulder,” I told him. “Do you think you could heal her? And then maybe fix my nose? I’ve never broken anything before, but Everly said it’s broken. It sure as shit feels like it’s broken.”
Yep, that was me back to rambling. If Elias noticed, he didn’t say.
While he tended to Ryenne’s shoulder and the cuts and bruises on her face, Donnie spoke to the onlookers, doing his police thing and gathering information. George remained by Austin, who still hadn’t stirred.
While Everly plucked pieces of tomato from my hair, Leanora’s unwelcome voice slithered through my mind. Like a snake coiled to strike, her tone was lethal. I shuddered at the sound of it.
Her cackling raked over my skin, and I stumbled back a step when her black magic wrapped around George.
“You don’t like him much,”she purred in my ear.“Would it be so horrible if I killed him?”
“Yes,”I answered.
“You really are an ungrateful thing,”she scolded.“After all I’ve shown you, all I’ve taught you, you still side with the fae. This one killed an innocent man. Why shouldn’t he die too?”
“Please,”I whispered, hoping Nalari could hear me.“Don’t kill him. Don’t kill any of them.”
Her tendril of magic turned into a sword. As it swung at George, I threw myself on him, knocking him to the floor with me on top of him. I barely registered the surprised look on his face, focusing all my attention on the hot sting of her magic slicing my back. I yelled in pain, collapsing on top of George when my back burned.
Leanora’s tsk sounded distant as her magic pulsed, trying to reform before it disappeared.
