Page 136 of A Sword of Ice
“It is a lucky thing, then, that I have the powers that I do.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” This time Clay did turn to look at Weylyn and nearly lost his foothold doing so, only to catch that grin of his marring his face. Bastard.
“It means I am not so foolish to leave the future of my existence in the hands of a Fae man from the Sapphire Court who has an irrational fear of heights.”
“You’d be scared too if you looked down and saw all those fucking rocks down there.” Clay’s hairs prickled with offense at Weylyn’s comment. “Shit, at least I got to bury myself between someone’s thighs before I die.”
Weylyn hummed a sound that was amusement and rancor both.
“Fuck off, Weylyn.”
“If I did that, then who would save us?”
Meow, meow.
“Surely not you with that useless blood magic of yours?”
Clay’s jaw clenched. “It won’t be so useless when I make you squirt blood from your asshole, will it?”
Weylyn chuckled, and the sound was so startling, Clay found himself nearly slipping. His fingers cracked and bled, but he felt his momentum pushing him forward. He cried out, bent his legs and made a leap.
His legs flailed. His fingers brushed along the edge of the beam and missed. His heart caught in his throat, and he knew this was the end. Even as Ryker’s familiar made a swipe for his hands with her claws, like she meant to hang to him for dear life so he wouldn’t fall.
But it was too late.
Clay didn’t even get a chance to scream as he hurtled towards his death.
* * *
The portal openedto hover over empty space.
Uric’s hand shot out, colliding against Prince Valerio’s chest before he stepped out and fell to his death. The move had been instinctive, protecting him so. It grated on Uric’s nerves to be so weak as to protect the man that had obliterated his heart.
Yet did it he did.
And he pushed the prince back just in time as a figure came hurtling in their direction.
Normally it took a lot of energy and concentration to keep a portal open. With his back screaming, with his body weak and broken, it took a lot within him not to shutter it closed but reach out and grasp at the figure as he came colliding against his chest.
Their arms grasped for one another, and Uric felt a muscle pull as he was hauled down, his feet slipping. But he was yanked from behind, hanging halfway out of the portal, holding onto Clay while Prince Valerio held onto him.
He gritted his teeth, his back burning as if he were being torn open all over again. An involuntary cry pierced past his lips as he used every ounce of strength he had left within him to haul Clay up by the arm and into the portal, on the other side, where solid ground lay.
Clay flopped inside on his belly, his mouth kissing the floor. “Thank fucking Mana.” His whole body melted, his breath coming out in short pants. “Fuck, I thought I was going to die.”
Uric echoed the sentiment, though not exactly from the attack but from the pain slicing down his spine. He barely managed to turn in time to see Weylyn make the same jump that Clay had with much more finesse. His fingers grabbed the beam and hung tightly before he made a noise that had Ryker’s familiar prowling over to him and perching herself on his shoulders. He did not wince even as the beast stuck her claws into his body, and he wriggled his way closer to the portal, one hand in front of the other.
Weylyn did not ask for help and Uric did not offer it. He watched as Weylyn swung his legs with ease and moved to the side in time so the Fae could land on the other side.
Uric’s control faltered, and he closed the portal. Already, he could feel his skin shriveling even further, wisps of hair gliding down his shoulders like a fish cutting through water. His vision blurred a fraction, and he wanted to scream.
He despised the weakness his magic left him with. His vanity took a blow, and even worse that everyone was witness to it. The only way he could pretend it did not bother him at all was acting like it did not.
“We got your message,” Valerio declared while Weylyn smoothed out the front of his shirt. The cat still perched on his shoulder and did not move, as if she belonged there and not by Ryker.
“I would assume that was the case, otherwise you’d not be here at all,” Weylyn pointed out dryly.
Uric’s weak, bent fingers closed into his palms, and he gritted his teeth at the tone. Defiant, as if the Prince of the Seelie were beneath him, a mere lackey for the king. The insolence in one so insignificant was astounding.
