Page 74 of Martyr
The rest of the noise behind me is muffled. My heartbeat roars in my ears.
“Let go of me,” Reese shouts. “He?—”
“Stand down,” I bark.
He fights me, but then Saint is there, too. He removes the gun from Reese’s hand, and I pin my friend’s shoulders to the wall at his back. He breathes heavily, jerking under my grip, but I have the weight and leverage to keep him there.
“Look at me.”
Reese’s wild gaze comes back to mine.
“He’s bound. He was brought here in a fucking trunk.”
“And if he escapes, he’ll be the death of us all,” he spits.
I cock my head. “You don’t think that about me?”
“I—” His words die. “No, Kade. I don’t know if I can trust you, but if you walked out of here? You wouldn’t give us up.”
I nod.He’s right. I wouldn’t.
“Artemis has a plan,” Saint says at my shoulder. “I believe in her, and I think, if you can sit in the same room as that madman and hear what she has to say, you would, too.”
Reese nods slowly, letting out a long exhale. His body relaxes.
“Just to be safe, though, Saint is gonna hang on to your weapon,” I add.
He gives one more nod.
I release him and step back. When I turn around, Jace is behind us. His attention bounces around the three of us, and whatever he sees must pass his inspection. He steps aside, and we reenter the living room.
Gabriel’s feet are off the coffee table, and a stern-looking Antonio hovers over him. That man is old but mighty. He has the face of a guy who has seen some shit—and that’s coming from someone who has absolutely seen some shit.
“Oh.” Artemis frowns. “We had to drop Bradshaw off at the hospital on the way over.”
Jace makes a noise in the back of his throat. “Excuse me?”
“I was just asking him little questions,” Gabriel says. “He wasn’t cooperating. It’s not my fault.”
“You really shouldn’t go around stabbing people, dude,” Saint mutters.
Gabriel perks up. “Andyoushouldn’t go around shooting people in the face. It’s rude.”
Saint stares at him.
“It was, uh, your reaction to Elora’s death,” Jace says. “You shot Kronos in the face a bunch of times.”
“Then tried to drown yourself,” Apollo adds.
That part probably wasn’t necessary.
Saint considers that. “Huh. Sounds about right.”
We’re all doomed.
“So.” I clap my newly freed hands together, drawing their attention away from Saint and his messed-up head. “Tem has a plan to un-fuck this city?”
31REESE
