Page 166 of Hate Me

Bastian joined me, but it still didn’t budge.

“I can pick the lock,” I told him.

“Do it, I’ll hold them off.”

As I crouched down and used the blade—not exactly the most optimal tool—to get to work, Bastian spun toward the incoming onslaught.

“Bane wants a word,” one of them said.

“Invitation declined,” Bastian bit back.

I heard a scream and I looked quickly to see his blade now buried in one of the guy’s eyes.

Another lunged at him, but Bastian sidestepped him, then swept his leg at him, ripping him off his feet. He sprinted forward, ripped his knife from the other guy’s eyeball just before he collapsed, screaming, then he spun around to toss it at another incoming.

Before he could, I yelled out a warning as I saw another coming at his back.

It was too late, though, as the guy snagged his knife-wielding arm, stopping the throw.

As Bastian moved to break the guy’s grip, another jumped on him.

I gritted my teeth.

Screw this.

It was too late for the lock picking.

I ran into the fray, ripping one guy off Bastian, using his momentum against him to haul him into the gas station column.

As he jarred painfully against it, I slammed my knee into his gut, making him double over. I used the opportunity to fist my hand in his hood, then drive him down into my knee, smashing it into his face and knocking him out cold.

Bastian roared and I looked to see him taking a guy down to the ground, the opponent’s head smacking into the concrete, his skull cracking under the brutality.

He didn’t even get to take a breath after that victory when another three jumped at him.

Before I could run to his aid, two came at me.

I kicked one back, then spun to do the same to the other, but he managed to catch my ankle mid-kick, then shoved me back. I landed on my ass.

A fist slammed into my face and another into my gut in quick succession.

I choked up blood, but managed to twist onto my side.

Before I could get to my feet, a boot smashed into the side of my head, forcing me back down.

“Sky!” I heard Bastian screaming.

I didn’t get the chance to look out and see how he was doing as two sets of hands wrenched me to my feet.

I struggled wildly.

“Still not subdued enough,” one of them said.

In the next second, I was being hauled away.

Bastian’s roar cut through the chaos as I sailed through the air, then slammed into the floor-to-ceiling windows of the gas station store. The impact had me crashing right through, glass shattering all around me and making me wince as it dug into my flesh.

I landed hard on my stomach, just managing to brace myself with my hands and keep from destroying my face from the fall.

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