Page 73 of Fire of the Fox

Had he just said what I thought he did?

Blinking past the fog in my head, I cried louder, “Dax, get out of here. He’ll kill you!”

Dax laughed, stalking closer. “He can’t hurt me, Bria. And he won’t hurt you anymore, either.”

What was he talking about? Too lost in my own agony and the fear of what was about to happen in this Dax versus Jonah showdown, I pushed all of the confusion about his words aside. Dax needed to get out of here, maybe even go get me some help.

“I’m going to enjoy killing you,” Dax sneered at Jonah.

The sound of rushing liquid headed in our direction from the creek. All of a sudden, a wall of water formed behind Dax like an impenetrable fortress. My eyes went wide, and Jonah took a step back. Dax shot out his arms, and the water rushed at Jonah in the exact same moment.

Jonah jumped to the side at the last minute, narrowly missing having his head blown off by the force and speed of the deluge.

He let out a frustrated and angry roar, glaring once at Dax then at me. “I’m not done with you yet, girl.”

His body evaporated into black shadows before slithering away into the night. He was gone. For now.

“Bria!” Dax rushed to me and crouched beside me, looking over my bloody and dirty body. Meeting my confused eyes, he groaned, “Damn. You look bad. It’s okay, though. I’m here now.”

A sharp pain erupted in my side when I tried to ask him what was going on. He was a freaking Water Fae? How could I not have known something like that? I sucked in a sharp breath as another tear slipped down my cheek.

“I know. Shh.” He cupped my cheek, my swollen, battered cheek. I cried out at the ache that flared under his touch, but he didn’t seem to understand. “I’m so glad I made it in time.”

He was smiling at me, and for the life of me, I couldn’t understand what he was so damn happy about. I was still lying here, bleeding and in excruciating pain. He should be helping me get medical attention, not smiling down at me like we were skipping through a meadow of flowers and fucking rainbows.

“Help … me,” I croaked.

“Of course! I’ll always be here to help you. It’s me and you. Forever.”

Groaning, I shook my head against the ground. “Not … not me and you. Get … get me help.”

His brow furrowed, and the worry in his eyes seemed to morphe. “What do you mean, not me and you? We are a couple, Bria. We will always be a couple.”

Squeezing my eyes shut, I pushed my face into the cold dirt. Ah, the cool sensation felt so good on my aching body. I wanted to wrap myself up in it and fall asleep.

Sleep.

That sounded so easy and nice.

Taking a deep breath, I glared sideways at him. Why was he still hung up on our relationship? Why was he not getting me out of here and helping me? He was egotistical, as always.

“Fuck … you.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you mean thank you? I just saved your ass. I’m your hero. You should be praising me!”

His voice rose higher as his yelling increased, but I stopped hearing him. For a moment, I stopped hurting. I went numb to everything. My mind slipped away to a place that was warm and soft, a place I had come to love.

Rune’s arms.

The sound of Dax struggling brought me back to my senses. His breathing was labored, and I could hear him trying to fight off something. Taking slow and easy breaths in order to keep the pain at bay, I tilted my head back and forced my eyes open. My body went rigid when I saw who was battling Dax.

Rune stood there in his Fae form, fangs bared and claws digging into Dax’s throat. He sneered at Dax, rage rolling off him in waves as his knuckles turned white from his tight grip.

Rune’s eyes narrowed with unhindered loathing. “I’m going to rip you apart, you bastard. How dare you touch her. Your death will be slow, agonizing, and I can promise I will enjoy every fucking second of it.”

Rune threw Dax’s body like it weighed nothing, and he crashed into a tree that was a good ten feet away. Dax’s face morphed from anger to pain as he slumped to the tree’s base. His eyes barely flicked open before drifting shut again.

Rune’s glare was venomous as fire erupted in each of his hands.

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