Page 107 of The Wishing Game

Red blood. But next to it, there's black blood. I follow the trail around, watching a pattern unfold and remembering something Cer had said about the black magic dust.

It's made from his blood.

Without caring for the pain in my limbs or my pounding heart, I dash to him. Reaching his side, I note the small hole in his shirt as well as the slightly deeper black staining the edges.

God, he got hit. When he put himself in front of me, he must have absorbed the blow meant for me—that's the only possible explanation. Panic swells inside of me as I grab onto the material, ripping at it to check for the damage.

Smooth skin meets my eyes, and I have to blink several times to make sure I'm seeing correctly.

TWENTY-SIX

"Are you done ogling me, human?" he drawls, amused.

I slowly lift my gaze to his face.

"You got hit. The blood. That's your blood." I point to the black liquid on the grass.

He grabs my hands, stopping me from inspecting his skin further.

"I'm fine," he replies curtly.

"But... How... How can you be fine..." I stammer, belatedly realizing I'm likely still in a state of shock. Yet if his saliva can heal, is it any wonder that he can heal himself, too?

"We need to go." Cer's voice resounds from behind me. "We already have an audience."

Tens of other contestants have gathered around the garden, all watching the spectacle with curiosity. Whispers travel through the air, and though I can't quite make out what they're saying, I imagine they're all in awe of Ze.

Good.

Maybe this will deter them from coming after us again.

"Let them stare." Ze shrugs.

"Are you all right, Luce? You're bleeding," Thea says as she touches my arm.

I look down at myself, noting the crusted blood around my knees and down my tibia. With everything going on, the pain was the least of my concerns. But now that I'm reminded of it, it suddenly flares up, causing me to wince in discomfort. My lip, too, is tender and stiff, more blood likely dried around my chin.

"I'm good." I force a smile—or what should look like one considering my lips hurt too much to move.

Without warning, I find myself being lifted up. I release a yelp of surprise, instinctively scrambling to get away.

"Stop moving, human," Ze growls low in my ear. "We're going back," he declares, already moving toward our accommodation. Cer and Thea share a look, but they don't say anything, simply following suit.

The crowd of onlookers parts to allow us to move, all the while staring at Ze with a mix of awe and fear. Their eyes follow him around as they wonder who orwhathe is. As we leave the crowd behind, it dawns on me that staff members were around as well, all watching but not intervening. I guess this really is a matter of survival of the fittest. If the game doesn't kill you...the other contestants will.

Ze kicks the door of our suite open, heading straight for Thea's and my room. He steps inside the room and stops, turning his head sharply to Thea and Cer, who are right behind him.

"Out," he commands.

They blink in surprise, but they don't contest Ze's edict. He shuts the door in their faces before he stalks over to my bed and places me down.

"Uhm... What are you doing?" I ask, my brows creasing as I regard his grave expression.

"You're hurt," he states, his gaze lingering on my lips. Clearing his throat, he looks around the room, nodding to himself as he grabs Thea's sheet and rips it in half.

"That's Thea's sheet. You can't just..." I hiss, my eyes wide.

He pins me with his icy eyes, his glare shutting me up immediately.

---