Page 43 of Chess

That bastard planned to have her killed.

Chess bared his fangs and punched the black-clad vampire in front of him. “Ever, run!” he urged as the others descended upon him.

The blade struck through his back once more, the agony spreading through his body. Again and again. Three, maybe four blades pierced him at once. An arm, a leg, his chest—all seemingly missing vital parts on purpose. He choked down the agonized scream. If they had wanted to cut off his head or slice through his heart, there was no doubt in Chess’s mind they would’ve done it already.

Chess fell to his knees and another blade slammed into his calf, pinning him to the ground. “Fuck off,” he snarled as they crowded him, blocking his view of the queen and March. “Ever!”

“Letgo!” she shrieked. March released a harsh bellow the moment she finally tore herself free. The male directly in front of Chess was shoved aside and Ever ripped the sword out of his hand. She swung the blade, cutting off the male’s head in one motion, crimson splashing the White Queen’s face.

“Ever, stop!” March shouted.

Chess reached behind him for the sword pinning his leg to the ground, ignoring the other blades still shoved into his body. The taste of his own blood flooded his mouth and he spat it to the ground. This was going to hurt like a bitch.

The hilt of the sword was too high and too angled for him to reach, so he grabbed the blade. It sliced through his hand as he pried the steel upward. He ground his teeth against the pain radiating in his calf, yet it had barely moved at all before one of the attackers flicked a coiled whip toward him. The braided leather looped around his neck and the female yanked him forward. Chess gasped for a breath, but the whip was too tight for the oxygen to reach his lungs.

Ever screamed her fury wordlessly, backing toward Chess, holding her sword up in his defense. “March, what the fuck is this?”

“You were blinded by him,” March said in a sympathetic voice. As if Chess had somehow manipulated her into giving a shit about him. “He’s a danger to you. To all of Ivory. Your brother has accused him of murdering their queen and he needs to pay for that, at the very least.”

“He didn’t kill his mother!” she growled. “Now stop this.”

“I knew he would follow you again.” March stepped toward Ever and she pointed the sword at him so he held his hands up, placating her. “Don’t you see how treacherous he is? If he’d listened to his queen’s command, he wouldn’t have walked into a trap.”

“IfChesslistened to me?” she screamed from where she stood in front of the prince. “You’renot listening! Call them off.”

The five assailants still remaining hadn’t moved to further attack. Chess was pinned to the ground with a whip around his neck—trapped, his vision slowly growing fuzzy. They weren’t sent to kill—they were sent to capture. He would be back in Scarlet tonight and at Rav’s mercy. Ever wouldn’t be able to stop this attack alone.

“What the actual fuck?” Ferris roared from the doorway.

“Bloody hell!” Maddie screeched, her violet curls bouncing as she pushed her way around him and raced to Ever’s side. “We heard you screaming. What is this?”

The whip tightened and Chess swayed.Fuck.Far too many vampires had to be enjoying the sight of him so powerless. He clawed at the coil around his neck but it was too tight, biting into his skin.

“We didn’t agree to fight the White Queen,” one of the male assailants called to March. The others stood, stiff and ready to attack on cue from the one who spoke. Their leader, Chess assumed.

March scowled down at Ever and spoke to the leader. “Take him and go. No one will stop you.”

“Like hell,” Mouse chirped from the doorway. “No one deserves to be in the dungeons in Scarlet.”

“Ever,” Chess attempted to speak, but it was impossible. Darkness was creeping into his mind, his vision fading as Ferris stepped into the courtyard.

A moment later, a throbbing pain pulled Chess out of the darkness and he sat up with a gasp. Blood covered the mosaic floor of the courtyard. Ever was still before him with the sword, but March was now on his knees, head lowered. Ferris and Mouse were dragging a headless body toward the door and… Where the fuck were the rest of the attackers?

It hadn’t only been a moment, Chess realized, though he had felt it was. He’d been unconscious long enough for five vampires to meet their demise—or flee—and March to surrender. He flicked his tongue against his parched lips and tasted his own blood.

A flash of purple approached from the side and Maddie bent down to speak in his ear. “I’m going to pull the sword from your leg now.”

“Don’t enjoy it too much,” he said in a hoarse voice.

“Hmm.” She grinned. “I can’t promise that.”

Ever glanced over her shoulder at him, healing scratch marks marred her cheek on one side, speckled blood on the other. Her breath came in heavy pants, but she offered him a weak smile anyway. Chess swallowed hard, bracing himself for the pain Maddie was about to inflict as she freed him. Guilt bubbled inside Chess. Ever’s friend had betrayed her because of him, but March had never been a true friend if he was willing to do this. He hadn’t wanted to be herfriendat all. March wanted Ever as his lover, but Chess had taken that title as his own.

“Ready?” Maddie drawled.

He took a deep breath. “Not reall—”

The sword was yanked free and Chess cried out as a deep pain shot through him. Blindly, he fell to his side and rolled onto his back where, thankfully, the other weapons had already been pulled out. “Fucking hell,” he grunted.

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