Page 27 of Black Hand
“She’s not coming, you idiot.” The guard from the left snarled and glared at his friend.
“Aww, I see it now. The three amigos, am I right?” Grinning, I pointed the tip of my dagger at each of them in turn. “The Brains, The brawn, and …” I glanced at the third, who looked like he was flabbergasted by our little conversation. “You should be the booty, I think. They’ll need a little somethin’ somethin’ while on the road.”
That did it.
They came at me from three sides like freight trains playing chicken. I stood still and waited. When the first weapon lifted in the air, I dropped on the ground and rolled out of the way. Having just enough time to get back on my feet, my dagger clashed with a carved sword, my arm straining to hold it back from my face. The asshole was aiming right for my head. Spinning on my heel, I released the pressure and the guard’s body pitched forward, so I elbowed him in the back of his head as hard as I could. He dropped on the ground with a growl, but another replaced him while he was busy eating dirt.
I moved in a circle around the one at my feet, fighting the two still standing, who of course were hell bent on killing me. Every time the first one tried to lift himself, I’d kick him as hard as I could to keep him there. The guilt and grief for Veronica bubbled to the surface, and this time I allowed my emotions to burst forward until they bathed everything in a red haze. I wanted to kill them, and I wanted to make it as prolonged as possible. The hilt of the dagger radiated heat in my palm, and it was as if my rage was its own.
A switch flipped in my brain and calmness bathed me from the inside. My body moved without conscious thought, kicking, punching, and slicing anything I could reach. The pain burning where they managed to get a hit was a distant feeling, as if it was happening to someone else. Every roar or shout—along with a few screams—was music to my ears. I kept slicing with my dagger, taking every opportunity to tear flesh with my fangs when that I could. It must’ve started raining, but strangely the raindrops peppering my face were warm when I felt them sliding down to my neck.
One of the guards took hold of the thick sweater I stupidly forgot to take off and yanked me toward him, his blade sliding into my side like through butter. Fire erupted where I’d been stabbed, and I screamed so loud he released me to cover his ears. A mistake that cost him his life, because my dagger found his throat and I slashed so harshly I almost severed his head. The guard dropped in a pile of limbs at my feet and I stumbled over him, almost falling on my ass. This gave the one still on the ground time to roll away and jump to his feet. His face was all bloody, his cheekbones crushed from the many times I stomped on his head to keep him out of the fight.
“Kill him,” I told the guard who’d been fighting me this whole time.
Without a pause, the guard turned to his friend’s body and stabbed the carved sword through his eye. The shocked expression on the now-dead guard’s face was frozen for eternity while I watched the other one punch his fist through his chest and rip his heart out. Keeping an eye on him, I kneeled and did the same to the guard at my feet. I let the heart drop on the ground with a sickening plop and blinked at the only one left standing. Screams still echoed from the trees, which told me Dominic was having his own fun encounter.
“Now rip your own heart out,” I told the remaining guard, and with horror plastered all over his face, he stared at his own hand obeying my command.
His body joined the other two around me, and pressing a hand to the still-bleeding wound, I stumbled away from them in hopes to reach the porch. My legs felt heavy, and the world was spinning around me like a carousel. The tips of my boots scraped the pebbled ground and I fell over the porch steps until I sprawled over them resembling roadkill. With effort, I rolled on my back staring at a moldy patch on the roof above me. It was blurry as hell, so I blinked furiously to clear my vision as if the mold would clear if only I could see it better.
A slow loud clap jerked my body up.
“I must say, very impressive, Brooklyn.” Johnathan pushed off the tree he was leaning on and headed toward me with an even, measured gait, clapping. “You are full of surprises, aren’t you? No wonder the Council is willing to have everyone killed as long as they get their hands on you.”
My attempt at standing up so I could kill him failed miserably when I dropped back on my ass, bruising my tailbone on the wooden steps. My hand gripped the railing so I didn’t pitch forward and start eating dirt at his feet like the vermin Dominic told me I was. Where was he anyway? Was he still alive? Dear fates, I hope so because Alice was still in the house. That sent panic through me, and it was enough to force me on my feet.
“Johnathan, I should’ve expected you here. Wherever I smell something foul, a piece of shit like you pops up.” My words were slurred, but the glare on his face told me I did well.
“You will learn to obey, Brooklyn.” I didn’t like the glint in his eyes, so I gripped the banister tighter so I didn’t sway on my feet like a drunk. Blood oozed lazily through the fingers of my hand, I’ve lost so much of it that it couldn’t gush even if it wanted to. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“Over my dead body, asshole,” I venomously spat at him while wishing I could wrap my hands around his neck and rip his head off.
“Oh, but you will.” Now almost within arm’s reach, he snickered like an idiot. “And it will be a joy to teach you obedience. The more you fight, the sweeter the reward will be.”
“Come closer then. We should seal it with a kiss.” When he didn’t do what I asked, I frowned at his grinning face. “Come closer.” I tried again with no result.
My heart was sluggishly drumming against my chest.
Reaching in his pocket, he pulled out something that looked like an amulet dangling between his fingers on a leather cord. Bringing it in the air between us, he didn’t stop smiling like the fool that he was.
“I knew I had a reason to make the witches create protection for compulsion. But enough talking, we need to go.”
I braced for a fight I knew I couldn’t win and watched his hand coming to snatch me in slow motion. My brain was screaming at me to move, kick, or even bite him, but the order never reached my frozen limbs. Terror threatened to choke me. I couldn’t go back to the Council. I couldn’t.
A feral, ferocious cry pebbled my skin, and a dark shadow like death himself was flying at me burst from the trees. Johnathan jerked back wide eyed, his face blanching before he turned around, and in less time than I could blink, he was gone. All my strength left me the second green glowing eyes locked on mine. The panther seemed larger than life hunching protectively in front of me, blood matting his smooth fur. For some stupid reason, I smiled.
I’m safe, my inner voice announced before my eyes rolled to the back of my head.
The last thing I remembered was not hitting the hard, wooden steps. Instead, my body molded over warm silky fur.
15
Distant voices pulled at my subconscious, dragging me out kicking and screaming from the blissful darkness that surrounded me. I didn’t want to leave that place where I felt nothing but calm. There, not even the memories from the cages surfaced, and I wanted to stay so badly my mind raged in protest. Something was poking at my lips insistently, and I tried to swat it away but my arm wouldn’t move. My belly felt full too, instead of caving in on itself like the last couple of days.
“That is not how it’s done, human.” Dominic’s deep voice came through loud and clear, but the frustration in it every time he spoke around me or Alice was missing. He almost sounded worried.
“If you have a better idea, go ahead, I’m all ears,” Alice snapped at him, her voice coming from right above my head. “If not, go sit there and let me do my thing. I mean, how hard can it be?”
