Page 41 of A Kingdom of Fire and Fury
I grabbed my blade from my boot. The man’s eyes followed me, and he grabbed his own blade, which was holstered against his thigh. But before he could so much as move, Umara roared, sending flames that enveloped him in seconds.
A knife sliced the back of my arm.
I looked down at my now bleeding skin.What the hell?I turned to see another man. He was older. Maybe in his early forties. In his palm, a knife glittered with my blood.The first attacker was a decoy, meant to lower my guard.
Fuck.
I stumbled back, barely avoiding getting my throat slit. How the hell was this happening again? And right in front of Umara? Did these people have a death wish? I switched my blade to my right hand.Shit.Whether it was intentional or not, he cut my dominant arm.
The blood drained from the man’s face. His eyes widened. But he wasn’t looking at me. No, he was looking over my shoulder.
And I knew why. Flames enveloped the two of us. Red covered my vision, and the heat kissed my skin. The second attacker turned to ash before me.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Umara kept shooting flames long after the man died. Screams rang in my ears, but I couldn’t focus on them. No. Instead, my attention was fixed on Umara, and the fury that violently coursed through the bond. “Umara, you have to stop!”
Pain. Worry.A fear that went so deep, it struck me down to the bone and paralyzed me. But it wasn’t my fear. It was Umara’s. “Umara!” Her emotions were like a tsunami, and I was helpless against the tide.
“Get her under control!” Kieran barked.
I tore my gaze away from Umara’s roars and spotted Nimue helping escort the crowd away. When did they get here? But I didn’t have time to focus on that or the fact that two people had just tried to kill me. Umara was completely overwhelmed with her rage. If she kept going, a civilian might get killed.
“Umara!” I shouted again. She ignored me and kept firing at the pile of ash. Dammit. I’d have to try harder. My heart hammered. I grabbed her face and forced her gaze to meet mine. Fog clouded her eyes, but it cleared as soon as I touched her. The tsunami of emotions receded to the ocean, no longer trapping me in place. “I’m okay. You protected me. I’m okay.”
Umara breathed heavily, smoke filling my vision, but her eyes never left my face. Her flames stopped, and she tilted her head so that our foreheads pressed against each other. I kept my hands on her face and stroked her scales. “I’m okay. Thank you, Umara. You saved me. I’m okay.”
“Get inside,” Kieran snapped. Umara growled at him, but Kieran didn’t back down. “There could be more people. She needs to stay safe.”
Umara chuffed smoke but pulled away.
“Hurry.” Kieran scanned the crowd. “Nimue.”
“On it.” Nimue grabbed my arm and tugged me inside, her expression pinched. “We’re in deep shit. That was too public.”
My stomach flipped. Now that I had time to process… Holy Family, she was right. “Someone tried to kill me at the bar yesterday.”
Nimue stilled, and then swirled on me, her nostrils flaring. “Do you have a death wish? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because…” Words failed me. I should have told her. I trusted her—at least more than anyone else here. Why didn’t I tell her? My mouth dried. “I’m sorry.”
Nimue exhaled. “Don’t do it again. I should’ve been more cautious. We knew you’d have a target on your back, but this…” We’d gotten too comfortable thinking the nobles would back down once Umara claimed me.
Everyone was seated in the common room by the time we entered. From the pinched expressions on Gareth’s and Ben’s faces, they’d been told whathappened. It wasn’t like Umara’s roar was quiet. Aurelia didn’t look shocked. Was she behind the attack? Or maybe her family. I almost asked her, but it’d be stupid to let her know I suspected her. If she was behind this, my question would be her cue to be even sneakier.
How the hell can I survive here when everyone wants me dead?
“What happened?” Gareth demanded.
“Two men attacked me. Umara torched them.” I looked down at my shoulder. The cut twinged the moment I looked at it. Gareth jumped from his seat and began healing it.
“It’s a wonder it took someone this long to attack.” Aurelia smirked. “A commoner and a thief?” She snorted. “No noble orpeasantwould accept that. Let alone Andova. Though of course another street rat decided to take the shot.”
“It doesn’t make sense for commoners to attack me.” I clenched my jaw. “Someone hired them.”
“Why do you think so?” Gareth asked.
I scoffed. “They attacked in the middle of the day in an open space. It was a suicide mission. Only someone desperate would take that sort of job. I bet someone promised them a good amount of money for their families.” There were rumors about the underground market… about people who preyed on those desperate souls. I’d seen the look in the first man’s eyes. He knew he didn’t stand a chance. His only hope had been to take me out with him.
