Page 70 of Drawn in Blood
Her head whipped around to find Fen, who was hanging low, hovering just a dozen feet off the ground. His eyes met hers, and he gave her a nod, a grin creeping up at the corner of his mouth.
That was her cue.
She sped toward the Griffins’ side of the pitch, her eyes flashing back and forth between the Brazul and Broja—the blue and red almost turning purple as it blurred in her vision. She crouched on her board, flying as smooth as possible toward the Griffin holding the Broja, speeding toward their end of the pitch. They were tied, and the next point for either team would win the game.
Ember sucked in a breath as Fen sent the Broja hurtling toward Eve, the Griffin that seemed to not be paying much attention to where Ember now was. The Broja hit her in the ribs, and she let out a yelp, stopping in her tracks and dropping the Brazul as she clutched her side. Ember seized the moment, snatching the fiery ball of bright blue light and speeding toward the other end of the pitch. Fen flanked her on her right, and Killian on her left as she weaved in and out of players swinging camans and the red-hot Broja and made her way to the goal post.
Catriona, the Griffins’ captain, came barreling at her from the right. Killian took a defensive position, caman in hand and poised to swing, and used his body to block the force she threw toward Ember. Another player came at her from the left, and it was Fen’s turn to guard her, using all his force to knock the boy backwards, rolling through the air with him as he grabbed Fen’s collar. Ember was on her own now as she raced toward the end of the pitch, and she was so focused on her speed that she failed to take notice of her surroundings—and who was coming toward her with a speed that rivaled Maia racing the waves by Dranganir.
When she saw Veda hurtling toward her, it was too late. She cried out as the caman made contact with her ribs, doubling over and screeching to a halt mid-air. She made to keep going, and another blow hit the back of her shoulder, and the pop that it made as it dislocated made bile rise in her throat. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she tried to move forward, tried to force her board to keep going, just a few more feet, but the final blow to her stomach made her stop in her tracks. Veda flew in a circle for a moment, laughing, and the entire stadium seemed to fall into a deafening silence.
There weren’t many rules in Rukr. It was a very dangerous game, and she knew that when she joined the team. Veda took advantage of the lack of rules as she unstrapped a foot from her board and sent it flying into Ember’s jaw as she clutched her ribs. She then sent her fist hurdling to Ember’s mouth, sending blood pouring down the front of her jersey.
The only rule was no fatal injuries. And while a cracked rib, bloodied nose, and dislocated shoulder hurt like hell, they weren’t fatal.
Ember dropped her hand, choking back tears as she tried to right herself, and Veda quickly snatched the Brazul from her slack fingers.
“I told you you’d regret it,” she hissed in Ember’s ear, and then sped off toward the goal post on the other end of the pitch.
Fen and Killian were at Ember’s side a moment later, holding her upright as she gasped for breath.
“Go get her!” she all but screamed, tears still streaming freely down her face, mixing with the blood dripping from her lip.
“It’s over, Em,” Fen said calmly. “They won. It's done now.”
“Come on, Starshine,” Killian whispered, as the two helped Ember down to the grass on the pitch, unstrapping her from her board and doing their best to hold her upright.
“You alright, lass?” Professor Bjorn asked, as he trotted over to them.
“I’ll be fine,” she replied, trying to smile, but every time she took in a breath, pain shot through her side. Stars began to twinkle at the corner of her vision, her legs began to shake, and she was sure she was going to pass out.
“Take her to the changing room,” the professor commanded. “I’ll have a healer come down.” He sped off in the other direction, mumbling about stupid rules to ancient games, and Fen picked up Ember’s board off the ground. Ember stumbled forward, wrapping her arm around her splintered rib, biting into her lip to keep herself from crying. Killian stopped, tossing his board to Fen, and wrapped his arm around Ember’s back.
“Grab my neck,” he said, as he bent over, readying to lift her into his arms.
“I can walk just fine.” She winced as she tried to take another step, sucking a breath as the pain from her ribs and shoulder began to radiate through her entire body.
“It wasn’t a request,” he replied, jaw set. He hoisted her into his arms, his hands gripping her tightly as he carried her toward the changing room. His smokey eyes raked over her face as he examined her, furrowing his brow in frustration the longer he looked.
“Thank you,” she whispered, tears stinging the gashes as they slid down her cheeks, laying her head on his broad shoulder as she tried to ignore the pain in her rib with every step he took.
“Always,” he replied through a gentle smile. Gaelen was waiting in the changing room for them, along with Aoife, Otto, Eira, Maeve, and a visibly shaken Theo.
Theo.
Ember squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to imagine how terrifying it must have been to watch and how awful she mustlook now. His eyes widened as Killian sat her on the cot Gaelen had conjured, and she gave him a reassuring smile.
Odette stood in the corner of the room, water bottle in hand and brows scrunched together like she was trying to figure out how to help. Ember’s bottom lip wobbled as she sat down.
”Mo Stór,” Aoife breathed, as she wrapped Ember in a tight hug. She winced as her shoulder throbbed, and Aoife took a tentative step back. “You cannot scare me like that. What if something worse had happened?” Tears glinted in the corner of her eyes as she squeezed her hand tightly.
“I’m fine,”she breathed, wincing as she moved her injured arm.
“Oh, my love,” Eira breathed, as she kissed her on top of the head, brow furrowed as she took in her injuries. “You are decidedlynotfine.” She turned to Otto as she shook her head. “I donotlike them playing this game! And certainly not with the Ellingboe girl.” Her eyes were ablaze in a way Ember had only ever seen a mother react, and something about the way she straightened her back and set her jaw loosened the knot in her chest.
“Let them be children, Mo Grá,” Otto laughed, as he kissed the top of her head. “You can’t protect them from everything forever.”
Eira huffed as she crossed her arms. “Well, I can bloody well try.”
