Page 54 of Wicked Queen

I can’t find a single word to say. My heart is pounding in my chest, and I cling to him, feeling suddenly breathless.

“So yeah.” Cayde shakes his head, his mouth twitching. “Yeah, Athena, I fucking love you. You’re the only thing I’ve ever chosen for myself, and this path you’ve taken me down is the only one that’s ever been my own. I love you.”

“I love you too.” I whisper it, leaning forward to kiss him, and I feel his hand go around the back of my head, crushing my mouth to his. “I love you, Cayde. I hated you once, and fuck, sometimes I still do. But I love you, too.”

“We’re in this together now,” Cayde murmurs. “All of us. You’re the only woman I’ve ever said that to, Athena. The only woman I’ve ever loved. And if I lose you—”

“You won’t.” I whisper the words fiercely against his mouth. “None of you are going to lose me, and I’m not going to lose any of you. We have to believe that. Wehaveto.”

Cayde nods. “I’m not going to be a whole hell of a lot of a help, crippled like this. But I’ll do my best.”

“It’s not much of a plan anyway,” I say with a grim laugh. “But we’ll do our best to succeed. And succeed or fail, we’ll all do it together.”

Cayde kisses me again, his mouth hard and hot on mine, and we fall back onto the mattress together, all hands and mouths, sinking into each other.

We’re far from safe. But I have all three of them, completely, at last. And despite everything, I feel something like peace wash over me.

I’ve come this far. We’ll make it the rest of the way.

---

My next fight is the night before Halloween. We’d discussed pulling me from the card, not least because it wouldn’t be good for me to be injured tomorrow night. “She needs to be in good shape,” Dean had argued, “not bruised and hurting.”

But in the end, the possibility of us finding out any clues about what might happen tomorrow outweighs the worry of what might happen to me. It’s too late to get Jaxon into any of the fights, and I wouldn’t be able to get much information anyway, other than just eavesdropping. “I can handle myself,” I promise, looking at them firmly. “I’ll be fine.”

What I don’t expect, on the way out of the house, is to find Winter in the driveway, leaning up against her white Mercedes. Jaxon and I stiffen instantly, and I feel him shifting into fight mode, tense and angry.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jaxon snarls, but Winter just laughs, a high-pitched girlish sound, as she steps away from the car.

“I’m here to tell Athena something,” she says with a smile.

“Like fuck you are.” Jaxon starts to move in front of me, but I stop him, my hand on his chest.

“I can handle my own fights,” I say calmly. “And if she’s just here to say something, then there’s nothing to worry about.”

“That’s exactly why I’m here,” Winter says with an insincere smile. “I wanted to tell you good luck at your fight tonight.”

I blink, startled. “How the fuck do you know about that?”

Winter smiles, tossing her red hair back as she lifts one manicured hand, examining it. “Oh, I know a lot more than you think I do,” she says with a malicious smirk. “I know that you’re going to regret ever fucking with my life, for one. You’re going to regret thinking you could do better than what you were born to be.”

I smile at her, but it doesn’t quite reach my eyes. “Oh? And what would that be?”

Winter laughs. “A pet, Athena. Something to serve men better than you. A rich man’s whore. Not someone whomatters.”

I let out a sigh. “Look, Winter, if you want to fucking start something, grow a fucking spine and actually fight back. Your name-calling doesn’t hurt me. I don’t fucking care what you think, and Dean certainly doesn’t. None of us do.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” Winter laughs, shaking her head. “When you’re as rich as I am, you can pay someone else to fight your battles. You don’t have to actually do ityourself.”

Something goes off in the back of my mind at that, an alarm that I know I should pay attention to. But Jaxon’s hand is on my arm, urging me away. “We’re going to be late,” he says. “Winter, get the fuck out of here before Dean sees you. He won’t be so merciful.”

She just smirks, shrugging. “Have fun tonight, Athena.” She wiggles her fingers as she turns back towards her car. “Good luck.”

The nagging feeling sticks with me on the ride to the warehouse, something tight and anxious in my gut. But I don’t have time to think about it. The warehouse is full, the crowd restless, and I’m about to be up.

It’s time for one more fight, before tomorrow night.

A warmup for the fight of my life.

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