Page 89 of Dark & Dreadful Brutes

The pain surprised me enough for her to roll us both over, but I tightened my grip on her, grabbing her by the arms as my back hit the street.

“Learning new moves, Ri?” I drawled into her ear.

If I could piss her off, she would grow sloppier, and I needed her sloppier because I couldn’t kill her from our current position.

She laughed, but the sound didn’t ring with the joy of our childhood. It was bitter, and cruel.

As much as I didn’t want it to, it made my abdomen clench. Her blade vanished from my side, and blood began to leak from the deep wound.

“Not as many new moves as you, Ravv. It doesn’t get much newer than taking a human mate.” Though her words were slow and sarcastic, she was still fighting my hold.

“I’m sure your eyes and ears in my kingdom have told you exactly why I did,” I growled back.

“A bond for any reason is a death sentence, as you know well.” She finally managed to land an elbow to my wound.

I grunted as she wrenched herself free of my grip, flying to her feet.

Her blades grew quickly in her hands as I stood and charged toward her.

She spun away, slashing at me, but I was already moving again.

The dance went on, the similarities in our fighting styles coming through while we moved the way we had as children, with me on offense and her on defense. Neither of us gained or lost the advantage, even though we both bled from a number of wounds.

My fae slowly lined the streets, watching the fight, but none of them intervened.

“Laeli needs your blood,” Gleam said, not distracting me enough to give Ria an opening. “She’s fading. Whatever she did to that stone took too much of her magic, and I don’t think her body can replenish it on its own.”

Veil.

I shouldn’t have let her risk herself in an attempt to be useful.

I should’ve protected her, the way I was supposed to.

How many times would I fail this woman?

“I’ll be there soon,” I promised.

I snarled aloud, moving faster and hitting harder. When I finally saw an opening, my clawed and spiked fist slammed into her temple. She crumpled to the ground, but I wasted no time.

“Grab her,” I ordered Orvay, meeting his gaze long enough to see him nod before I sprinted toward Laeli.

I reached her a few minutes later, finding her in the home Coarse and Gleam kept in their portion of the city. She was curled up on the edge of one of the massive round cushions the idorr preferred to use as beds, her hair still dripping water and her skin paler than I’d ever seen it.

“Veil.” I dropped to my knees and pulled her into my arms, carefully easing her onto my lap. “Give us a moment, please.” Though I didn’t look at Gleam and Coarse, they knew I was speaking to them.

“Be careful with her,” Coarse growled at me.

I narrowed my eyes at him. “She’s my mate. I’m always careful.”

He glowered at me. “Our souls connected when I pulled her from the river. She’s my companion; protect her better.”

The revelation caught me by surprise, but in the moment, there was nothing I could do but focus on saving Laeli’s life.

So I finally jerked my head in a nod, lowering my gaze back to the fragile woman in my arms.

When I convinced her to solidify our bond, she would grow stronger. Our magic would knit together, and she would become just as immortal as I was. Her body would heal faster, and she would be able to move much more quickly.

But it was too late to seal anything now, and even if we did, there would be far too many consequences.

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