Page 40 (1/2)

So I kicked hiain

"Let’s see how much you can bleed before you die," I wheezed, er I felt My throat screamed in protest as I spoke

I kicked hiun in my hand When I rolled hi at odda hand on my arm stopped me Desmond lowered my arm for me and pulled me away from Hank, atched ide-eyed wonderh," Desmond whispered

"I want to kill him"

He turned ed Anger, sadness and fear ebbed and flowed over hiiven the twitch in the corner of his eye I half-expected hiun froood as I felt

"No one dies tonight," he said

Delicate fingers smoothed my hair away from my face, and when I winced, he did too "Let ive Mercy perht One dead olf, even a sack of shit like Hank, would be all Mercy needed to lash out against ined her sending a pack like this to Mercedes’s door, attacking her and her boyfriend Owen I pictured Detective Tyler Noski being hunted down in the streets and shredded because he knew uys but both hurandht, and knew perfectly well Mercy icked enough to stoop to those levels

Desnation in my face, because he pulled me farther away from Hank, and I didn’t protest He took roup of olves peel themselves off the concrete, and said, "Watch her for a second"

Holden--typically aany emotion other than annoyance--took one look at me and his face fell "Holy shit, Secret"

"You should see the other guy," I tried to joke

Holden turned his face froo back across the street My olf dragged Hank off the ground and into a slouched stand At first I thought he was helping him to his feet so Hank could run away Then Desmond hit him He hit the scraolf so hard when Hank fell back on his ass, he spit a tooth out into the gutter

Once again Desain he hit him

The third tie he was displaying could only get worse, and he’d just told h, he didn’t punch Hank Desot two fistfuls of the other round

"You shouldn’t have touched her," Desh I could hear it froain, I will kill you" There was no flowery language, no subtle violent threats Just a clean-cut promise of death

Desh the brick cracked

When he returned to us, both Holden and I were silent Desentle, but there was a neediness in his touch h He pulledthat was equal parts that of a lover and that of a protective parent I let hiht then I needed it The olves collected the away

I wanted to cry, but it hurt too badly

Holden chi while, and the seriousness of his voice gave ?"

Chapter Forty-One

Blood was disgusting

I tried to wrench my head ahen Holden stuffed his wrist into"You need it Stop fighting ot back to the apartment, and I looked like I’d been in a head-on collision after getting the shit kicked out ofdudes It was bad, maybe even worse to see than it felt Part of that could have been I wasn’t used to seeing bruises onbu of frozen peas--a holdover fro wanted these twoNot that I’d iined it as soht about the riue My whole life I’d survived on the stuff and even loved the taste of it, but now that I was human, it felt thick in ed

"Jesus Christ, Secret, you’ve had it before"

The acknowledgether in Aubrey’s palace and the way Holden had bitten asm that had followed My cheeks flushed, and I couldn’t h he was ainst his skin I was far too aware of Desain what happened," Holden said to Desmond The vampire made sure he held my head in place so I couldn’t interrupt "And you keep drinking"

I sed obediently, but I wasn’t happy about it

Desher onby h we’d already covered that on the way home

"Which I can smell for myself How did it happen?"

"That’s e’d like to knoasn’t in the best position to see as going on, but you were We think the fairy king took her…gifts"